Marine life has been inspiring artists for years, and Khanh Mai found a way to transform it into wearable art. She’s the creative mastermind behind Alum and Ink, who specializes in making adorable enamel pins, often inspired by fascinating marine creatures.
Mai is a designer who enjoys making prints, postcards, stickers, buttons, enamel pins, charms, and patches, based on her original artwork. Nature, dreams, personal experiences, mythology, and nostalgia are her main sources of inspiration, and her creations often put a whimsical twist on the animals we all know and love.
Mai’s signature pins take many different shapes and forms, but she caught our eye with her marine world-inspired creations. Whales are definitely her favorite ocean dwellers, and she created pins inspired by many different species over the years, but we’ve also seen her pay homage to dolphins, sharks, narwhals, octopuses, and more.
Even though many of her works happen to be inspired by marine life, the name Alum and Ink is actually inspired by Mai’s childhood pets.
“The shop name is an homage to childhood dogs, particularly the owner’s two childhood dogs with the same names. Alum and Ink were both well-loved mutts who lived as free-spirits and spent their puppy and dog days romping about in the woods and farm,” she explains on her official website.
