From Britain with Love

Think of fragments of china – incomplete, leftover – discarded even. Now think of mosaics as a way to reconcile those pieces and you’re some way to creating your own work of art.

Janine Nelson’s studio is like Janine herself – inviting and creative. Mosaics nestle in every corner, from the delicate brooches in paper cases perched on vintage cake stands to the trio of birds taking flight against the backdrop of china plates. In short, there’s plenty to inspire you as you begin to think about creating your own mosaic – a world of opportunities which you can shape and create in a completely unique way.

On a Smashing Chintz workshop, you’ll start with a simple project allowing you to learn as much as possible about the skills needed to make mosaics and in my case, that was to create a mosaic mirror. Armed with chipped saucers, vintage teacups and glass buttons from my own (somewhat growing) collection, I was excited at the possibility of what would come of these mismatched items and, if I admit it, slightly nervous about smashing them up.

I needn’t have been as Janine was on hand, wielding a pair of nippers that would be criminal in the wrong hands. As it was, the only victim was the china as I learnt how to smash them into lots of tiny pieces. Remember to wear googles to protect your eyes as china chips can fly about the place.

To begin with, it’s necessary to prepare the mirror with a wash of PVA glue diluted with a little water which gets the surface ready for applying the pieces. PVA glue is essential for creating indoor mosaics and the advantage is that it’s pretty cheap too, so unlike some crafts, mosaics needn’t be expensive. You can also use a hammer to break plates between sheets of newspaper if you’d like to achieve irregular shapes.

Janine explained that we would be applying undiluted PVA glue to the back of our china pieces with a brush, rather like ‘spreading butter with a knife’ and then placing them where we wanted them on the wooden mirror frame.

Depending on how you like to work, you’ll find your own way of doing this – whether it be positioning them and repositioning them until you’re happy – or like me, working instinctively before gluing them down. You might already be aware of the power of PVA but to me, its strength really surprised me!

Go along sticking down the pieces at your own pace until you’re just left with tiny gaps – you can reduce the size of the gaps by finding some really small splinters of china and sticking them in place.

Once you’re happy with your sticking, you’ll need to leave it to dry which should be about 24 hours, although I returned to my mosaic a week later for the second part of the two day course. This is the part where you’ll learn how to grout so expect to get a bit messy – an apron is a must.

Grout can be purchased from a variety of outlets and there are several options – ready mixed or powder form; interior or exterior. As this mirror is to be placed in the house, an interior grout was used, and Janine recommended a white powder grout mixed with a little black acrylic paint to create a pencil smudge-grey which would lift the blues of my china.

Cover the mosaic with grout on a spatula, pushing it down into the gaps to ensure an even coverage. Work quickly to ensure it doesn’t dry too quickly as you’ll want to use a damp cloth to wipe off the excess. You’ll see that your mirror is now almost complete but don’t worry if there’s still some residue on the china pieces, as this can be polished up with vinegar once it’s dry to give it a really sparkling finish.

After two lessons with Janine, I felt confident in taking the skills I had learnt and transforming other items into something more becoming. But mostly, I left Janine’s course with a beautiful mirror that I couldn’t stop looking at – rather than in.

Resources

To find out more about Smashing Chintz Mosaics and to book workshops, visit www.smashingchintz.co.uk.

Clare Kelly is a freelance craft journalist and author of http://passthepattern.tumblr.com.

Recommended Reading:

Janine recommends the following titles for those who wish to find out more about mosaics:

Stylish Mosaics: 25 Contemporary Projects for Your Home by Anne Cardwell

The Mosaic Artist's Sourcebook by Teresa Mills

New Crafts: Mosaics by Helen Baird

The Art of Decorative Mosaics by Elaine M. Goodwin

Mosaic: Home Decorating With Mosaic by Helen Baird

The Mosaic Book by Peggy Vance and Celia Goodrick-Clarke

Feeling inspired? Take a look at the Creative Courses category in our Directory, where you'll find a variety of inspiring hands-on courses: from cool crafts to fashion, interiors, cooking and gardening.

If you run a creative course that you think our readers would be interested in reading about, do get in touch by emailing editor@frombritainwithlove.com.

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