More Shading Grout in a Mosaic

Revisiting the topic of shading grout in a mosaic. In a previous post I shaded using two grout colors.

For this project, I shaded between four grout colors. The fade from deep black/green to pale green was chosen to enhance the glass shading.

First step was to play with mixes to find the effect I wanted. I used a plastic spoon, leveled off with a wooden stir stick as a measuring device. Stirred well, the dry mix color will be approximately the same as the finished, cured, color.

(Each recipe was written on the cup so it can be duplicated in the future, assuming those grout colors can be obtained. I used the colors black, mallard green, tea green and straw [no, not pear like it says on the cup, oops :] - for those that might have those colors on hand.)



Working from light to dark, I laid in each color. Since my substrate was glass, I marked it off into sections on the reverse using a sharpie marker. You might be able to see that in the first picture- green marks.

Picture on the right shows the grouted project before much 'smooshing' has happened.






In the left picture, you can see the results of careful cleaning. **Note: NO WATER, and no sponge, is used for this cleaning method.

First I removed excess grout. I started from the light end and moved across the piece from side to side just within that color. Then cleaned my tool (my finger!) and moved down a bit and repeated until I removed a lot of the excess from the entire piece.

Still with the grout very wet and soft, I started again at the light end removing a bit more grout but this time made a zig zag line across from side to side. I continued on down toward the dark end in this zigzag manner and this helped to blend each grout section.

At this point, much of the excess grout has been wiped off and I waited a bit for a haze to develop. I then used a soft cloth to remove the haze, again starting from the light end and working across from side to side. I used a clean section of cloth for each pass.

And here is the finished project, a wall clock.






SOLD

I create original design silver jewelry too!! 
https://www.mosaicsmith.com/collections/all   or
https://mosaicsmith.etsy.com

Anatomy of a Glass Mosaic Light Switch Cover

Click photos to enlarge.

Well, my way of putting switch plates together..

Choose a sturdy, commercially made, base to attach your mosaic to.  I now use metal bases. I have used wood in the past, but had problems with warping during grouting, especially for the larger sizes (yup, wood and water don't don't play nice together). And I feel the plastic covers have a bit too much flex, at least the ones my sources carry.

Attach your design with your favorite glue- Weldbond, silicone...

Grout! Such a simple, yet critical step.

• Color choice is key. If you are going to add a resin coat, like I do for all mine, you need to base your selection on the wet grout color. Photo at left shows the cured grout color. Looks kind of blah and washed out this way but, when covered in resin, it will revert back to the beautiful contrasts of the wet grout color.
• If you use glass for your design, use fine grit sandpaper on all exposed edges before grouting.
• Use wood toothpick, or similar tool, to gently recess the screw hole and to shape the switch or outlet openings. It's got to fit in its new home!
• Properly cure the grout before adding resin.

To protect fingers from sharp edges, and to protect grout from finger oils, all my switch plates receive a top coat of a two part resin epoxy. Quite a messy step, and a bit time consuming, but well worth it.

• Read the directions for the resin carefully before you begin and follow them exactly.
• Choose all disposable materials for mixing and stirring and be sure you cover your work surface!!
• Also, be sure to elevate your project so the excess resin has a place to run off onto. I use a cardboard cylinder or large plastic cups.

Final step- for a complete pulled together look, custom color your screws.

I create original design silver jewelry too!! 
https://www.mosaicsmith.com/collections/all   or
https://mosaicsmith.etsy.com