I made my first mini fiber mosaic after returning from a trip to Israel in 2012. The mosaics there were inspirational, both the ancient ones and the modern day ones. My first view of a mosaic was leaving the airport. I was smitten.
I was told to visit the town of Acco to see a synagogue, Or Torah. It was an Amazing Race adventure. (If you ever meet me, I'll be happy to share the story. ) The entire inside of the building is covered in mosaics, inspired by biblical stories and Jewish history.
I met the wonderful man that was responsible for these mosaics. Although he only spoke Hebrew and French, he gave me a tour of this building that was his inspiration from a Tunisian synagogue - his home. Some how we communicated. What was obvious was the pride he had taken during this 50 year project.
This was the first one I made when I returned home. It measures 5" x 7".
Since I am teaching this technique at the Daytona AQS show, it has rekindled my interest and I've created a few new ones. (Click HERE for class info. )
Here's some of my newer mini mosaics and they are mini. I use a tweezer to place the fabric pieces!
For me, it's a relaxing project that I can work on while watching tv or a movie or chatting with friends.
Recently, I thought I hurt my hip, but it turned out to be sciatica plus other assorted ailments. I was sidelined and started another mini mosaic. I decided to use Bailey as my subject.
Everything was going quite well. It really was starting to look like her, but somewhere in the process, I lost my way. I abandoned my "map", lost the look of her and lost her hair sprigs on the top of her hair. To me, that's what makes it look like her.
I also used a different stabilizer. I tried rinsing it out. The batting shrunk, squares of fabric floated away, and now not only did I have a dog that didn't look like my girlfriend, it wasn't flat anymore and not the look I wanted. I do still love the pattern varieties in the fabric.
The experimenting is good for teaching. It's not always what you should do, but sometimes it's what you shouldn't do.
She is of course the perfect subject. I think it turned out ute!
ReplyDeleteI do love the look of your mosaics, that would be fun to do.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
These are amazing! How do you get the little pieces of fabric to stay in place? It doesn't look like there's any sewing. Is it glue?
ReplyDeleteGood to learn from mistakes...and good to share that info. I like the collection you are creating.
ReplyDeleteYour mosaics are fabulous, I'd love to take your class. I do glass pet mosaics, so I know that "where is the dog I drew" dilemma. I don't use squares though I cute the glass to fit each tuft of hair, one dog had a tongue that didn't fit in her mouth so I emphasized it by making it out of polymer clay, she also wore pearls so I used glass pearls. It's hard to catch there personality.
ReplyDeleteIt may not look exactly like Bailey but it's close and it's pretty hard to improve on your original Bailey quilt! Your little mosaic quilts are just beautiful though. What process do you use to cut such small pieces of fabric? You're amazing Cheryl!
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