Carry on making mosaics!

 Hello,

During the lockdowns and subsequent restrictions, I have done what I have always done, made mosaics!  I am lucky enough to have my studio at home, so have been able to get on with my work.  It has been great to have it - to be creative, grounding myself in the studio, busy with something I love doing!

I have made a lot of house numbers over the months as people have spent more time at home and decided to order one - click here to order

 

Also flowers have definitely been on the agenda, as gardens have been appreciated more, and clients have wanted favourite blooms immortalised in tiles!

I have been taking stock of all the tiles in my studio and replenishing supplies - so grateful that I can buy such a range of colours, especially in the porcelain tiles for my exterior mosaics. I get them from here - view tiles here

I have made two firsts over the past few months - a mosaic hedgehog wall hanging and a leaping frog splash back - I always like a challenge and love creating new things!

In the new year, I am looking forward to making a large seascape mosaic for a bathroom, two long flower mosaics to go on a verandah and a house name mosaic amongst other things!

As always, I love to hear from you, and if there is ever anything I can make you, or a project you would like to discuss, do get in touch - Email me here

All the best,

Felicity

Wave mosaic made from a broken plate

Hello blogger friends,

I hope you are all keeping well.
Following on from the mosaic paving stones, my next commission was an unusual one.

A client sent me a favourite plate, that, as can happen, was broken.  She wondered if I could make it into a mosaic, so all would not be lost.

As you can see, the colours and pattern of the plate pieces were lovely and were perfectly suited to a wave mosaic.  So I salvaged all that I could and trimmed them into shapes I could use.

When I had stuck on them the board using their natural wave shapes, I filled the spaces in with complementary coloured tiles and shapes.

The grouting was tricky as there were so many different thickness of the original plate pieces.  However this variety really added to the movement and atmosphere of the mosaic, so my cut fingers were definitely worth it! See below how well the grey grout brings it all together.

We then recommended that the mosaic would look even better if it was framed on a plain white board, and ... voila!

I am so glad to say my client was really pleased with the finished piece, as you can see in the review she kindly wrote for me here - https://www.yell.com/biz/felicity-ball-mosaics-bristol-8556217/

Thanks for reading, and if you have a moment, please take look around my lovely new website - www.felicityballmosaics.com

Felicity x

Lockdown mosaics

Dear Blogger Friends,

As I write this from the UK, we are entering our second week of lockdown due to the coronavirus.  Best wishes to all of you, wherever you are.

As a mosaic artist, I am lucky enough to have my studio at home, so work has not changed drastically for me.  As all this unfolded, I challenged myself to keep busy everyday.  It is great to try and be creative and productive, whatever you do.

A few days ago I finished my first project - a mosaic paving stone (one of four) to go on the patio my husband is laying around our new summerhouse, which arrived just in time.

I knew exactly the vibrant, uplifting pattern I would do, as I have made it on a number of my bistro tables before - see below.

It is such a versatile and colourful design that I knew would always bring me joy - especially, as I asked each member of my family to choose three of their favourite colours (from my selection of porcelain tiles below) and their favourite shape for me to include in the design!

The collage below shows how I have gradually made the mosaic over the past few weeks - trying to vary the position and choice of colours to give the paving stone as much zing as possible.

After the mosaic had been grouted and sealed and left over night to dry, it was time to install it in the patio - 

And there it is, hopefully for a long time to come!  I have three more mosaic paving stones of a similar design to make over the coming months, and I will ask my friends now to choose their three favourite colours to include in them. 

Many thanks for reading - it would be great if you could share it with any friends who you think might be interested.

All the best, until next time,

Felicity x

Happy new year, blogger friends!

These Kandinsky inspired mosaics are particularly versatile, as I can make any size or colour combo, for any spac.

Every year over Christmas, like most people, I take a break from my work of snipping and making mosaics, and I always wonder whether this will be the year that I don't miss it.  But as I wave my two sons off to uni, and my daughter starts the school term again, I find myself itching to get back in the studio and to start creating again!  This always comes as a relief as what I do really has to be something I WANT to do.  The odd mosaic I have made when my heart isn't in it, still remain in a box under my studio table!

A selection of my flower mosaics 

The lovely thing about the media of mosaics, is that I never know what I will be asked to make next, as it is so versatile - from floors to wall art to signs to furniture to doorsteps, for inside and out - there is never a dull moment, and I feel very grateful for that.  I like to think I can turn my hand to most things now, and I really enjoy being presented with a challenge.  Over the years I have collected all sorts of tiles - colours, textures, depths - and I really enjoy trying to use them in as many inventive ways as I can.  My snipping skills have improved over the years (with a lot of practice), and I can now create most shapes I want to, to create a specific effect or atmosphere.

My original mosaics can come in all shapes and sizes and can be used for all sorts of things!

The colour of the grout I use also makes a big difference to the overall look of the final mosaic - different shades bring out different colours.  I always do a test piece first before grouting the whole piece just to be on the safe side - it is almost impossible to ungrout a mosaic!

See how different coloured grouts bring out different coloured tiles!

So with all these options and possibilities, I look forward to the variety of mosaics I hope to create in 2020, and hopefully provide some joy with their originality and vibrancy.  I will share them with you as the year progresses, so do keep a look out for my posts.  Maybe one day, a mosaic I create for you will feature here ... www.felicityballmosaics.com

A collection of mosaic bistro table designs - practical and a work of art!

Many thanks for reading, and do get in touch if there is a mosaic you would like me to make for you.
felicityball@justmosaics.co.uk

Felicity x