Today I filled in some of the empty spaces that were left (though not quite everything) and thought some more about bringing some pop to the design.
Trying out some options.
I tried some swirls, but ended up not really feeling the love for them.
Yellow swirls
Finally, I tried a double row of yellow glass around the “ball” of the sun and it seemed to work. I didn’t want it to be a complicated look – I like the bold simplicity of the orange sun and blue sky. I will likely add some accents when I pour the resin, though.
Double row of yellow.
I went ahead and glued the yellow glass in place in anticipation of pouring the resin tomorrow or the next day. After that, I decided to check the levelness of the window. I have been using some sawhorses and I didn’t think they would be level enough for this piece, so I cleared some space on my workbench (much better level, stable surface) and set it up there.
Glued and ready.
Yes, much better situation for pouring the resin. If the window isn’t level, the resin won’t settle evenly and you waste resin and have a wonky surface.
I like making sun mosaics, and they have been popular in the past, so I decided to try another with this latest old window frame I’ve been prepping. It’s approximately 30″ x 13.5″, so it’s a good size to hang at the top of a window and get some nice light. For the background, I’m using that same Spectrum iridized blue glass that I used in the mermaid’s tail. I’ve used this glass in many projects. It’s one of my favorite colors – especially for skies. I cut a sheet of this glass into strips, then into squares, then nipped the corners off to make rough circles.
The blank slate – I drew a rough ball for where the sun will go with a Sharpie pen on the back side..
One thing about the sun is it’s not really something that just falls into a rectangular shape in my brain. I tend to want to have a nice square frame for the sun, but that’s obviously not going to happen with this mosaic. For the past few days, I have been trying to decide whether this sun will be to one side or in the middle, and how the rays will be distributed. I finally settled on this starting point for this big ball of fire. I used a circle from an old pattern I have used for the sun in the past to draw a guideline on the glass, then used a self-oiling handheld glass cutter to cut the shape. I finished off the rough edges with an electric water cooled glass grinder. Of course, I cut myself while handling the glass, but a tiny circular adhesive bandage came to the rescue so I could keep going.
Sun peeking out.
Next I had to start thinking about the rays for the sun. Since I’m not using a pattern for this piece in general, I will likely try a few options and move things around a lot before I start gluing anything in place. This way I can change my mind if I decide I want wavy rays instead of straight, or whatever. For now, I’m trying out some triangles with smaller pieces of glass in between. I have some more glass to cut before I will get an idea of how much I like where this is going. I also laid out some of the blue glass to see if I like the pairing with this design. So far I’m a bit apprehensive that the blue circles might be too large in contrast to the sun’s rays. I might want to make them smaller. Here I have them just sort of stacked / scattered around for an overall idea, they aren’t anywhere near where they will be when everything is ready for the resin. However, stacking them like this in layers might be a nice effect. I stacked the seaweed glass on top of itself (two layers of glass) in the mermaid mosaic and I really like that effect.
Laying out an option for the sun’s rays.
I liked where this direction was taking me, so I decided to fill it out a bit more to see how it would look. More band aids needed.
Filling in the sun’s rays a bit more.
Next I glued the outer bands of glass forming the rays down. They will keep the glass forming the sun in place when I eventually pour the resin. Then I started laying out the blue sky. After I filled in as much as I could with large circles, I cut some smaller ones and repeated the process. Then I started filling in the smaller gaps with triangles and even smaller pieces.
Filling in the gaps.
There will be a bit more filling to do tomorrow, but I have done as much I can in one day. Half of my fingertips are in pain from being stabbed with the sharp edges of the small pieces of glass. Now I need to sit back and look at it because it still needs some interest to bring it together. My eldest child says I should add some yellow to the sun – maybe some wavy rays. I can also make another layer to give it more depth, or maybe some designs with the tiny red glass pieces I have. Hopefully sleeping on it will give my brain time to formulate a plan.
I will have a space at the N. Charleston Farmer’s Market in Park Circle every Thursday from 3-7 pm during September and October (including Halloween!!). Mark your calendar and plan to come out for a fun time!
The fun is on hold for a few days while I prep the next old window for the next project. Lately I have been trying to make smaller projects in preparation for having a booth at a Farmer’s Market (which I had to pay $90 for a license and submit an application to the city of N. Charleston for last week – wish me luck as they might not have a space available).
Old window
Since most of my old windows are pretty large, I got my husband to help me cut one in half. I then use the bottom half for a framed mosaic and use just the glass from the top half for one or more projects.
Half a window
First I clean the dust and dirt off of it as best I can, then I use some exterior repair putty to fill in any holes in the wood.
Glass from the top half
The pane of glass has some glazing and paint stuck around the edges, so I will use a utility knife to clean that off before I can use it.
Waiting for the putty to dry so I can paint
Once the putty is dry, I will paint the whole frame. It won’t look like new because it’s an old window that’s been painted several times, but it will be cleaned up enough to look nice for my next creation. Unfortunately it takes a few days to do the prep work… I’d rather be doing the fun part, but I think taking the time to clean it up makes a big difference in the end result.
This morning I was able to pour the resin and decorate the background of the 9.5″ x 30″ mermaid window.
Ready for resin.
I mixed up 16 ounces of resin, which turned out to be a good amount. I had enough left over to start the first layer of one coaster, so there really wasn’t much in the way of waste. I love these silicone measuring cups because they are reusable and there is plenty of room to stir even when you fill it to 16 ounces.
When the resin is well mixed, I started pouring it gently over the mosaic.
Once I feel like I have everything covered pretty well, it’s time to use the heat gun to remove the bubbles that form in the resin. I have been thinking about getting a craft blow torch for this because the heat gun is hard to control and can move the resin more than I would like.
Now it’s time to add the decoration to the background. For this piece, I used some tiny blue filler (which I can’t get anymore because it was discontinued, but that’s another story). After the blue filler, I added clear glass flakes to add sparkle. My sister sent me some beads and I was thinking about using some of them, but I chickened out at the last minute because I haven’t tried them yet and I’m not sure how they will look in the resin. I’ll probably try them in a coaster first, rather than a larger piece like this.
Blue filler sprinkled into the resin.Sprinkling the glass flakes.
After that, I just keep an eye on the whole piece while the resin and the decorations settle down. I added a bit more of the decoration materials and touched up some spots that seemed to need a little more resin after shifting. It’s also important to check on the piece over the first hour of curing time to ensure you can remove any bubbles that form – sometimes they can be large and will detract from the look I am trying to achieve. They can be removed with the heat gun or sometimes a craft stick. Below are some up close detail photos of the window.
Today I went back and forth on, but finally committed to (read that, glued in place) some background decoration features for the mermaid. I glued them in place because they are small and the resin might push them out of place when I am pouring it. I don’t want to be trying to make the swirls look perfect when the resin is applied, so I used some Mac glue to secure them. I might add just *one* more little blue swirl. The next step is to let the glue dry overnight. Hopefully tomorrow everything will look great and I can pour and decorate the resin background to bring it all together!
After comparing a few alternatives, I decided to give the mermaid a bubble to hold. I really liked the flower, though, so I added it to her hair. I also started embellishing her tail with some green accents and gluing down her upper body. I was able to pretty much finish her today, now I have to plan how I will decorate the background around her when I pour the resin.
Filling in her upper body.Her body completed.
I have all sorts of options for embellishing the background.
Lots of baubles!
I’d like to add some swirls and bubbles, but the placement of everything can be hard for me to figure out, so I generally lay out several samples and move them around to help me decide.
Today I was able to glue down the mermaid’s tresses and start thinking about her upper body. I spent almost all day working on her.
She has a lot of hair!
I used two colors of the same type of stained glass for her hair – a rich brown and an amber hue. My son says it looks like her hair is on fire. I arranged the pieces of glass and added a few details here and there as I glued it in place.
Hair detail prior to gluing it in place.
Once I had her hair done, I started trying out various colors for her upper body. This is my first round. None of her upper body / arms is glued (or really properly arranged) yet. I started with the sandy / tan glass and so far I think I like it. I would like to give her more depth, though, so I might need to incorporate some other shades, or just let her be sort of flat. I also can’t decide what she will be holding in her hands. Originally I planned for her to be holding a large marble (bubble), but the marble I have is not the right size (seems too small). I tried a large glass glob, and that seemed to be the right size, but it doesn’t add much in the way of interest to the overall piece. Then I thought I might use some of the pink glass I was thinking about using for her body and make a lotus flower out of it. I haven’t cut the glass for that yet, but it’s a possibility. I like the way the pink brings some interest to the mosaic, but I will also be decorating the background and will have the opportunity to add some interest then.
Still deciding on her upper body and what she will be holding. Above she has a pink flower.Holding a bubbleHolding a shell.
Today I was able to pretty much finish the mermaid’s tail. I used Mac glue to secure the pieces of glass around the edge of her tail, then arranged the rest inside the ones that are glued down. This way the glass pieces at the outer edges of the design will hold the rest of the glass pieces in place. I can do this because the resin will hold everything in place when I pour it in the last step of making the window.
Filling in her tail.
I’ve been planning this mermaid in my head, little by little, but sometimes the decisions about layout and color are more difficult than others. While I was filling in her tail, I was thinking about what color to use for her upper body, but I am having trouble making up my mind. This is partially because I have a bunch of glass on hand and I want to use some of it, rather than buying more (so I am limited in my options), and partially because I can’t easily envision how she will look in the end with one shade of pink, cream, brown or tan vs. another. I even considered using something unusual like green. There are so many options!
Evaluating different pieces of glass / colors.
I have a feeling I will end up trying a few different options rather than jumping in with the “right” one from the start. I did have some luck choosing the glass colors for her hair, however, as I ran across two shades of amber/brown that seem to complement each other (see below). I guess for now I will start working on her tresses and then revisit her upper body to see which shade looks best with her blue tail and new head of hair.
Two shades of glass I like for her hair.
It’s interesting because when I started thinking about the mermaid, I thought her hair would be the most difficult part to do. It’s turning out that her upper body is the hardest part of the project for me to plan.
