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I run a handmade collective of studio artists, fair traders, and ethical vintage dealers, and am always so inspired by the work they create. Animals are a favorite category of mine and it distresses me so much what is happening to our planet with climate change and everything else we are experiencing. We are witnessing the 5th mass extinction on the planet and we can still reverse it if we work together.

Aside from the importance of biodiversity, animals also give us companionship, provide (and become!) food for us, and are embedded deeply into our subconscious understanding of life. I wrote a post about animals in mythology, symbolism, and culture, you can find it linked down below!

I hope you enjoy these works and find inspiration in them! I'm including some birds in the mix because they are so amazing...

More info: artizanmade.com

#1

Fancy Fox By Laura Lee Burch (Israel)

Fancy Fox By Laura Lee Burch (Israel)

Laura is a needle felter and painter and has done many projects to raise money against animal abuse and to protect wildlife.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/lauraleeburch

http://www.lauraleeburch.com/

Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/laura-lee-burch-textile-art/

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    #2

    Ring Tailed Lemur By Art Of Felting (Israel)

    Ring Tailed Lemur By Art Of Felting (Israel)

    Daria is incredibly talented in her felt sculptures. They are a spiritual act for her and it shows! She has a huge selection in her shop on Etsy and accepts commissions.

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/darialvovsky

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/art-of-felting/

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    #3

    Woven Bird By Amazon Ecology (Peru)

    Woven Bird By Amazon Ecology (Peru)

    Amazon Ecology works with indigenous people on the Peruvian side of the Amazon. Craft production is one of the programs they have to help locals earn money in a sustainable way. Their birds are wonderful! They also make baskets, jewelry, and accessories.

    https://www.amazonforeststore.org/

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/amazon-ecology/

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    #4

    Carved Gourd From Lucuma Designs (Peru)

    Carved Gourd From Lucuma Designs (Peru)

    Lucuma Designs works with several artisan groups in Peru and Costa Rica. Their main products include gourdwork, clay nativities, arpilleras, and folk art masks.

    https://lucumagallery.com/

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    #5

    Gorilla By Rutongo Embroideries (Rwanda)

    Gorilla By Rutongo Embroideries (Rwanda)

    Juliana represents a group of women in Rwanda who survived the massacres between the Tutsis and the Hutu in 1994. The women create textiles that depict village life and wild animals. They blend several threads of embroidery floss together creating a lovely effect that gives the design more depth.

    http://paxrwanda.com

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    #6

    Louie By Laura Lee Burch (Israel)

    Louie By Laura Lee Burch (Israel)

    Laura is a needle felter and painter and has done many projects to raise money against animal abuse and to protect wildlife. Louie is her bully dog and she shares photos of him on her Facebook page.

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/lauraleeburch

    http://www.lauraleeburch.com/

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/laura-lee-burch-textile-art/

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    #7

    Purple Faced Langur By Doughty Designs (USA)

    Purple Faced Langur By Doughty Designs (USA)

    Eileen is hard to try to stick into a box... She makes art quilts, has developed a sculptural process involving sewing on dissolvable fabric, upcycles media into her jewelry, and keeps experimenting with new ideas. The environment is a big theme she revisits in her work.

    https://doughtydesigns.com/

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/doughty-designs/

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    #8

    Doggy Slippers By Hoonarts (Kyrgyzstan)

    Doggy Slippers By Hoonarts (Kyrgyzstan)

    HoonArts represents several artist communities in Central Asia. One group makes cute animal booties. When you go there, click on each option as there are many more designs in the listing.

    https://www.hoonarts.com/collections/zooties

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/hoonarts-fair-trade/

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    #9

    Guatemalan Leopard Mask From Its Cactus (USA)

    Guatemalan Leopard Mask From Its Cactus (USA)

    Its Cactus works with artisan communities all over Central and South America. They have a big focus with Haitian metal workers, but their website is a treasure trove of wonderful folk art!

    https://www.itscactus.com/

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/its-cactus/

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    #10

    Rabbit Pendant By Something Else Studio (USA)

    Rabbit Pendant By Something Else Studio (USA)

    Jannelle did the Renaissance Festivals for years and now focuses on selling online. She makes beautiful bags in many different sizes, along with jewelry, dolls and other accessories.

    https://somethingelsestudio.bigcartel.com/

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/something-else-studio/

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    #11

    Raccoon Pot By Sweetbriar Studio Art (USA)

    Raccoon Pot By Sweetbriar Studio Art (USA)

    When I first saw Suzanne's animal pots I told her they make me smile... They are so whimsical and fun! She said that was exactly the reaction she hoped to get... There are lots of choices in her shop, including casserole dishes and larger containers.

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/SweetbriarStudioArt

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/sweetbriar-studio-art/

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    #12

    Bear By Tija Crochet (Latvia)

    Bear By Tija Crochet (Latvia)

    Tija mostly makes hats and throws, but she made several fun creatures like this a while back. If you ask her nicely, maybe she will make one for you, too!

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/TijaCrochet/

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/tija-crochet/

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    #13

    Peace By Yarndance (USA)

    Peace By Yarndance (USA)

    I'm adding this one because we all live on this beautiful planet and need to find a way to help it recover. I also thought the stitches kind of looked like herds moving along, bird's eye view!

    India knits, creates Temari balls, and embroiders. She has made protest art a part of her discipline and has it documented on her website.

    http://www.yarndancevt.com/shop

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/yarndance/

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    #14

    Horses Swimming By Linnea Pergola (USA)

    Horses Swimming By Linnea Pergola (USA)

    Linnea is a world traveler, animal lover and extremely talented painter. She also draws. The swimming horses are inspired by volunteer work that she did at a farm where abused horses were receiving therapy. Swimming was a part of the program.

    https://www.linneapergola.com/#/

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/linnea-pergola/

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    #15

    Koala By Debra Dorgan (Australia)

    Koala By Debra Dorgan (Australia)

    Debra upcycles textiles and bling that she finds creating garments, jewelry and more. She lives in Australia and has made several koalas.

    https://www.debradorgan.com/

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/allthingspretty/

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    #16

    Antique Yoruba Vest With Birds And Lizards - Itsa Studio (USA)

    Antique Yoruba Vest With Birds And Lizards - Itsa Studio (USA)

    Animals and birds are important symbols in Yoruba life. This is a child's vest and the cowrie shells are also a protection symbol.

    Barbetta is a California artist who used to have a shop. She has been listing vintage pieces like this along with beads and other goods in her shop on Etsy.

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/ITSAStudioArts

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/barbetta-lockart-contemporary-art-and-itsa-studio/

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    #17

    Jackalope By Calaveras Art (USA)

    Jackalope By Calaveras Art (USA)

    Jose lives in Austin, Texas, and has been a personal friend for 30 years. It's been awe inspiring to see him grow as an artist. He also paints, makes silver jewelry, and creates mixed media pieces. His imagination makes my head spin....

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/JoseGabrielMetals

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/calaveras-arts/

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    #18

    Jake The Cat By Castilleja Cotton (Canada)

    Jake The Cat By Castilleja Cotton (Canada)

    Diane creates quilt patterns and has over 500 designs in her shop! She also makes art quilts that are more personal for her, like Jake, who was one of her cats... She is a big horse lover and has lots of horse themed quilts in the mix.

    http://www.castillejacotton.com/

    Finished quilts:
    https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/CCQuiltedItems

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/castilleja-cotton/

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    #19

    Ravens By Honeybee Ceramics (USA)

    Ravens By Honeybee Ceramics (USA)

    One day Beth realized that there weren't many options to plastic light switch plates, so she started making them. She has a large selection of designs, often inspired by nature, along with clocks and art tiles. She lives in California.

    http://www.honeybeeceramics.com/

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/honeybee-ceramics/

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    #20

    Beetle Winged Peacock By Dr Jessica Grimm (Germany)

    Beetle Winged Peacock By Dr Jessica Grimm (Germany)

    Dr Jessica Grimm has a background in archeology but moved over to the study of historical textiles with a focus in medieval goldwork embroidery. Her website is packed with fascinating examinations of old textiles, talks of techniques and her work as a volunteer in a reenactment village. She has a shop with small works of hers.

    https://www.jessicagrimm.com/

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/acupictrix-dr-jessica-grimm/

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    #21

    Crocheted Giraffe From Kahiniwalla (Bangladesh)

    Crocheted Giraffe From Kahiniwalla (Bangladesh)

    Kahiniwalla represents Pebble, a Fair Trade group in Bangladesh that makes crocheted toys that have an educational focus. They have collections of wildlife, vegetables and other fun themes.

    www.kahiniwalla.com

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/kahiniwalla/

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    #22

    Riding The Thermals By Rose Hughes (USA)

    Riding The Thermals By Rose Hughes (USA)

    Rose is an amazing quilt artist who lives in Paducah, Kentucky. She developed an applique technique which she taught for years in workshops around the US. Rose wrote three books about her methods and you can find them in the sidebar of her blog: http://rosehughes.blogspot.com/

    Story:
    https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/rose-hughes-quilt-artist/

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    #23

    Cat On Silk By Singingscarves (Estonia)

    Cat On Silk By Singingscarves (Estonia)

    Maria actually does sing as she paints her silk scarves. She is absolutely lovely (and lately has been doing some dancing around on TikTok!). Maria has been raising money through her scarf sales for relief in Ukraine and has already raised more than $4,000!

    She accepts commissions and can do florals, pets, architectural designs, etc.

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/singingscarves

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/singing-scarves/

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    #24

    Singha Lion From Sir Raffles Art & History (Probably Indonesia)

    Singha Lion From Sir Raffles Art & History (Probably Indonesia)

    Charles has been a lifetime collector of tribal art and vintage Santos. He has a few things listed on his shop on Etsy, but inquire about what else he has. Charles also runs a fun business making sports cards that are inspired by vintage players and their sponsors.

    https://www.etsy.com/shop/SirRafflesArtHistory

    Cards: http://www.helmarbrewing.com/

    Story: https://www.artizanmade.com/profile/sir-raffles-art-history/

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