Collections: Unusual Vintage Padlocks

Sometimes it's just fun to see some vintage curiosities.

In this case, old antique padlocks in odd shapes and designs.

Unusual and decorative, function meets art.

An edgy painted padlock is featured in my post

Surreal Paintbrush Portraits by Alexandra Dillon

Another post on "Collections"~

Vintage Pyrex

Karen Nicol’s Innovative Textile Design

Karen Nicol, of London, England, is a marvelously imaginative textile artist!

At a young age, she fell in love with embroidery and determined to make it her career.

With the courage to reach beyond the expected, she collaborated 

with others to design textiles for fashion and interiors,

finally exhibiting her work in galleries under her own name.

She's experimented with laces and has showcased her designs 

through a series of animals, including 2D and 3D embroidery.

Karen’s textile artistry is nothing short of innovative. 

She is passionate about embroidery and loves to teach and encourage others.

Enjoy this selection of her various works.

Karen's book, Embellished: New Vintage,

is a visual banquet of her vintage and textile treasures.

Visit Karen's website.

Images used with direct permission from Karen Nichol.

Kimmy McHarrie’s Marvelous Mosaics

I am a big fan of mosaics.

I have such an appreciation for the talent and time required for this art form.

I can't imagine the scope of the steps involved and 

how tedious it must be to perfectly place each individual piece.

Patience. Concentration. Passion.

Today I'm featuring the work of Kimmy McHarrie,

who studied traditional mosaic art in Ravenna, Italy, 

home of the famed Byzantine mosaics.

Kimmy uses Venetian glass, marble, glass, stone, shell and terracotta.

Her website, Kimmy McHarrie: Artworks in Glass and Stone,

features a portfolio sectioned into Land, Sea and Sky, the sources of her inspiration.

Take a look at these beautiful mosaics!

See more of Kimmy's work here.

Images used with direct permission from Kimmy McHarrie.

Western Americana Collages by Dolan Geiman

I'm always infatuated with collages.

I guess it's because I have an appreciation of the

time consuming steps of this particular art form:

not only sketching the subject, but also

finding and collecting the materials

and piecing it all together.

Dolan Geiman is a true master of mixed media collages.
His creations are western Americana, folk art inspired.

He gathers vintage ephemera, and scraps of discarded wood and metal,

as well as other interesting found materials,

and re-purposes them into a new life as brilliantly assembled art.

His work is very detailed; one can imagine the process as he 

meticulously selects and positions each intricate piece.

Based in Colorado, Dolan and his wife and business partner Ali Marie

traverse the country from one show to another.

Dolan also creates amazing faux taxidermy!

Dolan Geiman can be found here:

Website

Facebook

Etsy

Instagram

Twitter

Images used with direct permission from Ali Marie Geiman.

Mariann Johansen-Ellis' Prints from Linocut Heaven

I'm always attracted to linocut prints.

They're labor-intensive works of art. Primitive, rough and rustic.

Mariann Johansen-Ellis is an extremely talented printmaker from Denmark.

I'm showing off my favorites from her Etsy shop, Linocut Heaven.

Where to see more of Linocut Heaven:

Website

Etsy

Facebook

Mariann also prints her designs on lovely French linen pillows like these:

You can find them at another Etsy shop called Cushion Cushion.

Images used with direct permission from Mariann Johansen-Ellis.