They may look like sweet smelling red roses and tasty chocolate strawberries. But no matter how realistic Wiki Wiki’s Creations may be, they’re nothing but eco-friendly felt and glue.
Which is exactly why seller Alison Carias thinks her felt rose wreaths, chocolates or rings would make the perfect Valentine’s Day gift.
“What better way to express your love than to also say you love the planet?” she asked the Daily Dot in an email.
Located in Hiram, Georgia, Carias works to make her crafts as true-to-life as possible, something she calls “putting on the Wiki Wiki twist.” It’s a nonsense word that her cousin nick-named her when she was little.
The Wiki Wiki twist, or Carias’ creative process, begins in her sleep.
“As for my inspiration, I honestly get it in my dreams. I do all my thinking at night. It is pretty annoying that I can’t shut down my brain and just go to sleep,” she said. “But it is all worth it. The
minute I wake up I start sketching ideas and working on prototypes.”
What makes selling on Etsy especially worth it for Carias, are the warm human interactions she encounters every time she makes a sale. When we asked her to share a tale of love for our Valentine’s Day feature, Carias, who has only been selling since September, instead told a Christmas story about family love.
“A lady wrote me telling me about her son that has Autism and that they kept asking him what he would like for Christmas. All he said was that he wanted an apple to play with,” Carias said, adding that the family wasn’t sure what to do… until they found the lifelike apple toys in her shop.
“That story really touched my heart,” she added.
This Valentine’s Day, Carias plans to go horseback riding with her husband before sitting down to a romantic picnic. However, she’ll be crafting and selling all the way up until the holiday. Since each item is made to order, to guarantee arrival by the holiday, she recommends making an order by February 6.
