This week we are featuring Molly Bosley of Found & Feral. Molly's geometric brass jewelry brings joy to all who see or wear it. The symmetry in her work can sometimes take you right inside of a kaleidoscope with shapes mirroring one another so perfectly. Molly is newly a mama and we look forward to seeing what inspiration comes from this journey. Read about her process below!

Who are you? 

My name is Molly Bosley. I live in Winooski, VT which is a “big” little city and I hope in the near future to find a big farm where I will have space to roam and make and think. I recently became a mom which has been so wonderful and also a big adjustment in figuring out how to run a business from my home and take care of my baby at the same time.

What do you do?

I make jewelry from my home studio. My jewelry is made using globally sourced materials like raw brass, acetate, vinyl disc beads, vintage sequins, agate and quartz stones. I would describe the aesthetic as modern, geometric and big minimalist. 

Who/what inspires you?

I have been an artist and maker since I was young and have tried lots of different mediums over the years. Along with making jewelry, I have been known to illustrate, cut paper, sew, embroider, collage and create sculptures from old books, everyday objects and paper. I am inspired by shapes from nature, shadows, old architecture, textiles and pattern in everyday objects. I love to be inspired by other artists and find energy from what other people are making.

What is your favorite moment in the process?

As an artist I approach making jewelry in a similar way to creating anything where I look at the whole composition and how the negative and positive space react with one another. Jewelry is not just an object to adorn ourselves but I think of it as a piece of the composition of our overall style and ourselves as the canvas. I use my instinct to place shapes together and love when I find that perfect balance that clicks.

What is a trick of your trade or a piece of advice for artists in your medium?

Try the unexpected. Don’t make something you wouldn’t wear yourself. Even if it’s not a huge hit, keep trying new things because someone will like it. Keep reading and learning how to be better at what you love.

What is next?

I find it hard to squeeze in time for new designs but I would love to focus on experimenting with new styles. I am currently trying out some designs for bracelets and more beaded pieces.

Presenting our Kindred Artist of the Week series! We are big fans of all the artists we work with and we are so excited to share their stories!

Who are you?

I’m Brigida Swanson, an artist and business owner from Seattle, WA. I’m a gardener, hiker, chicken-keeper and learner.

What do you do?

I work with watercolor to create Pacific Northwest-inspired stationery, gifts and home decor for nature lovers. I run my illustration-based product company, Yardia, full time from my home studio, so my days are a blend of creative work, painting, writing, marketing, number-crunching, packaging and walking to my neighborhood post office.

Who/what inspires you?

I’m inspired by the quiet beauty of nature in the Pacific Northwest. I’m a native of Seattle and the sense of home that hiking through the forest and exploring tidepools on the beach gives me is what fuels my imagination and my creative process.

What is your favorite moment in the process?

I love working with watercolor because it’s a collaboration with what the paint wants to do since it doesn’t like to be controlled too much. I love the moments when I get surprised by what appears on the paper from my brush and the natural flow of the paint. I also love how painting is a process that allows time to disappear once I really get into the focused flow of things. It’s so meditative!

What is a trick of your trade or a piece of advice for artists in your medium?

Have patience with your process, whether it’s learning to work with watercolor, or starting a business. Start to recognize and quiet the voice of your inner critic, and when it comes up in your process, say, “Thanks for your concern, but I’ve got this handled.” Begin instead to seek the voice of intuition, your inner mentor, who can guide you with gentle encouragement and truth.

And on a more practical level, register your copyrights before you publish your artworks! It’s so much easier and more inexpensive to do it this way, and you’ll be grateful you have that little bit of extra protection around your work when, inevitably, you have to put your rights into action.

What is next?

I’m bursting with excitement to be on my way to the National Stationery Show, a wholesale trade show that has been a goal of mine to exhibit at since I started Yardia in 2016. I can’t wait to see how this takes Yardia to the next level as a company. 

See more of her work here!

This week we are featuring Hollis Kitchin, a Juneau-based artist whose watercolor paintings have charmed many visitors and residents alike. Hollis is a multi-talented human who finds fulfillment in all the ways her art contributes to the community, such as our recent Kindred Post holiday card or new set pieces for Perseverance Theatre. Read more about Hollis and her work below!

Presenting our Kindred Artist of the Week series! We are big fans of all the artists we work with and we are so excited to share their stories!

"I think there is a lot of value and comfort to be found in hearing shared stories about what are often really difficult and isolating experiences."

Presenting our Kindred Artist of the Week series! We are big fans of all the artists we work with and we are so excited to share their stories!

Who are you?

What do you do?

I am an illustrator and a letterpress printer. I make greeting cards and other usable art that reflect and celebrate a diversity of identities and life experiences, and always with some humor and whimsy that is so critical to savoring the good times and surviving the hard ones. As a one‐woman show, I’m effectively the CEO, head of operations and finance, creative division, production team, customer service, and intern all rolled into one.

Who/what inspires you?

Creating and sharing art, for me, is a meaningful, tangible way to celebrate real life and real people, to provoke people (including myself) into self‐reflection, and to insert a bit of joy and humor that I think is so critical to finding connection, joy, and healing. In my art, I offer up my own truths ‐ about navigating love and loss, about searching for an authentic voice, about (re)defining family and identity and success, about bearing witness and figuring out what it means to be responsible to ourselves and others. My hope is that others might recognize some of themselves and feel a bit more seen, more connected, and less alone. 

What’s your favorite moment in the process?

When I have a vague idea that I've been turning over in my head and trying to wrestle onto paper for a while - whether it's trying to create an image or come up with the right words - and then the missing piece comes to me in a flash - it's usually when I'm out jogging or on the subway or in the shower.

What’s a trick of your trade, or a piece of advice for other artists in your medium?

Sometimes not knowing what you're doing is what ends up sparking the greatest creativity and a unique style, because you're not limited by the knowledge of how things "should" be done.  

6. What’s next?