New: Torch Enameled and Stained Glass Mosaic Cat Suncatchers

These cat suncatchers come with a suction cup to enjoy on your window year-round, but they would also look great as an ornament.

Each one has its own personality!

Sold

My original design silver jewelry is available at:
https://www.mosaicsmith.com/collections/all   or
https://mosaicsmith.etsy.com

Cat Silhouette Sun Catchers

Cat Silhouette Suncatchers

 And now I know there is a strong correlation between a love of mosaics and a love of kitties! Half of the 18 kitty silhouette suncatchers I made are on their way to new homes- but the ones above are still waiting for their forever home :)  

Hand-cut 22 gauge copper kitties were torch-enameled in black and added to a glass mosaic 'scene'. Copper foil around edge with hanging loop and suction cup.

These suncatchers, along with a few other suncatcher designs, are available in my Etsy shop.

Meanwhile, I have been working on a new, smallish, wall mosaic. First of at least two planned for this subject. Sneak peek:  

Thoughts on how to choose a grout color, or colors

What color(s) to grout a mosaic is a common dilemma. And a personal decision each artist needs to make based on their vision for the finished piece. This post is just some of my thoughts and by no means comprehensive.

I have a general rule that often helps me make the choice: blend the background, fracture the focal.


But, I break this rule regularly. Usually on realistic pieces when I feel that all the careful shading I have done on a focal will be lost if I choose a grout color that breaks it all apart.

That was the case with this little mosaic I did recently:

"My Shadow" (Print available)

I even briefly considered skipping the grout on the kitty herself but rejected that since I could see the substrate through the spaces. Additionally, my glue was weldbond which I don't feel would be lasting in Florida humidity if not protected by grout. As an aside- I am looking into smalti as this material is not traditionally grouted.

So, for kitty herself I actually used three colors of grout. Tea green for the irises, black for the nose and right eye pupil, and a natural grey for the fur areas. The natural grey is in between in tone to the light and dark fur tones and provided subtle contrast so she is still clearly mosaic but the pieces blend.

For the background of kitty, first decision was glass color and flow. I chose the pink as a compliment to her eyes and to emphasis that this sweet kitty is a she. The squares are a contrast to the irregular pieces used in the fur. Because of the blending of kitty with her grout, I felt I needed a grout color in the background that did not completely blend but that provided a very subtle contrast as well. Warm grey was my choice here.


To help with my decisions, there are a couple things I do.

First, I keep a box full of little cups and their wood stirrers that I have used previously to mix up grout. I label both the cups and sticks and use them to do a squint test.
Second, I will sometimes sprinkle a small amount of dry grout in an area to test the effect. The color of the dry powdered grout is about the same as cured grout in a finished project. You just have to remember to use safety precautions as you do not want to in-hail any of the grout powder!

There are a couple of online resources that can help to visualize different grout effects too:

Mosaic Mercantile, http://www.mosaicmercantile.com , has the grouterizer.
Choose the mix of color tiles similar to your mosaic, 16 choices, then choose from ten grout colors to see their effects.

http://www.thejoyofshards.co.uk has a Grout Colour Simulator.
This one has seven different mosaic choices including a variety of different mosaic types. Then choose from 20 different grout colors including black to white shading in four different directions, fun!

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"My Shadow" is in my private collection but a print is available on my page at Fine Art America:

 http://fineartamerica.com/artists/19+linda+smith

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

sweet love

My new mosaic was inspired by my cat, Shadow. She is a very sweet kitty and I have often thought that she not only has a heart shaped face but that her body echoed that heart while laying in this position. Hence the theme. Stained glass on MDF. 10 3/4" x 13 1/2"

And a slide show of the process of creating this mosaic:

Workshop Kitties

Every time I turn around, there is at least one cat hanging out with me wherever I am. And in my shop is no exception. They both kindly posed for me this week while I was working, so I thought I'd share.

To the left is Max. He came to us via animal rescue folks. He is at least 10 years old but we've had him for about 5 1/2 years. He is a mellow sweetheart. He yearns to go outside. But he managed to get himself lost once or we wouldn't have him, so we keep him in. He loves to be on the lanai and sometimes my kids will take him out on a leash. That's fine with him.

And that is Shadow curled up on the cushion. She came to us three years ago as a stray kitten. She can be very sweet also, but she terrorized poor Max like you wouldn't believe at first. And mellow Mr. Max would just put up with it. She still will tackle him, but I think they have come to an understanding about it. Now this one has absolutely no interest in the great outdoors. I like to think it is because she knows a good thing when she found it. She is quite content to hang out with us inside, thank you very much.