Last week’s focus has been on experimentation, completion, and satisfaction. I have had a mosaic/resin upcycle project waiting to be finished off with a second coat of resin for almost a year now, but had to wait until the dog hair in the studio had (mostly) been eliminated. Not to mention that I’ve had a number of issues this last year delaying my work in the studio - like a hip replacement, for example - minor inconveniences. But now! So many things are happening and are possible!
I cleaned up the studio, eliminated as much dust as possible considering our location, and pulled out the resin. Of course I mixed too much, so after pouring the fruit tray I had to look around for other objects to resin - and found pendants and tiles, and oh my! They turned out amazing - opening up so many more possibilities. Whenever I experiment I mentally caution myself, “if this doesn’t work, I can always use them in that project” If they turn out to be such a monumental fail that I have to toss them I shrug and chalk it up as a valuable lesson learned. Nothing is truly a total bust.
My ceramic pendants were so thin they were fragile - would probably have broken if dropped on an edge; the resin strengthened them and really popped the textures and colors. These are all hand-painted ceramics with glitter paints on a couple of them (because, why not) and those two look especially amazing encased in the resin.
The tiles were an ongoing up-cycle project from last year as well. I scored a (buttload) lot of 4”x 4” ceramic and slate tiles through a Craigslist For Free ad, had cleaned them up and experimented with them using various paints and inks. Alcohol inks ended up working best for backgrounds and drawings so next I searched for sealants. The best I’d found to date was a Krylon spray and though it sealed them well enough for art purposes, the tiles were not functional - couldn’t be used as coasters, for example. I’d drawn mushrooms on many and, naturally, the majority of people interested in them wanted…coasters. I’d shelved those tiles for months, except for the Italian slate which I sell as art only, on their own cute little easels. On another set of tiles I’d created tiny 3-D seascapes, adding miniature shells and seastars - they’re cute but too fragile, and if dropped the shells would break right off or just shatter. I grabbed an assortment of all of these tiles and poured resin. And wow! The 3D seascapes underwent a transformation - the resin elevated them from craft project to finished pieces, not to mention providing a critical layer of very strong protection over the shells. The other tiles are vivid with a crystal clear protective coating and can now be used as coasters…woot!
I count this week as a total success as I have discovered a solution to my tile dilemma and opened the door to many more projects just in time for the holiday season. I will be very busy completing projects and posting updates here, so stay tuned! By the way, I am doing my virtual happy dance right now - it is just so satisfying to complete things!