Etsy, to the third power

It's contest time again here at Cookiemonks!  As you know I got my gorgeous gifties from 3giraffes last week and I'm ready to start something new!

The rules are the same as the last time we did this.  Leave a comment, if you win you have your own PIF, etc.  My birthday, August 1st, will be the end date for this contest.  How fun to choose a winner on my Bday!  Yay!  Let's say bedtime (10 pm) for a closing time.  So I decided my prizes would come from Etsy this time.  I love that place and have found so many neat things there.  Each prize package has a story to go with it.  When a winner is chosen then can let Winston pull one of the prizes out of a hat, or they can tell me which one they want.  Here we go!

1:Frida:  I love Frida Khalo.  It was not an immediate love.  The only thing I originally new about her was that Madonna owned one of her paintings, which was a definite turn off.  But as the buzz for the Salma Hayek movie by her name wore on, I became very intrigued.  I watched the movie and fell in love.  I bought art book after art book and read her biography.  Then, to seal the deal, I saw an exhibit in San Diego of only photographs of her and her loved ones.  I was crying by the end, so moved by her strength and her beauty.  It was so obvious that she was broken, and that made her even more glorious.  She is one of the main reasons I love Halloween like I do.  So the Frida prize package includes these things below.

This beautiful card by catboxartstudio entitled Mourning Me.

It's comes with a matching envelope and is blank inside.  

Another card by the same artist called Frida and the Hummingbird

This one is also blank and comes with it's own envelope.

And this set of four thanks you notes with a gorgeous portrait of Frida by PressaRussa.

These are so pretty.  When I saw them I knew they had to be part of this prize.

2.  Chain Maille:  When I was in High School we went to a choir competition at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.  It rained for most of the time we were there, so it wasn't greatest trip.  One day, while my friends and I were trying to stay dry, we happened upon a little shop that made chain maille accessories.  I had never seen anything like it!  It spoke to my Arthurian Legend loving heart like nothing had before and I new I had to have some.  As my hair was long enough to be considered epic at the time, the guys working there let me try on a head piece that went down my back and was made of sterling silver and Swarovski crystals.  It was like I became a princess!  I still wear the earrings I bought all the time, and people are always shocked that they came from Universal Studios.  So our second gift package will include the following:

  

This gorgeous bracelet called the Byzantine Chainmaille Bracelet with Olivine Glass by lunaarcana.  We need a Lancelot to wear that thing, right?

And these amazing earrings by blackbirdmaille called Punk Chain Maille Earrings.  I adore these, and they're purple like mine!

3. Cats:  I'm in denial about my cat collection but am here to admit today that I have an unnatural obsession with nifty cat inspired things.  Books, Decoration, actual cats...  But it's a fun prize package.  Let's see...

This is a really cute, folksy belt buckle from leatherarts (I can choose something else if leather offends anyone).  It's based on the artwork of a Kuna Indian woman from Panama.  It's called the Flying Mola Cat leather handpainted belt buckle.

And last but not least, to go with the belt buckle we have this Oh So Savvy headband.  I love these kinds of headbands, and the cats on this one make me think of the cats from Lady and the Tramp.  Beckababe made this one;  the Turquoise Blue and Chocolate Brown Cool Lounge Cats Headband.

So there you have it folks.  The second contest.  For a comment question, how about...  What is your favorite piece of art, either official or homemade?

I hope you enjoy this one, I can't wait to choose a winner!