Golden Willow Door Panel

Hello - and welcome to my site today. Please leave a comment!
I am beginning a mosaic design which will frame out an antique door on my art studio shed. My inspiration is the golden willow tree I planted on my property. It is still young and fragile, but I imagine it big and strong, holding it's own in the wind and rain of the Pacific Northwest, long after I'm gone.

As a kid, I fell in love with weeping willows as they seem to grow high into the skies and hung down close to the ground. They had an aurora of protection and safety to me - all the while understanding my human emotion of weeping and grief. The weeping willow was my soul sister - and thus why I pay tribute to her in my art studio. 

I hold dear the imagery of comfort as well as beauty in this tree of wonder. I'm creating a softness with my mosaic smalti tiles which cover and make up the sky. Their movement and color caress the limbs and leaves with gentleness and peace - emitting the feeling I want inside my studio as I work and explore the creative spirit within me. The broken and fractured tiles make up the limbs and leaves, bringing forth both strength and flexibility through the daily elements of sunshine and storms. Much like the tiles which cover these panels, my life reflects the imagery of them as well.

Here are the humble beginnings of my new project:

Close up detail of the smalti tiles.

The five foot panel to go over the antique glass doors.

Please leave your comments regarding your visit with me today. I value your input.

Sliding Barn Door Mosaic

This is by far my largest mosaic so far - a 4.5' wide by 7' high sliding shed door. It is done in tiles, dishes, rocks and shells with various colors of grout. It took me a couple of months working part-time on it. It weighs around 600 pounds. 
Unfortunately photos don't do justice to the intricacies of mosaics. By using dishes in my work, the reflection off the curvature of the surface magnifies the light immensely - adding a delightful element to the design. The black birds are made from black bowls. 

Here are some photos of the process.

GARDEN POTTING TABLE

As a fun project, I gathered miscellaneous used materials to make a potting table. I used a wooden drawer for the top of the table. I found 4 spindles for the legs and used the slats from an old bench for the bottom shelf. I have several 70 year old wood windows, so I picked one which was the same size as the drawer length. I used a variety of leftover paints from my supply cabinet.

The tile top was set on concrete board which was screwed onto the wooden drawer. The patterned tile were from a thrift store and cost 50 cents each. The peach colored tiles and the blue border tiles were purchased at a local Habitat For Humanity Restore for 25 cents per pound. (The pricing for tiles varies at different locations in our metro area. They have now changed their pricing to reflect the type and size of the tiles.) The table top was grouted with a nutmeg colored grout and sealed.

It's approximate size is 34" wide x 22" deep x 34" high to the table top and another 24" to the top shelf above the window frame. What I realize doing this table, was I needed help from my husband, for his expertise in strengthening the piece, to make it sturdy enough to withstand outdoor weather conditions. 

The table cost me a little over $15 for materials. I love being able to recycle materials to make new items with lots of life in them - and keep the materials out of our landfills.

May you be inspired to do great things. Now, get off the computer and get busy! Thanks for checking in with me today. If you enjoyed the post, leave a comment, pin or follow!

#recycle_reuse_repurpose

A LITTLE PAINTED CABINET

I picked up a little cabinet for $4.99 at a thrift store, brought it home, sanded it down and painted it. I screwed Wonderboard to the top and drew out a water scene. (As one of my first projects, the design detail could have been better defined - but we learn from everything we do.)

I used 1" tiles for the corners, the remaining mosaic pieces were broken and nipped to fit into pattern. I cannot find the final photo of the top showing the details - but you get the idea for this cute little painted mosaic cabinet. It's about 30" wide x 14" deep x 24" high. My precious little 7 yr old granddaughter uses it for her dolls.

OUTDOOR ADDRESS SIGNS

One of my first projects was a two sided address sign that could be seen from the road by traffic going both directions. The sign was to be placed on a property at the beach, so I did an ocean image on one side and a sandcastle image on the other side. 
Here's the ocean side:

I used a combination of ceramic tiles, rocks, dishes and shells. Some worked better than others, but we all need to start somewhere - and this was the beginning of my mosaic journey. I grouted it all in white and sealed. My husband helped set the mosaic sign in a wooden frame, anchored into the ground with concrete. Here's a little closer detail:

And here's the sandcastle side:

Thanks for viewing my early beginnings. More to come!

WELCOME TO GOLDEN WILLOW MOSAICS

Hello and Welcome to Golden Willow Mosaics. If you are new to mosaics, artists can use a variety of materials to create mosaic art. When I work on outdoor designs, I normally use a substrate of hardie backer-board, wonder-board or concrete-board which is fastened directly onto a wood sub-surface. I can also work directly on concrete. Once a design is determined, I sketch it onto the substrate with paint. I use a thinset mortar to adhere the tile, pottery or dish pieces to the substrate.

Large designs take a lot of time. It's kind of like putting an enormous puzzle together, but you have to create the pieces as you go. I determine the color, shape, size and movement needed to accomplish the nature of the piece. I learn from each project I do, as there are considerations which need to be made as the art evolves. No two projects are the same. 

A variety of supplies are needed to complete a design. Depending on what the tiles are made of, they don't always break or cut in clean, distinct lines. There are ceramic, porcelain and marble tiles. I also love to use pottery and china dishes in my designs as they add texture, curvature and a reflection unavailable in flat tiles. In doing so, the surface of the design is not smooth or flat. If a design needs to be flat, specific tiles must be purchased to achieve this goal. I chip away at each piece until it "fits" into the design space. Sometimes that is with a tile saw, often it's with nippers. Supplies are heavy and it takes a large supply to create a design. Considerations must be made for where you desire to display a mosaic as it needs to be structurally sound. 

I am not a big consumer. My philosophy is to be a good steward of the earth and reuse whenever possible. By doing so, I am able to do my part in keeping "leftovers" out of our landfills. So whether I get donated broken dishes, leftover tiles or shop at thrift stores or rebuild centers, I consciously make a decision to reuse or repurpose products when I can. To date, I have not purchased any tiles in a retail store.

Please feel free to contact me with your thoughts or ideas. I believe, together we are better.