If you have been following Pábitel Photography for awhile, you know I love supporting small businesses. Whenever I am shopping for something new, whether it be a gift or for myself, I look first to independent vendors before moving on to larger corporations. There is just something special about knowing you are truly impacting someone's business, life, and even community with your dollar!
Just this last year, Estevan and I were in the market for a king bed. We saved for a long time before we were able to buy one, and when we met our savings goal a little earlier than anticipated, it was because of a session that I photographed just a few weeks before. Granted, we both hated the new bed and ended up returning it. Had it not been for my photography clients though, we would have spent much longer trying to meet our goal. This is just a small example of how supporting small businesses directly impacts lives and of why we choose to shop small before shopping elsewhere!
While we didn't beat our goal from last year, Estevan and I were still able to support ten small businesses this holiday season! Below, I have compiled a list of the companies we shopped with this year along with a brief description of their services and locations. The holidays may be over, but guess what the good news is...
You can shop small all year round!
the list
The Cozy Mystic & Dreaming Fox Illustrations - If you love magic, glitter, and being cozy, this is the shop for you! Dreaming Fox Shoppe is a business I have purchased through at least three times already. Dana, the owner, uses watercolors to paint "cozy and whimsical [...] fantasy scenes, magical moments, and independent commissions." So far, I have commissioned Dana to paint two portraits as wedding gifts. I have also purchased a sticker through her! Dana's work is truly beautiful. It is very niche and unique; you will not find another artist like her! There is absolutely no excuse not to check out her work either as she can be found all over the internet. On Etsy, you can find Dana's work on stickers and giclee prints. This is also where she accepts commissions. Additionally, Dana has a newsletter and a patreon. Her portraits and commissions gallery can be found on Instagram. If you're looking for The Cozy Mystic side of her business, stop by Instagram and Facebook where she is creating two gorgeous tarot card decks and sharing the process and she does it!
Hot Pepper Jelly Lady - This one is a fun one! Currently, this shop can only be found on Facebook, but I have heard a website is in the works too! The owner, Nicole Bemiss, is available through Facebook messenger, phone, or email. We happened to find Nicole while walking through Chesaning, Michigan's Candle Walk at Thanksgiving. After sampling one of her jellies we immediately knew it needed to be a Christmas gift. According to her business cards, Hot Pepper Jelly Lady's jellies are gluten free and made with cane sugar, organic cider vinegar, jalapenos, habaneros, and serranos. Trust me when I say they are delicious!
Stamped Expressions Co. - I had an item favorited from this shop for probably about a year waiting for the perfect opportunity to buy it. When I finally ordered it and received it, it was so cute! I personally ordered a stethoscope name tag, but Stamped Expressions also sells watch band charms, bracelets, keychains, and necklaces! They are based out of Florida and can be found on Pinterest, Etsy, Facebook, Instagram, and through their website.
X-Ray Girl Creations - This shop is actually one I found through another person's wishlist. We ordered a lovely rose gold badge reel. The quality was exceptional and the rose gold was so shiny! Agata Piekarz (the owner) is actually an X-Ray Tech, so they know firsthand what the medical world wants and needs during shifts. X-Ray Girl Creations is filled with several different badge reels as well as x-ray markers, shirts, tumblers, bags, and more. Besides Etsy, the shop can also be found on Facebook and Instagram.
The Dutchturner - We found The Dutchturner while visiting Holland, Michigan's pumpkin carving festival during the fall. The owners, Jay and Sheri Bykerk, had a booth set up where they were selling the most beautiful wooden items. Because my mom and I love to visit Holland's Tulip Time Festival together, I had to stop by The Dutchturner's booth after seeing that one of the items offered were tulips! These tulips were smooth, beautifully crafted, and dyed several different colors. Unfortunately I do not have much information available about this small business, but I can tell you that, according to their business cards, Jay and Sheri do their best to create "unique wood items with old world craftsmanship." They can be contacted through email using the address dutchtreat502@gmail.com.
PixelWayve - PixelWayve is a digital artist Estevan discovered while visiting Youmacon in Detroit, Michigan. According to her website's about page, PixelWayve loves creating art with bright colors and experimenting with different art techniques. She draws fanart from all different genres and has even written and illustrated her own comic! PixelWayve can be found all over the place too! Besides her website, you'll find she has an Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Discord, Patreon, and Etsy shop. This is another small business where there is literally no excuse not to check out her work! When Estevan found PixelWayve, he purchased beautiful pins featuring fanart of different Critical Role characters. They made the perfect gift for two of our Critical Role loving family members! If this all wasn't enough to convince you to check out PixelWayve, you might also love to hear that all fanart profits are donated to charity!
Fae and Whimsy Soapworks - If you didn't already guess by their name, Fae and Whimsy Soapworks sells... well, soaps! They also sell hair products, lotions, scrubs, and bath accessories as well. I purchased two beautiful bars of soap from them for Christmas this year, and let me tell you: beautiful is an understatement! The bars have marble-like patterns to them and a light dusting of glitter. I personally bought a mahogany scented one for Estevan and a wild rose one for my mother. Fae and Whimsy's soaps are vegan friendly and cruelty free. They can be found in several small shops throughout the lower peninsula of Michigan and at craft sales throughout the year. They are also on Instagram and Facebook.
Over the Top Cookies Goodies and More - Here's a delicious one for you! Besides cookies, Over the Top also sells all sorts of amazing drink bombs. Of course, they do hot chocolate bombs, but they also do flavored coffee creamer bombs?? And butterscotch bombs?? Their treats are amazing! You can find Over the Top mainly on Facebook as of right now, but they are based out of the Flint area and can be often seen at craft sales. I recommend hurrying on over to their Facebook page soon, because I believe they are beginning to work on cookies for Valentine's Day!
Gallery Leather - This is perhaps the largest of the small businesses listed here this year! Gallery Leather is based out of Bar Harbor, Maine and is a company with roughly 35 employees. The company specializes in leather books: address books, planners, photo albums, journals, etc. You can find a small selection of their work at your local Barnes & Noble, but if you would like more options (like I did), you can also order through their website. There you will find a wide variety of products to choose from. I first found Gallery Leather because I was on a mission for my mom. For two years, she had been requesting a new address book for Christmas. Her request wasn't that simple though. My mom needed an address book that allowed for customization; she needed to be able to move pages around to make some sections bigger and others smaller. I looked for what she needed for a long time. Every single address book I found was spiral bound. When I stopped by Barnes and Noble this holiday season though, I found a stack of Gallery Leather address books! They were beautiful! AND, they were set up to act like binders. I quickly wrote down the company name, went home, and ordered online. Through their website, I was not only able to choose from several different colors of leather, but I was also able to personalize her address book's cover!
CSAcreative - This was probably one of my favorite businesses to shop this year! We bought the most beautiful wood wall hanging for Estevan's sister from here. If you're a fan of wood (like I am....give me all of the warm tones and unique textures) and love to fill your home with beautiful art, this is the shop for you! CSAcreative sells wooden wall hangings, calendars, garlands, coasters, ornaments, cake toppers, and more! With just one glance at their Etsy shop, I can tell you that a lot of their art revolves around mountains, the moon, and both botanical and celestial designs. After ordering from them, I immediately followed their Etsy shop to keep an eye on what designs they release next! As an added bonus, I noticed that their packaging is pretty Earth friendly too, which is always important to me. CSAcreative may also be found on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and their own website.
A few of my typical side notes:
Interested in buying your loved ones a gift certificate? Gift cards are available all year round! Send me an email to purchase one.
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This blog post is NOT sponsored by any of the aforementioned businesses.
I am currently booking all of the sessions! Contact me to learn more, or check out my services to learn more about what session types I provide.
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The 2023 calendar, "pábitel photography in the fall," is available on Etsy and only through February 20, 2023. You can see the photos included in this calendar here. This year's photos are also available in greeting card packs, of which there are only SIX left of on Etsy! Contact me with any questions!
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Read about my Christmas session with Samantha!