Sail Away

While we were making the Ice Candles we had a little bit of glass that had epoxy in it. It was from the blue one and as I looked at that little piece of textured glass I saw water. Frothy wavy water. And so I got an idea. 

A sail boat with water. What fun!

First I had to figure out how to mold my water in so it would look kind of natural with out getting all over the glass. Well since epoxy doesn't stick to silicone and silicone comes off glass easily that was the way I would go.

So I drew a line with the silicone and then filled it in with textured glass.

Then I tinted some epoxy blue and filled in the glass.

I decided to replace my blue flag with a yellow one and got rid of my rocks on the left.

I decided a light house would be better.

I decided to do my background clear instead of blue. I was going to grout but then thought what would happen if I used epoxy on the top as well.

So here is the finished project. I am not sure I would use epoxy on the top again as it smoothed the edges of my water but still not bad for a new technique. 

Here is another view so you can see the texture of the water:

Grapes and grout lines

I love doing glass mosaic work. I have always enjoyed jig saw puzzles and that is what they remind me of. There are a few things that can really make a difference in how your piece turns out. A big one is if you are consistent with how much space you leave between your glass pieces so your grout lines will be the same size through out your piece.  I am a bit obsessive about it actually.

I am a member of an online group of Glass on Glass mosaic artists. Some of the talent in that group is nothing short of amazing. We do challenges that stretch our experience and push us to grow. I love the challenges. I learn something new each time I do one. But this last challenged really pushed me to go against my norm. It was a coloring book challenge. Sounds simple. It had to be done on a microwave plate (you  know the clear kind your microwave comes with) and the focus of your piece had to have the black line like in a coloring book. Yep sounds simple. I had the hardest time leaving that black line around my subject wider than the rest of the piece.

First I did a landscape. The clouds and the sun were supposed to have the thick black line.

But nope couldn't make myself do it. Ended up with even spaced grout line and a finished piece on a microwave plate that I couldn't use for the challenge. 

So I headed back to the thrift store after another microwave plate and I was good to go. I decided to do a grape vine this time.  I had been wanting to try stacked grapes in a piece anyway so it seemed like a good chance to try it. Time was running out and I only had a few days left to finish this challenge so I HAD to be sure and leave the lines.

I did a little bit better but still not great. It was good enough for me to submit to the challenge but still fairly even grout lines. I guess some habits die pretty hard. Especially when want to keep them around for the next challenge.

Here is the same piece in the light. That is another thing I love about glass. It looks completely different in the light than it does without.

So I happy to say the coloring book challenge is done and I can move on to stressing about if my grout lines are even enough. Yes, things are as they should be.

Ice Candle Holders

Currently my favorite projects are called Ice Candles. They are candle holders made of glass and I believe they are absolutely beautiful. We are doing different sizes and colors. I have to say they are just fantastic.

Here are two we made this weekend. I have an iphone in the first one so you can get an idea of the size. I am thinking the crystal one would make a beautiful wedding centerpiece.

Bellarotti

I have always been a "crafty" person. I love to create things. I love ideas of things. I have always jumped from one craft to another. I hadn't found THE thing. You know the one thing that just sets your creative gears in motion and changes you from a crafty person to an artist.

Then I worked with glass.

It was like everything clicked and I knew THIS was my medium.

I don't just do stained glass, mosaics, or jewelry. If it involves glass I will try it. I am mostly into something called GOG with is glass on glass mosaics but I don't limit myself.

I created this blog as a place to share my work, ideas, and love of glass.

I think my favorite thing about working with glass is that I am creating something beautiful from something broken. I believe in the Japanese philosophy of Kintsugi where broken things are beautifully repaired and believed to be more valuable because of the damage. I think that is the way it is in life. It doesn't always go as planned so we pick ourselves up and are stronger because we were broken.

I hope you enjoy seeing my work and if you ever have any questions feel free to ask.