If you love Etsy, you like unique items and you have a passion for creativity and things different to the norm. And if you don’t know about Etsy, it’s time to get educated. Etsy is a marketplace for individuals to sell their stuff. But it isn’t any old stuff. It is handmade, hobby craft, arty, handicrafts etc. It’s a great place for something unique and unusual but you can also find mainstream items with a twist or individual flair. Etsy’s not the only such site. If you love Etsy, you’ll love these too.
Built in the same pattern as Etsy – with individual sellers setting up “shops”, Artfire has the great tagline “Gifts for All: Surprise Someone Special Today”. One of the premier artisan marketplaces, I love Artfire. It is so colorful and the front page is the perfect showcase of the interesting and eclectic products on offer. Find some steampunk earrings for your bestie or a tie clip made from a circuit board for the IT Geek in your life.
If you want something of a more intimate shopping experience try iCraft. Etsy is estimated to receive 10.9 million visitors per month so it doesn’t really have that personal shopping feel. iCraft has much less traffic. You can therefore expect the range to be much smaller, but browse a little and you might find that hidden gem perfect as the gift you’ve been searching for since forever.
Have a passion for fashion? Luulla is definitely a site you should check out. Here, the focus isn’t on handmade or even original or unique. It’s more about just connecting shoppers with goods that aren’t on the high street. The beauty is being able to shop from head to toe in one place in ease and comfort. If you want a zebra print clutch or taffeta ball gown, Luulla is bound to have it. It needs more sellers to become a serious contender, but it’s worth a look at.
With a window into the shops of nearly 49,000 sellers, there’s sure to be something on Zibbet that makes you exclaim “I need one of those!” The site took 6th place in the 2014 Sellers Choice Awards so there’s obviously a liking out there for Zibbet. The site’s tagline is “Discover a World of Fine Art” and there really is some great stuff. If you’re arty and your mojo is in a bit of a slump you’ll find some inspiration on Zibbet as well as gorgeous items to buy of course. All items on Zibbet, unlike on Etsy, are handmade.
While all the other sites I’m mentioning do offer something “different”, if fashion subcultures are where your closet is at, head on over to RebelsMarket. Even the name suggests something a little out of the ordinary. If you hang your hat on steampunk, goth, punk or anything else alternative, there’s plenty of unique and edgy products to drool over on RebelsMarket.
Although based in Europe, DaWanda offers worldwide shipping so everyone, anywhere with Paypal can enjoy the fruits of the labours of some talented and creative sellers. Why do I like this suite over some of the other marketplaces? You know how you can be totally stumped when looking for a gift or completely overwhelmed by choice? The DaWanda Gift Detective comes to your aid. Simply ask the DaWanda community for suggestions for what to buy that special someone.
Sorry American friends but I need to flag the British flag here. Folksy is a site I discovered recently but I’ve already bought most of my gifts from there. Folksy is simply an Etsy clone but it features only products from designers and artisans working in Britain. And just like Etsy, you get to pick from lovely stuff lovingly produced by creative and skilful hands. A great way to support crafts in Britain and bag yourself something fab.
I hope I’ve pointed you in the direction of some sites that will fuel your shopping passion. Please let us know of other great marketplace sites and selling communities.