First, decide where you are going to use your mosaic - indoors, outdoors, bathroom, splashback, picture and indeed, what you want to mosaic - plant pot, birdtable. Then you need some inspiration for your design. I tend to use the natural world as the basis for my work, gardening books, postcards and photographs and even a wander around the garden can all help. Colour schemes are also important to plan so you can find the right materials. Some colours are limited if you are using vitreous glass tiles, and you can widen the colours available by mixing materials.
If you want your mosaic to be permanently fixed, it can be made on a mesh backing and then grouted in position. However, for more flexibility use an mdf panel or marine ply if destined for an outdoor setting. I have successfully used terracotta garden balls and shell shaped planters as based. You can also set mosaics into a concrete slab.
Materials
Ceramic tiles, broken crockery, vitreous glass tiles, smalti, millefiori, sea glass, shells, mirror tiles can all be used. 10 mm thick mdf is a good solid size which can take the weight of a large mosaic as you will find that the finished work can be quite heavy. This beetroot image was taken from an illustration from a cookery book and uses broken tile, smalti and vitreous glass tiles.
The picture shows the three tiles I use the most. The best colours come from venetian smalti which is needless to say the most expensive. It comes from the Orsino factory in Venice and the glass is handmade. The glass is poured into large pizza shapes and cut when cooled into brickette shapes. There is a wide range of colour. for more information visit the Orsino website here There is also a range of smalti made in mexico which is more affordable whilst still giving the lovely colours visit them at smalti.com for inspiration. If you want to find a supplier closer to home, the Mosaic Matters website has a listing see mosaicmatters.co.uk
Getting Going
The pheasant was inspired by the size of the board I found and remained legless for some time as I couldn't quite work out how to finish him. I eventually picked some tiles off the border and squeezed them in. I added the ivy (just seen sketched in pencil) to give some movement.
The pheasant was inspired by the size of the board I found and remained legless for some time as I couldn't quite work out how to finish him. I eventually picked some tiles off the border and squeezed them in. I added the ivy (just seen sketched in pencil) to give some movement.
The cat just started here, was a present for my sister and is of her cat, Sid. I have started off with a border of vertical red tiles, cut in half which fit nicely around the half inch board. When this had dried you can start playing around with your colours. My order of working is always to start with the eye, or details closest to you.
This cockerel was my first mosaic attempt and took three hard days of work on a course with Martin Cheek in Broadstairs. I spent the whole of the first day trying to get his comb right but soon speeded up once I felt more confident. I really like the colours in his tail. If you can't find a single colour you like, you can get a really good effect my mixing different shades together. I usually nibble a collection of tiles into 1cm squares and mix the colours until I get the effect I am happy with. If you want to graduate colours mix the colours together in decreasing or increasing amounts which will give a smoother transition.
This cockerel was my first mosaic attempt and took three hard days of work on a course with Martin Cheek in Broadstairs. I spent the whole of the first day trying to get his comb right but soon speeded up once I felt more confident. I really like the colours in his tail. If you can't find a single colour you like, you can get a really good effect my mixing different shades together. I usually nibble a collection of tiles into 1cm squares and mix the colours until I get the effect I am happy with. If you want to graduate colours mix the colours together in decreasing or increasing amounts which will give a smoother transition.
The angel fish was a fun shape to make with the top of the fin echoing the flow of water around the fish. This also highlights the flow of the tiles around the fish and shows how the direction you place tiles can give texture to your work. In this case the water is very soft and naturalistic around the fish. If you were to lay the tiles in a grid pattern the fish would stand out more from the background. I used some seaglass for the edges of the sea which I found on the beach at Seasalter.
For an indoor mosaic, use a pva glue to stick your tiles down on the board. If you then change your mind about a tile, it is easy to prize up and replace. The glue dries clear but do take care not to use too much glue as you need to leave space for the grout. The spaces between the tiles are as much part of the design as the tiles themselves.
