cathy cullis paintings and mixed media

i love these loose and darkly colored watercolor stylings from the prolific uk poet, writer and artist cathy cullis. these beautiful pieces are actually sketches for the a new collection of handmade dolls cathy will make. they are dripping with abundant energy and possibility, that is for sure.

see cathy’s website to see her broad collection of work and to contact her, see her flickr stream for inspiration and visit her two etsy shops to see what fabulosity is for sale (really GREAT work, see for yourself below)!

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claire palastanga ceramics

reader saraM pointed me in the direction of the gorgeous organic stylings of uk ceramicist claire palastanga. the delicate porcelain forms are finely finished, and enhanced with the contrasting addition of silver of gold leaf details. claire is inspired by nature and has long been fascinated by spikey forms with sensitive centers, such as the fruit from the horse chestnut tree.

see more of claire’s beautiful collection and contact her right here.

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outline vase by mocha

i am enjoying the shape of this little porcelain outline vase from the folks at uk’s mocha.

purchase this piece for £29.95 (about us $60) and see many other cool things right here.

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zsa zsa vase by joanna davies

look at this beautiful zsa zsa vase from the uk’s joanna davies. do you see her intention here — to juxtapose an ornate rococo style with the rather staid base form to explore contrast? yes, i see it, but to me this piece looks more like a strange sea creature that snorts water and sits on the bottom of the ocean floor. i reckon, in application, that is exactly what it does. it’s made of porcelain and no two pieces are alike.

bonus: the loopy spouts (snouts?) are a great cheat for beautiful flower arranging.

purchase it (not inexpensively, at £189.00) here, and see more organic beauty in joanna’s designs here.

via cribcandy

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sarah thirlwell contemporary wood accessories

i love the contemporary handturned birch, ash and sycamore home and personal adornments with vibrant acrylic accents from uk artist sarah thirlwell. sarah uses sustainable timber and reclaimed acrylic to create these pieces, and her collection includes vessels, vases and jewelry.

sarah will be exhibiting at the liverpool design show from june 19th - 22nd, 2008. see her full collection and contact her on her website.

via cribcandy via designklub

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steampunk pac-gentleman sculpture

look at the wonderful details on this crazy steampunk “pac-gentleman” sculpture from uk artist doktor a. this description written by the artist says all ye need to know about this 9″ wonder:

“when this game was first released in 1880 it was so hugely popular in taverns and inns that the bank of england was forced to mint more threepenny bits to keep up with demand. the game was created by messrs. nam & nam and co. as a novelty pastime for the masses. outdoing the previous top public house game of shove ha’penny. “

very clever and very funny!

this piece is part of the spit and polish toy show through november 30th at cardboard spaceship in santa cruz.

see more paintings and sculptures on doktor a’s website.

via technabob

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maggie williams glass works

i’m gaga for these gorgeous mouth blown handmade glass pieces from award winning uk artist maggie williams. her studio and shop is located in the village of veryan in south cornwall. maggie is inspired by nature and tropical plants in particular. her pieces come in 30 eyepopping colors. i love her teatime series with life size cakes!

view more work and make purchasing inquiries on her website.

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fun felt crafts from lupin

i like most everything that uk artist lupin makes, but i think these birds and mobiles are super sweet. i’m really responding to her well executed color combinations, especially now, since we slowly but surely will become devoid of them with the change of the seasons…

i have had a fantasy (okay, so i daydream a bit) for a while about having a holiday tabletop tree and only placing bird ornaments on it, so these things are making me go slightly nutty. ooh! if i got a funky modern metal tree i could keep this up year round…

anyway, i digress. take a peek into her etsy shop to see her broad and lovely selection, and be sure to see her great blog too (where she uses great words like “chuffed” and “witter”)!

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