One Thing Leads to Another

July was a very busy month for me. My brother-in-law business partner  and I worked our butts off to get our joint venture off the ground. We haven't chosen a name for that business yet but we're creating a whole range of outdoor lights, including lighted stepping stones. I haven't been slacking; I was just more involved with that portion of my life.

For awhile, we couldn't get anything to work out the way we envisioned it. We experimented with resins, polymers, cement mixtures, tints and mold compounds. Things finally started coming together in a more cohesive manner and appear to work the way they're supposed to. We'll see...

Now you might wonder what an outdoor lighting system business has to do with creating mosaics in general. Well, all that experimenting with the various materials got the blood pumping to create my own clay polymer & tinted resin beads, basic molds (for stepping stones, crosses, concrete outdoor planters, bird baths and garden spheres) and anything else that comes to mind. Thanks so much to Sherrie Warner Hunter for sharing all her knowledge and experience in her books Making Concrete Garden Ornaments by Sherrie Warner Hunter

and  Creative Concrete Garden Ornaments for the Garden: Making Pots, Planters, Birdbaths, Sculpture & More by Sherrie Warner Hunter Those books have been invaluable. I've learned so much this past month and want to put that new knowledge to use. Yesterday, I spent quite a bit of time creating simulated "smalti" with clay bits. Some tinted, some not; painted a few but they leave something to be desired; so next, I'll be experimenting with nail polish for a glossy finish. These clay bits will be used on a terracotta frog planter I'll be mosaicing in the very near future.

Before the frog planter, though, I'm going to attempt my first mosaic using thinset. I've been dissatisfied using the direct mosaic method because glass isn't always the same thickness either; so, my supposedly "flat" pieces look like a Ruffles potato chip. It's finally gotten on my last nerve. This morning I bought thinset and admix and I'm going to create a new stepping stone using the indirect method. If the indirect stepping stone turns out well, I'll move on to the frog planter. Wish me luck!