Spotlight On: Crafts and Love

It's probably one of the biggest office cliches you can ever utter, but seriously, TGIF. This week has been incredibly busy, so I'm welcoming the weekend with open arms (and possibly a 4:00 office beer).

Before ending the week, I really wanted to share a line of incredibly beautiful handmade jewellery, Crafts and Love.

I actually discovered Courtney's Instagram account, by following another Blogger - Megan of Lush To Blush. I was intrigued by how gorgeous Courtney's photos were, went onto the website and fell in love with just about everything. Oh - and it's totally affordable!

This was the first time I've bought anything from a small online shop, and it definitely won't be the last. Aside from being able to support amazing people and their creative endeavours, it's also that perfect way to take your basic Gap t-shirt or J. Crew tank and put together an outfit that no one else will have. 

I ended up reaching out to Courtney, and she was incredibly sweet and provided a bit more background information about the shop. 

How did Crafts and Love originate?

"Growing up with two brothers, I realized I needed a hobby all of my own, and taught myself to make jewelry at a young age. I began Crafts and Love in college when I was fundraising for a plane ticket to travel to Nicaragua for a mission trip. To my surprise, it worked! I fully funded that plane ticket and also developed a love for promoting my own creations."

I notice there's a few collections available. Where do you get your inspiration?

"I'm absolutely inspired by traveling; however near or far the trip, I love discovering new corners of the world. I spent a lot of time during in college traveling over-seas. When I started channeling my creative energy into more jewelry collections, I began by focusing on some of my favorite cities. My recent collection was inspired by Versailles, France, which I’ve visited once. I also adore being able to learn more about these cities as I design jewelry collections."

Who is Yerosen and how did you get connected?

"Yerosen is my sweet sponsor child living in Ethiopia. We sponsor her through the organization Because of Kennedy. BoK was founded by Rudy and Katie Gleason, a family I met during my undergraduate studies, after the lost their first adopted child, Kennedy, to pneumonia only months after the adoption referral went through. Their hearts were shattered by the loss of Kennedy, and they were able to turn their heartbreak into an organization to fight for the lives of orphans and the vulnerable in Ethiopia. Today, the Gleason's have grown their family of two precious boys by adopting daughters Isabelle and Brooklyn from Ethiopia. They founded BoK to promote the development of orphans and vulnerable families in order to become leaders in their communities. A big part of BoK is a sponsorship program where families can financially and spiritually support other orphans in the areas where BoK works. We are so honored to have sweet Yerosen as part of our Crafts and Love family!"

OUTFIT DETAILS:

Jacket - Urban Outfitters (Similar) // Lace Top - Joe Fresh (Similar)// Jeggings - Gap (Almost Same)

Necklace - Crafts and Love (Same) // Booties - Arturo Chiang via The Bay (Designer Version)

This is NOT a sponsored post! I just bought a couple of pieces of jewellery and shared this because I wanted to.

Happy weekending, ya'll!