Eyes and Respect

 Aye aye, Captain Eye!  This is my friend Matthew Nix.  We met through Etsy where we both sell our work.

He is a maker of some beautifully detailed breathtaking wire wonders that befuddle me.

Me and wire just don't mash , and all the things I am not very good at, I have tremendous appreciation for.

 Just look at this! I can't even begin to understand how people do this kind of work.

Well, he does and he does it really really well.

 Matthew is not only talented but a genuinely nice person.

He is very much into steampunk, and quite a few years ago, when he realized that there were just no cool eyeballs on the market, he decided to dream up some and make his own. He indeed was the very first person to sell them on Etsy, and his offerings have expanded as the years went on.

He has a selection like no one else out there. Here is a link to Matt's Etsy store:

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

I have been a huge fan of his stuff for about 2 years now. Recently I started making some of my own glass cabs, but mine are very different from his.

 Mine have butterfly wings and leaves in them.

Looking at these some friends asked me why I would not make my own eyes, they can't be THAT hard.

Well, I will tell you all why I don't:

Because there is right and there is wrong. 

Matt has recently asked his beloved Mandy to marry him. They are starting a life together, and times are hard for everyone. Making jewelry and making those  eyes are Matt's source of income. His only source of income. And he is doing ok, in fact, he even hired his friend to help out with the production. How cool is that? I love that I can support him in his effort to maintain a good life by buying his well crafted goods.

In all honesty I don't think I buy enough to be that much of a help, but I sure hope that every time I pass his   name on to all my beady buds, they spend some money with him too.

The thing is, when we decide to cut corners and have an attitude that "oh yeah, I can do this cheaper", and here is someone else's idea that took them years to get right, but it only takes me a little while to "make it mine", it's not a little boo boo, it's an ethical blunder.

Of course people experiment with all sorts of things at home, and we all see pictures of handmade goods we like and if we make similar things for our own use, that's ok, no harm done.

But respect is respect, do not bite the hand that feeds you and do unto others as you would have them do onto you. That's why this frog is not making eyes!

 Because there is someone in the eye business that I want to give my business to, and want all my bead buddies to enjoy his well crafted delightfully creepy creations  as long as he keeps on making them.

And surely with all the wonderful eyes out  there, we can all create our very own pieces of art, that reflects our heart and soul. Thank you Matt!