A journey from chipped china to a finished mosaic artwork

A trip to the charity shops

As a mixed media mosaic artist I use a variety of mosaic pieces to create an artwork, including china, ceramics, glass, beads and mosaic tiles.  Many of the pieces are gathered from charity shops where I look for china, ceramics, glass and bead necklaces with attractive colours and an interesting design or pattern. 

Creating a 3D effect

Sometimes when I cut curved pieces (say from a vase or cup), I may decide to keep the curve to give the mosaic a slightly 3D effect adding more interest to the finished piece.

Spring Chorus (sold) on the right shows some curved pieces. Look at some the blue sky mosaics around the left-hand bird and the yellow pieces within the two birds and you may see the sense of a curve.

Creating a secure mosaic

The mosaic pieces are firmly fixed with a combination of cement (outdoor pieces) and vinyl acetate ethylene, a hard wearing and long-lasting glue for a permanent adhesion.  The wall-mounted mosaics and the tiles/coasters are worked onto a MDF board (¼” - 1” deep depending upon the size of the piece). Here’s a work in progress showing you how I build an image.

Mosaics for the garden

I seal my outdoor mosaics (the flower pots and garden ponds) with a specialist mosaic sealant which protects the mosaic from the weather and prevents mould. My own experience of leaving mosaics outside during the winter has been positive - I haven’t lost any so far and they can add a touch of colour to the blank canvas of a winter garden. However, for safety’s sake, I would recommend that you bring them inside if you can, especially any that are worked onto a terracotta flower pot as terracotta will deteriorate over time.

Click here for more information on The Berry Thieves Terracotta Flower Pot

Hanging Decorations

The hanging decorations are created on thin MDF and so are quite light (between 25-40g) and are suitable to hang on a Christmas tree. Here’s a commission of a Running Hare in golds and creams mounted onto thin MDF board. Go to the Running Hares in the Small Mosaic Gifts Gallery.

Welsh Slate

Some of the hanging decorations are made on top of beautiful Welsh pre-cut slate shapes such as the hearts and stars.  These are a bit heavier (between 50- 400g depending upon the size) and are more suitable to hang in a window or on a wall to catch the light. The exact weight is indicated in the description of each of the small mosaic gifts. All my hanging decorations are supplied with a harmonising silk ribbon.

3D pieces: Flower Pots, Bowls and Vases

The 3D pieces are up-cycled from a variety of pots and vases that I get from charity or bric-a-brac shops (usually made from terracotta, stone, china or resin). The base for this vase is made of resin which I found in a charity shop locally. I chose it as I liked the acqua sheen and I decided to keep the black painted stalks of the original painted flowers on the vase to suggest the stalks to the mosaic poppies.

Go to Green & Blue Poppy Vase for more information.

Bowls and Garden Ponds

The shallow dishes or garden ponds are created within old fish or meat platters, also found in charity shops.  Here’s the underside of Pond Life. The old cracked patina is still visible.

Grouting a mosaic

Grouting finishes off the piece by bringing a sense of cohesiveness to the image. It also provides an added layer of adhesion. In making my decision about what colour grout to use, I may choose a grout that will dramatically reveal the pieces of the mosaics, such as a black or dark blue/grey grout or I will select a harmonious colour, selecting a shade that is within the mosaic itself. Here are two Bird Brooches that have been stuck down and are now ready to be grouted. I will choose a black grout to add a sense of drama. See some other finished Bird Brooches here.

How to hang a wall decoration

There are two options for hanging a mosaic wall decoration. Either I add D-rings and picture wire so that the artwork can be hung straight onto your wall (see image below). Also you may like to see The Berry Thieves in the Tiles & Wall Mounted Decorations Gallery where you will see it hung on a wall in a virtual image. This gives you a sense of a wall-mounted decoration which is “framed” with tiles around the edge. You do not need to add a separate frame. It stands very well on its own.

How I attach the hanging fittings

To the right is an image of the reverse of a wall-mounted mosaic finished with matt paint and fitted with D-rings and picture wire. This can be removed if you want to insert it into a frame or use it as a tile. Please make contact if you would like the fittings removed.

Pre-framed and mounted mosaics

Sometimes, I frame my wall mounted mosaics in a plain contemporary white wooden box frame. Red Robin on the left gives you an example of the style of frame that I use.

All the small 2D mosaics can be either hung on the wall as it is or framed. Or they can be used as a tile, perhaps as a coaster or simply as a decoration for a table or propped up on a mantle-piece. Like the wall-mounted mosaics, the tiles are finished with a border of either mosaic tiles or glass in order to create a “frame” or container for the image and the back is painted with a harmonizing matt colour to give a neat finish. I add cork pads to the reverse side so that it doesn’t scratch your surface. Sorrento Lemons (sold) on the right is framed in glass strips and finished on the reverse with cork pads.

Please contact me if you have any questions about the pieces displayed here or in my mosaic galleries or if you would like to speak to me about a commission.