By Briana Greene

Etsy is going to be the reason why I’m forever broke.

Now as a college student, being broke is pretty much a guarantee, but spending the little bit of money you do have on Etsy is like a death sentence.

For those of you who are not familiar with Etsy and have no clue what it is, it is the best thing that the Internet could ever give us. It is an online shopping website that pretty much has everything you could think of, from clothes to baked goods to things for your apartment. After being on this website for a few minutes, I instantly fell in love with it. I especially love the homemade options that they have for clothes and household appliances because it gives it a more personal touch.

What I really love is the homemade shoes, such as the Disney-inspired Toms. I don’t even know what Toms are, nor did I have any desire to buy them, but as soon as I saw homemade Toy Story and Lion King Toms, I knew I had to have them.

Not only that, but the items are so affordable that they’re perfect for broke college students on a budget. You can even pay less for shipping in most shops if you buy more than one item. Now do you see why this is like a death sentence? It’s affordable and they have such cute and creative things on their website, especially under their homemade section. You can’t help but to spend money.

Another thing that I really love about this website is that if you have any creative bone in your body, then you can advertise your own work and get paid for it. So if you’re good at knitting, sewing, making jewelry or making personalized clothing, you can then create your own shop on Etsy and make some money.

If I were any bit creative I would so totally do this, but since I was not blessed with such talent, I just buy the products. I guess this is a win-win, because you make money from me and I get to buy your artwork. Even if you don’t make your own products, you can still sign up and add different items and shops to your “Favorites” list to keep tabs on or buy later. They even allow you to buy gift cards and make is easy to search for products with different browsing options.

So now that I informed you all about this website, there should be no reason not to go on it and “browse.” By browse I mean buy up everything you see and fall in love with, which for me is the whole website. So for those of you who are creative, want to display your talents, and make money while doing so, just go on the website, create an account, and get started. And for those who are like me and have no artistic skills whatsoever, just go on the website and start buying things that you love so you can show your support and get a whole new wardrobe in the process.