I've been pondering for a long time how to make tiles out of some of my mosaic images. I thought it would be both an interesting project and maybe, over time, a marketing idea. My original plan was to have the images printed onto glazed ceramic tile, but after scouring the Web, I realized that I would have to leave that to the professionals.
In the course of my search, however, I found a site called Above the Mark, which is a site that sells rubber stamp dies and other products, but also kindly offers complete instructions on how to transfer images onto tumbled marble tiles. It's time-consuming but fairly easy, using acrylic medium and laser copies. I've made several so far, and I love the antiqued look that results - as if the tiles had been dug up from an archeological site. I can enhance that effect by tinting the medium so the edges are a bit browner. I've stuck small felt circles on the back so they can be used as coasters (these are 4-inch square tiles). They make wonderful and personal gifts. I plan to experiment with larger tiles to offer as trivets. They can also be hung on the wall; one recipient of a Christmas-gift tile coaster is planning to do just that.
Here's "Flotsam Gecko," brand spankin' new on my work table, ready for delivery to its owner. I didn't have all the same tiles that I used for the first incarnation, and so he turned out a little brighter than the first, but I like the result, and he will show up really nicely on the side of the owner's house. He'll be facing the road visible to all passersby! I ended up using a Liquid Nails product--a clear adhesive/sealant that says "fiberglass" on the tube as one of its recommended uses. Since I also roughed up the surface and reinforced the inside of the mold, I'm pretty confident that everything will stick. The grout is sealed twice, and I also added a coat of Clear Coat spray for extra protection. Good luck Mr. Gecko!
Today is Sunday, the cat is napping and it's too hot to work in the garden, so here I am. This is the first post for a blog about mosaic and art and anything else that I feel like writing about.My thanks to my friend Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson, a wonderful collage artist, who inspired me to start blogging! Her blog is called "Paper Paintings". I love her use of vibrant colors, and she creates lots of birds in her paintings, which is a subject I love as well.The pictures show a sculpture that I've just started. The form was given to me by another friend, Margo Barber, the founder of the Manatee Mosaic Group, which I joined a few months ago. We spend a very happy day once a month inspiring each other with our current mosaic projects at a lovely retreat center in the woods. Margo brought me this duck form after hearing me tell how I like to work on 3-D mosaics. I decided that if I were a plain duck, I'd like to be decorated with something really fancy, so I've started mosaicking flamingoes all over it. I'm using pink glass tiles in 3 or 4 shades, cut into small pieces. The picture shows a start; I'll post more as I continue working on it.
