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Tuesday 28 October 2014

Thoughts in preparation for Remembrance Day

I have been thinking a lot about Remembrance Day in November.  It is such a moving time, and I have no real idea what it must have been like for those who didn't come back, and for those who did.  All we can do is remember them, in gratitude.
I have been collecting some images for short Remembrance Day film I am going to make - nothing Hollywood - just something I have thought of which might us help not to forget..

I made this large poppy mosaic for the Royal British Legion
Here is the Pinterest link to my poppies board - http://www.pinterest.com/justmosaics/poppies-lest-we-forget/ and here is how I made this mosaic poppy - http://justmosaics.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/how-i-made-mosaic-poppy.html

This bunch of poppies mosaic is available to order from my website - www.felicityballmosaics.com

Then I am going to you use some of the Crossley Park mosaics I made, where I took my designs from children's paintings commemorating the 1st World War - http://justmosaics.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/a-special-mosaic-commission.html



..and using excerpts from the poem 'For the fallen' by Laurence Binyon
I am hoping it will come together well, though, if my past experience with iMovie is anything to go by, it may take a while!
Do keep a look out for the film, and I hope it helps you to take a moment to remember..
Felicity x

Friday 17 October 2014

Happy mosaic!

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to share with you my latest mosaic, which makes me feel very happy!



I love the thought of my client coming home to it every day!

If it makes you happy, please share :-)

Felicity x

Tuesday 7 October 2014

Mosaic agapanthus flower picture - and how I made it!

Hello blogger friends!

Have you checked out all the new features on my side bar..? I have been hard at work trying to make my blog an even lovelier place for you to visit - what do you think?!

My latest commission was an agapanthus mosaic, which has been tricky, I can tell you!  I took loads of photos of them when we were on holiday in St. Ives, Cornwall this year - they were GIANTS compared with the ones we have in our garden.
A beautiful white agapanthus taken on holiday

So, I've been looking at those for inspiration, and Google images is always a good source of info.  I drew the general shape and perspective on my piece of exterior plywood first, then went to my vast palette of tiles to find the right blues/purples.  I wanted different depths of tiles to bring the mosaic to 3D life, and different textures as well.  When you see one of my mosaics in the flesh, as it were, you'll know how important that it is, and what a difference it makes!
Part of my research on Google images

I liked the shape of the agapanthus in this painting

My first agapanthus blooms were too light - I had too much of the light purple in them, so I took them out with my trusty screwdriver. Already it looked better - more delicate and true to that gorgeous agapanthus blue.  I added a few more flowers of the darker blues to give it that rounded feel, of one flower, made up of many flowers, cutting each piece carefully to fit the space, but not too perfectly as nature isn't like that, is it?!

Happy with the blooms, and after a good coat of looking, the stem and the leaves were easy - I had just the right shades of green to give them a feeling of shadow and life.  I did put a leaf above the blooms - but NO! - that was all wrong, and in all the images I looked at of agapanthus, none of them had leaves above the blooms - so, out it came!

I like borders sometimes, and I just felt a border at the top and the bottom, in that lovely blue,  would emphasise the height and colour of the agapanthus, and I am really pleased with how it turned out.

Finally the grouting in my faithful brown tinted grout which never fails to bring all colours out beautifully, and painting the sides and the back in a contrasting blue - done!
And here it is ....always better in real life, of course!

I love a challenge, and this mosaic certainly was one - but it's lovely to be asked to make different mosaics and see what I can come up with!

If you have a crafty friend who you think would enjoy my blog, it would be great if you could share it with them.  I now have a very smart tab on the side section over there (points right!) for you to receive my posts by email if you would like - set it all up by myself, I did!

Thanks for reading and I always love to hear from you!

Felicity x


Saturday 4 October 2014

Just Mosaics is now Felicity Ball mosaics!

Hello everyone,

Just to let you all know that I have changed the name of my original mosaic art business!

I have been thinking about it for a while, and I send off my latest big commission, I thought it was either now or never.  I asked far too many people for their opinion, until my brain felt scrambled!  Then one morning I woke up and thought - 'Hey!  This is MY business and If I want to change its name to make it more personal to me, I will!' - so after a lot of sorting out, I have - welcome to Felicity Ball mosaics!

I love my new branding too - it's really given me a boost! Dare I ask, what you think ..?


Also blogger friends, if you like reading my blog, please would you share it with people you think might enjoy reading it too?  THANK YOU.

I have lots of exciting plans for my blog in the future, so I am hoping that it is a place you will look forward to visiting.  I have just updated my website too if you fancy a look - www.felicityballmosaics.com

Many thanks,

Fx