Category Archives: Mosaic Workshop

Fused Glass – Part 2

Posted on August 4, 2019 | 4 comments

So it was with great excitement and anticipation that I set off again for the Piccadilly Line to Stoke Newington to collect my fused glass pieces I had made the previous week at my beginners’ lesson at Rainbow Glass Studios. This time we made it a family activity as Alan and I arranged to meet our nephew Tom who lives near there. We headed to the lovely Clissold Park again and had coffee and cake with Tom in the café before heading off down the High Street to the studio.

Eleanor (my brilliant teacher) handed over all my ‘treasures’ and was happy to answer the  long list of questions I had thought of since my lesson.  Tom came into the studio with me. He is the creative nephew in the family and does fantastic animation and illustrative drawings (you can find him on Instagram – Tom Henneberry). He was fascinated by all the lovely glass, cutting equipment and kilns. While I ‘oooh’d and aahhh’d’ over my pieces Tom and Eleanor were chatting and realised they were neighbours!

 

We then went for a nice lunch in the garden at The Clarence pub before buying our supper at the butchers. We then parted company with Tom and set off home so I could play with all my lovely spoils.

 

I can see great potential for using all sorts of fused glass shapes in my mosaics in future. I have a feeling it may become expensive!!!

 

 

 

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Posted in Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Inspiration, Mosaic Workshop, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

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Review of 2018

Posted on December 2, 2018 | 2 comments

As the year is rapidly disappearing and it will soon be time to focus on the festive season, I thought it would be a good time to look back on 2018.

The year started in January with me agreeing to join the Ealing Art Trail (BEAT) Committee. I had taken part in BEAT 2017 and was so impressed with how well it had been organised that I said to Kitty I would be happy to do the odd job to help out.  Kitty said she would really like me to join the Committee and although I didn’t really want to, how can you say no to Kitty! So reluctantly I joined as the self appointed ‘Brochure Queen’ and I have to say it has been a great experience. A lovely, dedicated, focussed team of people, who got on with the job and delivered another great BEAT event in 2018. Needless to say I will be staying on the 2019 Committee.

Brand New Studio – yipppeee

Early in the year I had my studio refurbished in order to give me more work space and I have been putting it to the test. I have 2 large work areas as well as a small desk/computer area and loads of shelf space for tiles, materials and all my paperwork. The layout works perfectly and I am able to work on several pieces at the same time. This was especially useful when I received my 2 large commissions in the summer and was able to accommodate and work on both of them. As I seem to be moving towards larger work the extra workspace is proving to be essential.

BEAT Ealing Art Trail was a great success for me again this year. People say that your 2nd year is not usually as good as the first but I found this not to be the case. I had more visitors, made more sales and had more people interested in lessons.

Following on from the success of BEAT I have had a spate of giving Beginner’s Mosaic lessons to people who came to view my work, liked what they saw and wanted to have a go. I really enjoy teaching people a new skill and as I work with small groups of 3/4 people at a time, there is lots of 1-2-1 time and I am able to give everyone my full attention and encouragement. As several people have asked for an intermediate lesson I am currently working on that so I hope to  come back in the New Year with some dates.

Hilary and Pauline with the Marple Mosaic

You may remember my lovely ladies who I made the Marple Mosaic for. We have all become good friends and this year we saw them 4 times! Which proves that a mosaic is not just for Christmas but for life! On their last visit I was able to present them with their joint birthday present – a Tree of Life mosaic. They were delighted with the piece and have already decided where it will go. I am looking forward to seeing a picture of it in situ.

Hours of fun

So another great mosaic year. I seem to be moving to bigger pieces, larger commissions and I have a fancy to try some 3D mosaic art next. I am still in 2 galleries: North East Art Collective and the Tower House Gallery which have regular sales and BEAT is now a fixed event on the calendar and my main showcase. So keep reading my Blog and do sign up to my Facebook Page to get regular news – always accompanied with a mosaic picture.

 

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Posted in Commissions, Exhibitions, Galleries and Events, Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Lessons, Mosaic Workshop, My Mosaic Journey, Rosanna Mosaic Artist

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Mosaic Anniversary

Posted on July 29, 2018 | 2 comments

My First Mosaic

Today is my mosaic anniversary.  Eleven years ago I met Julia for the first time who introduced me to mosaics. The story is well documented but I still smile when on leaving she said to my hubbie Alan “You won’t believe what she has got into” and I said “No, I ‘ve made one mosaic but I don’t think I’ll be doing anymore”  Talk about famous last words!!!

Since then I have made hundreds of mosaics – it would be interesting to know exactly how many but it is impossible to count them all. I have exhibited at a National Trust property 3 times, had several commissions, been part of Richmond Open Studios twice and this year is my second time in BEAT Ealing Art Trail. I have given lessons and talks on mosaics as well as working on a 2 year community project.  I am in 2 galleries, a professional member of BAMM (British Association for Modern Mosaics) and I have also appeared on TV. So much for my blasé comment to Julia!

Log Cabin Community Project

I often wonder what I would have done had I not got into mosaics. There is no doubt that I spend a lot of time not only making them, but also thinking about them, planning, designing, updating my website and Facebook. Wondering what new areas they can take me to……..an RHS Garden Show would be a dream come true – I’m just putting it out there!

But for me the most important thing was that eventually I found my artistic medium. So, have a look at my short video to follow my journey so far.

CLICK ON THE IMAGE

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Posted in BAMM, Commissions, Exhibitions, Galleries and Events, Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Lessons, Mosaic Website, Mosaic Workshop, My Mosaic Journey, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

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2018 Picture Highlights

Posted on July 1, 2018 | Leave a comment

As is usual around this time I show my picture highlights for the first half of the year. Here they are for 2018.

MOSAIC LESSONS THIS YEAR

AND LOOKING FORWARD TO………….

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Posted in Exhibitions, Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Lessons, Mosaic Workshop, Outdoor Mosaics, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

Mosaic Lessons for Beginners.

Posted on April 15, 2018 | Leave a comment

Although we are only a quarter way through 2018 I have already given mosaic lessons to 10 beginners.

I run a one day Beginners’ Mosaic Lesson, not on a regular basis but ad-hoc as and when people request them.  Once someone is interested and a suitable date confirmed, then I will see if other people would like to join. I have built up a small waiting list and I also go onto the local Facebook Groups.

Phil with his allotment number

I stated giving lessons a few years ago when people said they liked my mosaics and would I show them how to get started.  I have done a lot of training in my past professional life so am not daunted by  running lessons. Over the years the format has been tweaked and changed and at last I can say I am confident I have the correct format.

In doing a one day lesson there have been a few problem areas that I have struggled to get right. Firstly, some people are a bit over ambitious – they go on the internet (which is a wonderful thing but……) see all the lovely mosaic art and assume they will be able to achieve those results in a day.  Some can but others can’t – the more complex a piece is, the more cutting required – and that is the hard/fiddly bit. Until they start on their piece it is difficult for me to judge how easy they are going to find it, by which time they may already have in mind a very complex design.

Gilly & Claire

Secondly, I used to have a huge range of ‘base’ materials for people to select from, all different shapes and sizes. I did this because I wanted people to see the range of items that can be mosaiced. However, this often gave the problem of too much choice – where do I start, indoor or outdoor, decorative or functional? And this was before they even thought of a design. Also, people like to go big and then found they ran out of time. Ideally the aim is to go home with a completed mosaic.

Thirdly, in order for the mosaic to be complete, it needs to be grouted. To make a mosaic, give it time to dry, settle and then to grout and clean it is a big ask in one day. Should people come back another time, should it be a 2 day course, should I demonstrate grouting and they do it later at home? All my lessons always ran over time. People were wanting to stay to finish, which was not a problem but…… as it was every lesson there was obviously a common factor involved – it must be me!!

Sue and sister Fiona

My friend Sue recently had a beginner lesson with her sister Fiona and I asked her for some honest feedback. The comments she made have been constructive and invaluable. The key point that stood out was that I needed to “manage expectations”.  Whilst I don’t want to rain on people’s creative parade, I did realise that I needed to keep a tighter rein on things, after all, I am the one who is aware of poential issues.

Maureen, Christine, Vali and Paula

As is often the case, once you realise the problems, it is quite easy to find solution. I now issue all people with the same base, it can go indoors or outdoors and eliminates all that mind-boggling choice so early in the day. People can still be as complex or basic as they want on their design. I have also made several samples so they get ideas, see different style and techniques and therefore have an idea of what they may expect to achieve in the time available. I know that if someone is really struggling to complete their piece in time, I can always help out at the last minute as I know the piece isn’t too big to get finished.

This model seems to be working well and the recent sets of lessons finished well within time with all pieces grouted and completed. Happy new mosaic makers and a happy, relaxed teacher!

If you would like to come on a lesson drop me an email and I can send you an Information Sheet with all the details. I usually have 4 per session but can cater for larger groups as requested.

 

“I had a really enjoyable day being creative and with wonderful support from Rosanna.”  Gilly Lodge

“I had a great afternoon creating with Rosanna and am still enjoying the tangible results of my work! Rosanna guided us expertly in selecting materials and with techniques and tips to get the best out of our chosen designs. I can’t recommend it highly enough.”   Phil Duncan

“Thanks so much for a very enjoyable and packed day yesterday. We are both thrilled with our mosaics – mine has buffed up nicely and I keep looking at it and touching it!”  Sue Elliott

 

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Posted in Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Inspiration, Mosaic Lessons, Mosaic Workshop, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

Glass Mosaic Course

Posted on March 9, 2018 | 4 comments

A couple of weeks ago I went to Devon for a 2 day glass mosaic course with the brilliantly talented Sue Smith of Sue Smith Glass.

Glass on Glass Tree

I had dabbled a little bit with glass-on-glass mosaics last year and featured a few of them at the BEAT Open Studios event. The response from visitors was very encouraging so I decided to use money made from my BEAT sales to invest in a glass mosaic course. I had seen Sue’s work on-line and was following her on Facebook so she was the natural choice of teacher to help me learn a new medium and to extend my mosaic glass skills.

A 2 day course turned into a very pleasant  4 day break staying in the lovely Fishermans Cot pub in Tiverton.

There were 3 of us on the course which meant we got lots of personal attention and tuition from Sue. The first day we learnt about the glass and the tools, cutting basic shapes to make a small piece. On day 2, once we were all more confident with the glass, cutters and glue gun, we were let loose to raid the material boxes and we all took the opportunity to make a larger mosaic.

 

P1070214

Getting stuck in

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Sue’s Sunflower

P1070206

Sue’s Rose

Sue is a brilliant teacher – she explained all about the materials and demonstrated the  tools with great patience until we were all happy with the techniques and different styles and forms. She showed us how to cut odd shapes that then created perfect flowers and how to put a design together. Sue was very generous with her time and materials, letting us use a whole range of beautiful glass and mirror as well as glass beads and enhancements.

A lot of her work was on show so we all took inspiration from her beautiful mosaics. Below are some of her pieces – do visit her website to see more: www.suesmithglass.co.uk

 

The lesson took place in the local community hall which was a great venue – very spacious, warm with easy parking. There was a fully equiped kitchen so we were able to store things in the fridge and use the microwave for lunch, fresh coffee was on the go all day along with biscuits and snacks. We were able to spread out, with tools and glass scattered all around us, we were all very enthusiastic and our creative energy seemed to have no limits.

Now that I am back home and trying to put things I learnt into practice, I keep wanting to ask and check things with Sue……sometimes I have had to email her to ask a question and she has been more than supportive, giving full explanations and providing links to suppliers. I am finding it very different to my usual mosaic making and I think that will be a title for a later Blog! In the meantime, here we are (l to r: Susan, me, teacher Sue, Maria) proudly showing off our new glass masterpieces.

P1070215

 

 

 

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Posted in Galleries and Events, Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Lessons, Mosaic Workshop, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

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Mosaic Lessons

Posted on October 13, 2017 | 3 comments

I will spend this weekend giving Mosaic Lessons, mainly to people that showed an interest at the BEAT Ealing Art Trail. I run lessons on an ad-hoc, request led basis and like to have 3/4 people for the standard lesson. However, I am able to work with larger groups if someone wants a tailor made workshop.

The standard lesson is very much a beginners, basic guide to Mosaic Making.  I am not a great one for theory being very much a hands-on, practical person. So we tend to get stuck in straight away with the nuts and bolts of cutting,placing etc.

It is always quite hard to recommend what people should make as their first piece and, to be honest, I still haven’t found the magic answer to that. I generally find that people do tend to be rather over ambitious in their enthusiasm and ideas for a first piece. A friend that came for a beginners lesson bought a picture of Van Gough’s Sunflowers and asked if they would be able to make that in their first lesson – I said “I’ll be really disappointed if you can as I couldn’t and I’ve been doing this for 10 years!” Needless to say, they did make a sunflower but a very, very simplistic version.

I also like to make it clear that a mosaic is it’s own art form and the end result is not going to look like a watercolour painting or a photograph, it is it’s own interpretation. I hope the above does not sound negative but I like to give people a realistic expectation of what they should be able to achieve. The mosaic art form is quite different to what people expect.

I aim for a fun, informative day. I give out lots of information, tips and ideas. It is quite a full on day with a lot to get through.  As the lessons are based at my home studio it means I have lots of examples of my work to show as well as all the different styles, tiles and embellishments that I use. People go home at the end of the day quite tired, having learnt a new skill and clutching their prized new piece of home made art.

If you are interested in having a lesson, send me an email and I can send you an Information Sheet with more details.

I am really looking forward to welcoming my ‘students’ this weekend for a great lesson and hopefully some of them may get hooked and end up with a website and Blog of their own, just as I have!

Quote from previous attendee:  

“If you are looking for a Basic Mosaic Course for Beginners, Rosanna is your person….she will lead you, very professionally, through everything you need to know to make your first mosaic…… it is a very “full on” day, but at the end of it, you will come away with your own magical personal mosaic” – Linda Edrich

 

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Posted in Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Lessons, Mosaic Workshop, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

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Adhesives and Grouts

Posted on May 5, 2017 | 6 comments

Getting the right tools for the trade is essential for all artists and craftspeople. You should always buy the best materials that you can afford as the quality shines through in the final artwork.

When people see a completed mosaic, hopefully they see a beautiful design, skilled artistry, lots of patience, love and care built into the piece. However, the ‘back room boys’ are also very important – the adhesives and the grouts. In fact they are literally the cement that binds the piece and if you use poor quality materials, no matter how good the mosaic is, the end result will be poor and may not stand up to the test of time.

Fellow BAMM member and mosaic artist Jane Bracey arranged for a small group of us to go on a training day with BAL – Building Adhesives Ltd. Based in Stoke on Trent, they are the market leaders for tiling, delivering innovative products and service solutions for over 50 years. Although their main trade is to tilers and floorers, the mosaic world also form a key part of their business so they were delighted to offer us a day of training in the use of their products.

11 of us arrived to be welcomed by David Rowley who has been with the company for 27 years and was to be our trainer for the day. After a short presentation on their history and  key products we were dispatched to Research and Development. Here we were shown how they put together the various components that make up the adhesives and grouts and innovative ideas for future products. This whole area was fascinating and it was great talking to real scientists. Did you know that they can use rubber, sand or glass in adhesives?  There are a whole range of varying strengths, flexibility and durability to take into account when selecting your adhesives.

We then went to visit Quality Control where it was explained to us how they are able to identify an exact batch of product from a tiny sample using advanced techniques. So although their products are of the highest quality, if there were any problems, they would be able to break down all the component parts in order to resolve the problem.

An excellent buffet lunch – with a huge range of cream cakes – was followed by an afternoon of practical, hands-on demonstrations from David. He said it was quite a novelty training us as obviously their key clients are tilers, floorers, etc. By running this course BAL was able to appreciate the obstacles and challenges us mosaic artists have to overcome and how they may be able to specifically adapt various products to meet  our unique needs. There are a lot of us out there so we do form a huge potential market for them.

As David has been in the business for so long he knew all aspects and was an expert in anything tile related – including grouting. When he wanted to demonstrate various grout techniques I just happened to have my Green Man mosaic which David used as the ‘one I prepared earlier‘. So my Green Man has now been professionally grouted by the Grout Guru.

After a factory tour and collecting our Goodie Bags (which included enough grouts and adhesives to mosaic a football pitch) we all made our way home. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and we all learnt so much. David was happy to answer our numerous questions and queries, some of which even challenged him but he always came up with a solution. Additionally, it was lovely to meet so many other BAMM colleagues. We have all been in touch since and visited each others’ websites and Facebook pages. All our work is so different and seeing their beautiful range of mosaic work emphasised to me yet again how many different styles of mosaics there are and how there is room for us all in this exciting art world.

 

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Quaterley Review

Posted on April 7, 2017 | 4 comments

The first quarter of 2017 has been fairly quiet on the commission front so I decided to take the opportunity to catch up on ‘admin and organising’ so I would be all set up for the busy season – which is starting already.

BEAT. I sent in my application form and have been accepted to take part in BEAT this year (Borough of Ealing Art Trail). Last year was the first but unfortunately I couldn’t take part as I was doing the Maggies Centre Cancer Walk. The art trail event is over 2 weekends in September. I will have a range of indoor and outdoor mosaics to view and for sale. I will also be happy to answer any questions people may have and I will be taking bookings from anyone who may want a beginners lesson. Watch this space for more info.

STUDIO. I decided to have a bit of a change around in my studio. It is quite a small space so I have always had to be creative in its usage. I have a bench the full width which is great when I am working on one piece, but does get a bit crowded if I have more or I have stacked up pieces ready for grouting. I have now put the bench away and have a oblong table in the room. It gives me much more space for working on and I am able to have several pieces on the go at once, with their relevant tiles, cutters etc. It means I have to squash round a bit to get the tiles down from the shelves, get my backing boards, glues etc. but so far it seems to be working.

FACEBOOK. I have had a mosaic Facebook page since my nephew set me up almost 4 years ago. Although I have a steady following, there were so many areas of FB that I found really confusing and I also wanted to use it more efficiently – time to call in the experts. I booked a couple of hours training with the very informative, knowledgeable and patient Shelley from Ealing Mums In Business.

Within 10 minutes of her arriving  Shelley identified a whole section of potential clients that I wasn’t targeting. She really helped me understand Facebook in a way that made me see how I could be using it more efficient and effectively. Since her training, I have signed up to some local groups and my ‘Likes’ have already increased significantly. I have also had a lot of interest in lessons and commissions. Do have a look at my Facebook Page, its an ‘Open Site’ so anyone can view it. Do give it a ‘Like’ if you want to see more regular pictures and info.

 I now feel set up and re-furbished, ready to go forward with a busy and exciting mosaic year.

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Posted in Commissions, Exhibitions, Galleries and Events, Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Workshop, Rosanna's Mosaics

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Current Projects

Posted on February 25, 2017 | Leave a comment

When people ask me what I am working on at the moment I usually have to say “actually, I am working on three pieces” as it is very rare for me to only have one ‘work in progress’ on my studio bench.

P1030894

p1060499I am not sure why this is, I think it has something to do with liking the variety and diversity the different pieces offer me.  I am usually working on one main, complex piece which will be challenging for me. It could be a complicated picture that requires a lot of intricate cutting and shaping, or it may be a new technique I am trying to master. I then have a ‘fun’ piece that I switch to when I want a bit of a rest and to ‘play’. Finally I will have something using a totally different technique e,g, glass-on-glass which means I am using a totally different medium. I could be working on all the pieces in a single session or I may just pop into the studio for 10 minutes while waiting for supper to cook.

p1060504This ‘scatter-gun’ approach works very well for me. Its not that I am procrastinating as friends will vouch, I am a very focused person and you usually have to drag me away from my mosaics. I think it is rather more the case that I love doing mosaics so much that even when I have spent a long time on a complicated piece, I still want to mosaic but just have a change  of scene.

p1060331If I am working on a very large commission or I am up against a tight deadline, then I would probably work on that mosaic on a seperate work area, spending a dedicated amount of time each day on the piece. However, I would still sneakily turn my chair round to my main work bench in the evening for a little play about!

These pieces have all been on the go recently and most are now ready to go.

  • Auntie Irene’s Butterfly which is to go outside and catch the light, so lots of sparkle and bling
  •  a peacock on a re-cycled kitchen cupboard shelf without a background – so a different style of mosaic.
  •  my second beach picture – I don’t often do ‘scenes’ but this gives me a change to practice my drawing
  • a few glass-on-glass pieces because once you pour out the special (expensive) glass glue, you want to make sure you use up every last drop!

 

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Posted in Mosaic Art, Mosaic Development, Mosaic Workshop, My Mosaic Journey, Rosanna Mosaic Artist, Rosanna's Mosaics

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