Making a Mosaic Coat Rack

In a post on social media a few months ago, we commented that there are a lot of steps to making a mosaic coat rack. So we thought it would be fun to expand on that and share each and every step along the way!

{Click on any of the images to enlarge.}

Kyle starts it off by creating molding from reclaimed wood. We use a few different varieties, with walnut and heart pine showing up most often. Kyle gives the frame an oil finish, creates a backer for the mosaic (also from reclaimed material), and passes it on to Johannah.

Johannah's first step is to seal the backer and mark the outline of the frame to make sure the mosaic stays within the frame boundaries.

Next it's time to select and sort the mosaic material. Johannah likes to combine new and reclaimed material in a way that highlights the reclaimed material.

Once the material is sorted, we finally get to the  mosaic!

After the mosaic has had at least a day to dry, we glue it into the frame.

Once it's glued in the frame, Johannah grouts the mosaic. After the grout is dry, it goes back to Kyle to install his hand-forged hooks, then we stamp the back with the Phoenix Handcraft logo and Johannah signs and dates each piece. Kyle attaches hanging hardware, and at long last, it's ready to go!

New Furniture & Sculpture for Spring

Kyle created a few new pieces this spring that we're pretty excited about. The first is a set of custom benches he calls the Shockoe Benches. There's so much history in these benches! He used reclaimed metal beams and pine trusses from a demolished building in Shockoe Bottom to create these pieces. The metal legs retain the original paint patina, and the original mill marks are evident on the wooden seats. 

The Mosaic Bench is the latest in our custom furniture featuring mosaic inlay. The seats are reclaimed heart pine, each with a strip of colorful glass mosaic inlay. Kyle created an elegant hand-forged base to complement the mosaics. We know we're partial, but we're pretty taken with the way metal, mosaic, & wood came together in this piece.

And last but not least, here's the latest in Kyle's series of hand-forged cat tail garden sculpture with rust patina.

GROWTH group show

This group show has been such a phenomenal experience! We worked with four other artists to create the work for this show, then installed it in a gallery at Crossroads Art Center. Though we didn't design any of the work collaboratively, it all flows together beautifully. The colors, the styling, the mood... right down to patterns and texture.

{Click on any of the images to enlarge.}

We called our show GROWTH in honor of the new spring and the natural themes and materials in much of the group's work. The show features the work of six artists:

GROWTH will be up at Crossroads for two more weeks. All the work in the show is for sale. If you are local to Richmond and haven't had a chance to stop by, you have until May 8. This show is best experienced in person, so stop by if you can! Crossroads is open 10-6 M-Sat and 12-4 on Sundays. If you go, let us know what you think!