the Cre8ive Circus answers the Mosaic questions on everyone's mind...

What is the first thing anyone says to me after they view my work? Well, most times it's, "do you give classes?" Then it's, " I've always wanted to learn how to do this."

Currently, I don't have the studio space to teach the art of mosaic. Although, given time and the amount of people that ask me about classes, I may make room in the near future. I think it would be wonderful to teach others this obsessive fragmentary art form. Then I'd have company in my madness...!

What is the second thing anyone says to me, "I've done a mosaic piece." And I say "oh, what was it?"

The answer to this is a myriad of things ranging from tables to wall pieces. If you really want to be able to say you've made something mosaic please keep reading as I explain the techniques.

What do I do first?

First, you need to have the desire not only to create a mosaic piece but also to accept the mess that goes along with it. This is not a neat process. Cracking up tiles, shards flying everywhere, gooey glue and thin set, cement, sand, and a big mud pie coupled with dirty rags and lots and lots of stuff to sweep up off the floor.
All in all very satisfying and tactile work!

Next...?

The next step is to collect all your ingredients.
Will you mosaic a terra cotta pot? Or maybe a stepping stone?
Something of a manageable size is the easiest to start with. Next comes the best part, collecting the tessarae or your colorful bits of tiles, glass or just about anything else you can think of. Collect tiles that really appeal to you, glass globs from the craft stores also work well, plates with great designs can be broken, and even beads or pieces of jewelry. As you collect try to think about designs and color.
What are your favorite colors?
Do you have any designs in your home that might be adapted to mosaic?
Think about simple patterns, perhaps random lines that move in directions. Don't attempt any design that is too complicated or detailed for your first project. You want your first experience to be fun and enjoyable not frustrating.

Interior or exterior?

Will you want to use your project in your outside garden or will you make something to decorate the inside of your home?
Depending on where your  project will live will determine the type of materials used to build your mosaic.
For your interior mosaic you can use pre-mixed tile adhesive, available in your home improvement store, a PVC glue like Weld Bond or any of the glues listed for an exterior application. You can choose from many different materials for the back portion of your piece. If creating a mirror frame or wall hanging or other flat item those materials include 1/2 inch or thicker plywood, 1/2 inch or thicker medium density fiberboard (MDF), concrete backer board or the company named hardi-backer. Some of these combine to use for your exterior projects. Terra cotta, the backs of common store bought tiles, concrete forms, bowling balls, plaster sculpture, and a whole host of things can be used for mosaic.
For your exterior mosaic your products need to be concrete based and exterior grade. Adhesives include  thin sets, available in various grades and prices, epoxies, Liquid Nails, or any exterior approved glue product. Use exterior grade plywoods at least 1/2 thick and preferably 3/4 inch with an affixed layer of the concrete backer board. (cut backer board to match your plywood shape and affix with a layer of thin set and screw in place, mosaic design is then done on top of the backer board) Terra cotta pots, bowling balls, concrete sculptures and forms, can all be used outside as long as the products used to apply your tessarae are concrete based or exterior approved products.

So, now I've got this stuff, I've decided where I'll put it when I'm done, so what do I do now?

Lay all your materials out on easily accessible areas and you're ready to begin. Step one is to prepare your surface to accept the tessarae you've chosen. Terra cotta, woods, and other porous surfaces need sealing and scoring before you apply your treasures. PVC glues make great sealers. Especially Weld Bond thinned with a bit of water, brushed into your surface then allowed to dry thoroughly. I sometimes use quality primer paint on MDF or wood then I score the surface with a sharp tool to give it a "tooth" to better grab a hold of the adhesive. (Concrete backer boards do not necessarily need this treatment but I sometimes spray them with a little water to prevent my thin set from drying prematurely.) What you're really trying to do is prevent the adhesives from drying out too quickly. If your surface isn't sealed you risk the moisture of your adhesive soaking into the surface before it has an adequate curing time and that allows your glue product an opportunity to become brittle and weak. After sealing you can begin adhering your decorative pieces.

Sticking stuff together!

This is the really fun part! Using your chosen adhesive stick all your chosen tessarae to your form. Use whatever design speaks to you and go wild! When you think you're finished leave your piece alone for awhile and come back to it later. Sometimes you'll look at your art completely differently if you get away from it for a bit. Once you've decided you are truly finished leave it to dry thoroughly overnight or longer.

Making mud pies (otherwise known as grouting)

Now, we're really going to get messy! Choose your grout according to a couple of factors. By the size of the spaces between your tessarae and whether your project is interior or exterior.  Interior projects with spaces 1/8 inch or less will need unsanded grout. If you have tiles on your kitchen countertops, chances are the grout lines are consistently 1/8 inch or less and the grout is smooth to the touch and unsanded. Pieces with more than an 1/8 inch space between tiles or ANY exterior project will require sanded grout.  So, to complete the grouting process you will need fresh water, sanded or unsanded grout in whatever color you choose, throw away containers for mixing (yogurt, cottage cheese, or sour cream containers),  throw away sticks or other instruments for stirring (I use craft sticks or unwanted silverware), drop cloths or an area that is outside your house (garage, or driveway, somewhere that the mess won't ruin anything), rubber gloves (the kitchen variety do just fine), and a pile of non-terry cloth rags. Mix your grout with just enough water to make a sour cream-like consistency and only mix an amount you can handle. Do not try to mix up the whole bag or box on your first mosaic attempt. My recommendation is to work with recycled containers in a variety of sizes. The yogurt 32 ounce size is perfect to mix enough grout to cover a small project or cover some ground on a larger one, the smaller ones work for scooping the dry grout from the bag to your chosen mixing container or for pouring water. Read the bag or box your grout came in for all the details and safety instructions! Some need "slake" time or a few minutes to sit still and get their chemical acts together. Once the grout has been mixed and slaked scoop it out over your project. Make sure you are wearing your rubber gloves! Now smear and massage the grout into all the spaces between your tessarae making sure that all of those spaces fill completely. Continue to mix and massage until your piece is covered. (if tackling a mosaic larger than a stepping stone or simple pot you'll probably want to start wiping your surfaces before the piece is entirely covered with grout or you may not be able to get it off easily.) Wait time can span anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour or more. Wait time is something that you really learn by doing. The first time I grouted I was so nervous that the grout would quickly become solid that I wiped almost immediately smearing wet cement stuff all over the place so I wiped and wiped and wiped...you get the picture. Now, it seems there is quite a window of opportunity before it hardens and becomes difficult. Try 15-ish minutes and see. If the grout seems wet and squishy smearing all over then wait a bit longer. To remove alot of grout from the surface a dampened sponge can be useful remembering to rinse often. I prefer dry cloths and lots of them. Make sure you find all of your lovely treasures and unbury them with a good wiping but don't wipe the spaces too much or you risk removing too much of the grout. You can bevel your grout edges with one of your craft sticks, running it along the edge at a 45 degree angle. Do this slowly and when the grout is somewhat solid and you'll have a lovely finish. Continue to wipe your surfaces until you are pleased with the result. Remember that however you leave the grout at this stage is how it will look forever! If and when you decide to quit (sometimes it's hard to know when that is) grout takes at least 24 hours to dry then another 28 days to cure.

The beginning of the end

The next day, once your masterpiece is dry, you can give it a little polish and admire your handiwork. Isn't it gorgeous!!?  You may choose to seal your project at this point or just leave it natural. Put it in a place of honor in or around your home. Once you've admired it for a couple of days you can start envisioning your next mosaic. That is the blessing (or curse) of this medium. Once you start you may not be able to stop...

Some extra tips

(if you've read this far you might as well finish)

Here are a few things my experience in mosaics has taught me along the way (and I am continually learning more and more as I go):

Allow yourself the freedom to experiment. Mosaic everything and everything that doesn't move too fast until you  come up with what works for you. You can read all kinds of information, from many sources, but until you give this medium a hands on try you won't really know what works or why.

What surfaces are appropriate to mosaic and which are not? The best materials are listed above but I get many questions about particle board and why is it different than medium density fiber board. Particle board is made up of big chunks of otherwise unusable wood chips and pieces. These are glued (or some other chemical process) back together. It isn't a very stable surface for mosaic work. I have found two types of this board available, one has great big flakes of wood apparent all over it's surface and the other shows very small shreds of wood. I have used the small fibrous particle board with good results but for interior pieces only and with good amounts of sealer. Medium density fiberboard is made from tiny wood pieces and shavings (almost always  recycled)  then put back together with a glue product under pressure making it a much more stable surface. It can be cut in any shape you can imagine for great wall hangings or mirror frames. I use this for almost all my interior pieces. It's easy to work with, inexpensive, and suits my environmental taste.

Collect everything and don't ever throw anything out again ever! If you break a precious hand me down plate KEEP all the pieces! If your sentimental wrist watch breaks, hang on to it! If you see some fun shaped beads at the store, buy them! If a group of funky looking sixties patterned mugs calls out to you at the thrift store, buy them, take them home, embrace them! You will be well on your way to a wonderful, keepsake mosaic! Almost anything can be used in a mosaic piece. Some of my favorite art pieces include all sorts of otherwise unusable things.

Collective pieces need a little more attention paid to them as you grout. When you come to the wiping stage be sure to take special pains to find any piece that might be buried under the the mud. Use the shape of your finger to bevel the grout around odd shaped things being careful to not remove too much grout. Some porous items can be sealed prior to grouting to ensure they'll wipe clean.

Grout comes in many, many colors. For the adventurous you can tint your own white grout with paints or tint it after it dries with watered down paints or stains. If dark, true colors are what you're after you'll have to purchase a pre-tinted grout or you can use paints on top of the grout. After the grout has dried, rub your paint color of choice all over your mosaic. then, just like you did when grouting, wipe the surface clean. The unsealed grout will absorb your paint and leave the color behind. If it isn't a deep enough shade, start again! You can do this over and over.

If you find cracks in your grout the day after don't despair! Mosaic and it's counterparts are actually quite forgiving materials. Mix up a small amount of your grout and let it sit while you find any areas that might need some help. Test your cracked surface and remove any of the area that might be loose or easily removed by brushing. Taking your grout, smear it into the crack with your fingers making sure you have good placement and are covering the entire area. Let it sit the appropriate time then wipe as usual. After wiping mist with a bit of plain water to slow down the drying process and perhaps deter any cracks from returning.

Some reasons why you might find a crack or two...? The outdoor temperature could have been too hot and the grout dried so fast that cracks formed. Or did you grout in the hot sun? Never do this. Bad, bad. If there was too much water mixed into the grout it could cause problems. Maybe you were in such a hurry to get started you didn't seal your surface...? Not getting the entirety of the spaces filled with grout can also make some sinking happen. There are a number of reasons this happens but just be assured that it's almost always something you can fix.

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