These old teacups light up beautifully when illuminated from within by soy candle wax.  Etsy crafter TwilightSpells has come up with a truly ingenious way to repurpose old but still beautiful teacups into very usable candle holders.  The patterns on the cups look even more beautiful by candlelight.

She calls these creations Vintage Twist Tea Cup Candles and I think they'd be absolutely perfect for Valentine's Day or any other time when you're trying to "set the mood".  This artisan put together a love of vintage tea cups together with a new found awareness of the benefits of soy candles over traditional wax candles which are made from a byproduct of crude oil.

She picks up the tea cups from a variety of places -- second hand stores, charity shops and markets so all of these cups have been used.  She has many single tea cups for sale in her shop as well as some doubles so that you could have a matching set!

There is quite a range of patterns and they all look quite gorgeous lit up.  She has pictures of the cups both lit and not lit so that you can get a good feeling for what it will look like in a variety of situations -- whether stored in your china cabinet or lit on the table.  There's a huge range of styles as well from traditional portraits to floral tea cups to cups that are quite simple or modern.

The floral tea cup candles, in particular, would make a great gift for a loved one this Valentine's Day.  This would make a much more sustainable statement of love than that of fresh picked flowers which will soon wither and die.

I think that this is a fantastic idea for repurposing what you already have or what you find second hand and turning it into a natural and sustainable product that is very usable.  Definitely check out the range of candles that she has available.  Remember that supporting handmade items is a way to reduce consumption and waste!

This week's featured Etsy seller is sjroemer who creates some very functional and amazingly pretty designs from washed pop can tabs.  She has been a crafter for many years who's creative fires were stoked when she read about a woman's craft co-operative in Brazil who was making purses out of aluminum pop can pulls.

She definitely seems to have mastered her creative techniques in the variety of purses and coin pouches that she makes out of soda pull tabs and nylon yarn.  The first purse featured on the left, is lined and uses over 400 tabs to make up the exterior and handle of the purse.  The purse has an overall "chain metal" feel while remaining very contemporary in it's overall appearance.  Regular readers of mine will know that I, a) love Etsy and how it supports small artisans instead of major coglomerates and b) love items that proudly display their former lives.  There's no mistaking that this purse is made out of pop can tabs once you take a close look at it.  What a great way to start an eco-friendly conversation with someone in line at the grocery store or show people how stylish living green-er can be!

This Etsy crafter sjroemer shows how completely the purse is transformer by a slightly different design and a different color of nylon yarn binding the tabs together.  Here's the million dollar question though, right?  Where on earth do

es she get all the pop can tabs??  Well, she purchases them from recycling facilities.  Many charities collect them for fundraising and then seel them to the bottle depots.  She in turn, buys the tabs from the bottle depot, sorts them for size and consistency and washes them twice with antibacterial soap before using them.

Need a small gift for your child's teacher or looking for a pretty way to finish off your eco-friendly wrapping of a gift??  Why not pick up one of her pop tab Christmas ornaments?  They're only $4 and are a great way to show that you care about the earth and respect other people's love of the planet as well!  She makes them in a variety of colors and welcomes custom orders.

Does your spouse have a bunch of dress shirts in his closet that he no longer wears??  Try sending them to Etsy seller allthenumbers.  She'll take that little worn shirt and turn it into a dress your daughter will love to wear!  She even suggests that this would be a great gift for a new Dad or a Dad to be.  How about a Christmas gift for that new father on your list?  One day she'll be big enough to steal his shirts from him anyways!

This Etsy seller has a ton of great listings for little girls on her site including peasant dresses or shirts that I absolutely adore, some beautiful A-line shift dresses that any girl would love, reversible pinafores that are as practical as they are gorgeous, some fantastic quilts (some include vintage fabrics!) and a range of ultra girly and comfy upcycled dresses.

This Etsy crafter is clearly gifted in the area of sewing and isn't exactly a slouch in the creativity department either!!  It takes both creativity and skill to see these beautiful dresses from men's shirts.  If you don't happen to have any shirts laying around for your little one to wear, contact allthenumbers as she seems to be collecting them for just such an occassion!  She even has a few Mariachi tuxedo shirts around to make the dresses out of.  These are just simply adorable!!  These dresses are definitely going on my daughter's Christmas list this year!