Fabulous Inedible Ice Cream Finds!

Having a couple of friends who love ice cream as much as I do, including my co-blogger, I am always on the lookout for ice cream related gifts. This isn't as easy as it seems. I searched for quite a while and picked out a few of my favorite finds on Etsy...

I know I am a sucker for tiny things, but these adorable sweaters take the cake...er, um, the ice cream. Kim at Kimbermouse tells me that customers "can order any flavor of ice cream on any color sweater in any size (6 months through 8 year). I have even done mint chocolate chip with mini chocolate colored spots." I am not sure it's appropriate for a 28 year old woman to be wearing an ice cream cone sweater (though I DO love it), I'd love to own a sweater with a collar like this one. How cozy.

I am simply in love with this image of a little girl eating ice cream on this teeshirt by Turtlepapers. What's even better is that you can start your little one off early in sharing your love of ice cream by buying her her own lap tee with the same design.

For the small art collector (small size yet big impact!) there are the ever so popular ACEOs ("art card, editions and originals"). I am completely a newbie when it comes to these little cards. After seeing "ACEO" all over Etsy, I finally just last week wikipediaed the word to find out what they are.

At left, Dilkabear's ACEO painting of a bear holding an ice cream on a stick is one of a kind. This tiny piece (3.5 x 2.5 inches) is painted in a limited palette of gold and yellow, and it seems to be this palette that makes the piece so warm and and inviting, even though it's a painting of a winter day. At $7.00, this little painting is a bargain, and once framed (see below) would make a lovely gift for a friend, yourself, or a favorite ice cream blogger.

Sizing in at 2.5 x 3.5 inches, Six06's little robot holding an ice cream cone is so endearing that one might forget robots are supposed to be cold, metal, emotionless creatures. And he seems to love ice cream as much as we do. How could we not love him? (It's also quite a treat to visit Six06's website if you have a few minutes to look around.)

How might I display these adorable pieces of art? On my cluttered desk, I am looking at a Cakespy original, framed in what seems to be the perfect sized frame. I asked Ms. Cakespy where she got the perfect frame, and she (see below) tells me that she gets these little black frames at Bed Bath and Beyond, and with an opening of 2x3 inches they seem to be almost the perfect size for framing ACEOs (better than nothing if you want to frame your original piece of artwork -- I don't know of anywhere that sells 2.5x3.5 inch frames). I couldn't find them online, but I might suggest you check out your local BBB for framing these adorable pieces of art.

I've been a long time fan of Cakespy's blog and cupcake drawings, but this talented artist and sweet tooth has also put some love out for the ice cream loving community. This little watercolor in an 8x10 mat, chooses no favorites, sharing the love of both soft serve and hard ice cream. These originals are so endearing that you can't help but smile when you see one of Ms. Cakespy's drawings, and priced from $15 to $35 for one of these originals, you can't go wrong.

This adorable ice cream cone pinata from Birchangel might more appropriately be filled with gifts than given as a gift. However, I might just buy it to hang in a child's room, because it is too beautiful to break. I love the texture in the ice cream itself and the burlap cone. Birchangel also caries a variety of other sweet treats for the breaking in her shop. With prices from $14-$32, these pinatas are a steal.

Finally, its not just for people anymore...Bill Pickle's Dog Company makes ice cream cone shaped treats for your favorite pup. These are so yummy looking that it I didn't know better, I'd order them for myself.

Well, enough window shopping for me. I should probably get back to work.