Wednesday, March 13, 2024

A New Moon

Each month, when the New Moon arrives, I find myself filled with ideas for mosaics; have to doodle every day and find new things to try. I look forward to this time because I know the muse will keep me busy. That's a very good thing.

This week I purchased a paint called "Dragonfly Glaze" by FolkArt. It's a color changing top coat that is so cool! I'm sure it can be found in many craft stores. I got this from Amazon. I painted the board black, then added the top coat. I hope to do a dot painting on this. I'll share it when I do whatever it is I will end up doing with it.

In the Purple Palace, there is a definite grout pile now! I finished the flowering sun coasters. I really like how they turned out. I'm out of glass again to make another set like this one. But that's okay because I'm not entirely out of glass! If I make another set using this design, the colors will be different and just as nifty, I'm thinking. Each square can be used or they can be put together like this photo.

I painted a canvas using blobs from the acrylic tubes (they are drying up) and using a stencil I put some white paint on it. Eventually I'll add dots here but I have to figure out the colors I want to use. It will wait patiently for me to make a decision. I love that about my art.

I got myself a new set of black ink pens and lots of paper, so doodling can continue. Here are the latest three I've done this week.

Sorry the photos aren't better quality. I used the small handheld device that used to be a phone but has been dropped so many times that the photos either come out really wonky or just a little off, lighting wise. Without losing too much detail, I use an editing app for these things. It works fairly well.



After thinking about it for a month, I decided to close my GoImagine shop and just focus on my website for selling my art. It's a hard time for artists like me to try to sell anything without a lot of promotion. I don't have the desire to promote myself as much as I used to. Now I just focus on my art. There are things available for purchase on my website and I'm adding things in that area all the time so keep the link handy.


Enjoy the journey.

 Cindy aka EarthMotherMosaics

https://artbyearthmothermosaics.com


Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!~Cindy, EarthMotherMosaics


Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Wednesday's Weekly Wrap Up

 I'm calling this post a Weekly Wrap Up because I probably won't be doing much art for the rest of the week.

This week I'm waiting for a few supplies to arrive before I can continue with things. And so, meanwhile, I can share what I've done so far while waiting for these things.

Here's where I am so far with the mosaic. I'm working on the red rays of the sun now. The stars will be next to get made but then it'll sit for a bit. I can't decide if I want to paint the background or mosaic it. So until I make that decision, it will wait patiently for me.

Now that it's been gifted I can share a dot painting I made for the just turned 18 year old young lady in our family. It's 5x7 inches and the background was done using the technique I'm loving at the moment. Dots of acrylics here and there and then using a paint brush, blend the colors together a bit. Always a different result and always interesting.

Some doodles were done before the black ink dried up. Always a sad day when that happens. Photo 1 is probably a reason I have to restock my black ink every two months.

I'm not without other sources for my art doodles and I did use them in the second photo. The color around the black and white doodles are done with pencils.


I used a few stencils in photos 1&2 below. Photo 1 was done with black ink pen and Sharpies. Photo 2 black ink, Sharpies, alcohol ink markers and colored pencils.

The 3rd photo was done using Arteza ink pens.



Finally, here's a photo of the frame I made using cardboard and brown craft paper. I have to say it took a very long time and I'm not sure the result was as I hoped but it's been done and maybe at some point I'll try again. It's good to experiment and experience new things to make.

I added a few plastics tops from the colorful lancets I use to check my diabetes and a clay flower I made and painted.



Enjoy the journey.

 Cindy aka EarthMotherMosaics


 

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!~Cindy, EarthMotherMosaics




Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Midweek Progress

The midweek progress isn't very much, but enough to share.

I got a little further on the 2nd Practice Board. I think I want to add a few little things. For example I'm not crazy about seeing the glue "stains" around the things on the board but the design itself around them is interesting enough to highlight it with maybe a marker or black ink.


I drew out simple designs on two more sets of coasters. Haven't yet started on them but here's what they look like before I add a mosaic.



I starting cutting up mirror pieces for the coasters and this panel below was asking for attention. I made this substrate using a piece of square Styrofoam and covered it in cement to make it solid enough to mosaic on. Not a great photo (it's raining today) but you get the idea. Once all the areas are covered in mosaic I'll put it aside again. I want to see how I feel about the background before I finish it.

 

And now it's time to get back to the coasters.


Enjoy the journey.

 Cindy aka EarthMotherMosaics


 

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!~Cindy, EarthMotherMosaics




Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Art Exploding Everywhere!

 It really does feel like an art explosion happened within the last few weeks. It's almost time to unroll the blanket and get under it for a week or so. Until then, here's how it's been going.

I purchased some pretty mirror shapes small enough for accent pieces. I added them to the latest dot painting and really love the way it all came together.

There's room for improvement with my dot painting but part of that is due to my hands and fingers getting tired. Instead of pushing through the pain, I should stop and rest. I'm trying to be more patient with myself as I am getting older. It's not always easy.

Valentine's Day was celebrated with real tie dye roses this year from my daughter. Of course I had the perfect vase!

The last set of coasters in grey are shown here before grout. A set of four in this design is now waiting in the "to be grouted" pile.

Believe it or not, I finally got the coasters made for the Norway family. The other set will probably go into the shop. Time will tell. I might just hold onto them and the ones above and gift them at some point to someone. It's hard to say.

Had some fun with air-dry clay too. I made some cool flowers. Eventually I'll get better at making them the same thickness and get a few more acrylics for different color choices.

Funky dot painted flowers in clay. Fun to do!

Practice board #2 in progress. I had no real plan for it other than to try something in clay. Upper left is a circle of clay with a piece from a lamp (I think) used as a stamp. I also think it might be aluminum but I'm not sure. It's really pretty, though, so I have kept it handy to use as a template.

I used mica powders over a few different colors of paint. Tried dots around it but didn't like that. Painted over it but there may be some beads glued down over that area. Practice boards are exactly for this purpose, to experiment and see what works.

Some of the detail of the aluminum piece came through really well in the clay. Mica was fun to play with as well.

This one is still a WIP. I don't like the black. It makes the whole thing a little too dark and doesn't convey the message very well. It WAS painted brown but for some reason I decided to cover that up with black. You can see the brown in the word "PEACE". I might have to play with this a lot before I get it right.

 

I made a frame using cardboard and brown craft paper. I'm not thrilled with the stand but I did this all in one day and by the time I got to the stand part of it, my hands wanted to stop. I did continue (see note above mentioning this very stubborn trait) and got a stand but it doesn't lean, it sits upright. That's fine for a first effort.

Now it'll be painted in black and the doodle can slide into place. More of these are going to get made, especially to learn how best to get a stand to hold it at a tilt.

I did a mosaic on a wine bottle too using a broken mug and parts of a bowl and glass circles or gems as I call them. It was made using thinset and although I always grout, this one I'm not. For some odd reason, I like the way the thinset looks coming up out of the corners of the dish tiles. It's not done the "right way" of course; using thinset with a trowel and getting it layered so whatever goes on top lays flat. You can't do that with a 3D bottle. Let me rephrase that ... I can't do that with a 3D bottle.


The stopper is a lava lamp light bulb I put a mosaic on for another bottle but I like this one better for it, so it's staying. Not yet glued into place but will be. Ribbon and twine were added to the top and my own little peace sign signature added to the back by the handle. I think it's awesome.

Here is a bottle I made years ago.

I made a stopper for it and it too is in the grout pile.

I'll share another photo of the bottle with the stopper once it is all together.



Enjoy the journey.

 Cindy aka EarthMotherMosaics


 

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!~Cindy, EarthMotherMosaics





Thursday, February 8, 2024

A Busy Week in my World

 A busy week in my world, for sure. First let me share the mixed media piece I mentioned last post.

This is done on a 4 x 4 inch canvas I painted black. I did a little mosaic of sorts using Lapis Lazuli tiles (loved these so much; hope to get more at some point) within a circle of no bake clay (rolled and then sealed with glue/water mixture to keep from cracking) painted in violet acrylic, a broken brooch, two glass beads and white acrylic for the dot painting. The fairie brooch was a gift from my daughter and now it sits lovingly in front of me propped up by my computer. The best news is that the clay can be painted which means it'll work for future projects using it in mosaics once I get some molds that are on the wish list.

 

Now the doodle art is next. These are usually done in an evening. Sometimes more than one can be done. Others are still being worked on after two days. It just depends on the design. Lots to look at, I'm sure, but all were so much fun to create. I used stencils for some of them, some are intuitive.











And lastly, the mosaic coasters. It was a true joy to work with tiles that were all one thickness. No cuts or DNA was spilled ... that's rare for me! Grouting was easy and I did all 8 in one sitting.

However, it turned out that the adhesive on the tape mixed with the oil I used for the backs (should have done that part last ... duh) along with the glue I used for the tiles made a sticky residue after the tape was removed. I also noticed the scoring I did on the wood was visible around the edges since I decided not to mosaic all the way to the edge. That was something I didn't anticipate and will now leave the scoring part out of the next set. I'm fairly sure just using sandpaper is enough to give the glass and/or tile something to grab hold of.

What a mess! Cleaning the wood with white vinegar and sanding the edges around the tiles again helped get rid of some of the staining and discoloration but not all of it. They needed some more TLC.

The best thing I can do is paint them and I believe the first one I have painted looks good. Thank all the Muse Goddesses who share my space with me!

I might have to put a sealant on the paint but for the moment I'll concentrate on painting the rest of them. I've yet to start work on the ones I'm making for the family in Norway but making mistakes with these is the way to do it. These can still get listed for sale once they've met with my approval.

All comments and questions are welcome. Have a great weekend! If you want me, I'll be in the Purple Palace Art Space!


Enjoy the journey.

 Cindy aka EarthMotherMosaics


 

Support Independent Artisans, Designers and Crafters for your gift-giving needs all throughout the year. Thank you!~Cindy, EarthMotherMosaics