EtsyVeg Member Monday: JFIllustrations, the Vegan Claddagh

 This week's member is Julia from JFillustrations. 

This is what she had to tell us on today's question-a-day Member Monday feature.

EtsyVeg: Share one of your latest creations with us and what inspired you to create it...

Claddagh Ring from Ireland

JFillustrations: The Vegan Claddagh is one of my latest pendants. It came to me in an "AHA!" moment. It was actually inspired by a friend that had commented that she thought too many vegan wearables were not feminine enough or pleasant to they eye and always had too obvious and sometimes inappropriate messages on them to wear every day. I remembered her pointing out a symbol behind a package of vegan food that had a simple heart with a "V" on it to show that it was vegan-friendly as something that she would wear.

Having lived in Ireland for the last few years, I've learned about many of the celtic symbols. My favorite, for it's meaning, has been the Claddagh, which is a symbol for love, friendship, and loyalty. Traditionally, it was (and is still sometimes) used on a ring to symbolize your status...available or not ;) Some use it as a token of admiration for others...ie. a close friend. 

Vegan Claddagh by JFillustrations

As a foreigner in a completely new culture,  I think that it's inevitable for me to blend old and new ideas, symbols, perspectives, etc., especially out of things that I admire. I tend to want to give things a new twist and apply my own meaning to them based on how they relate to me. So, I decided to merge the claddagh with my love for veganism to form the "vegan claddagh"...simple, but to me, it speaks volumes. The vegan claddagh is a way to express your compassion and dedication to your vegan or veg lifestyle. The frienship, love, and loyalty that was originally intended for our fellow humans tranfers over to all of the non-humans that inspire to live a life of compassion and reminds us of our quest and dedication to make the world a better place for them, the environment, our health, and of course, people everywhere.