I think that shell mosaics can look very tacky if the whole area is encrusted with tiny sea molluscs, all vying for attention. My solution here is to minimize the use of the shells, creating a hard sand bed for them to sit in. Sand is mixed with PVA, and as the PVA goes clear when dry, the end result looks like sand alone. Sharp sand has a beautiful, soft white colour.It is important that you do not use sand taken straight from the beach, as the salt content is corrosive which affects the finished mosaic.
At first glance, the procedure opposite looks complicated but in fact, this is the quickest and easiest project. Once you have assembled your materials, it should be possible to make the whole piece in half a day. If your house number runs into three digits, you may wish to make the plaque into an
ellipse instead of the circle shown.
Size: 22 cm (8 1/2 in) square
Designer and Maker: martin cheek
variation: Paul Hazelton
YOU WILL NEED
15 mm(5/8 in) thick MDF Cocktail stick
measuring 40 * 20 cm (16 Sheets of newspaper
* 8 in)
Craft knife
Large compass or a plate Two-part, slow-setting epoxy resin
22 cm (9 in) diameter small plastic mixing bowl
Sharp sand
Electric jigsaw One 'D' ring with screws
Assortment of small sea shells as shown right
1 m (1 yd) of 20 mm (3/4 in)
thick yachsman's rope 33 large periwinkles
(available from ship's chandlers) 37 small periwinkles
pencil 18 'bleeding teeth'
Two-part, fast-setting epoxy resin 1 starfish
piece of card measuring
about 15 * 10 cm (6 * 4 in)
Lollipop stick or modelling tool
1 Draw a circle 22 cm (8 1/2 in) diameter using a compass or a plate for a template. Cut this disc out with a jigsaw. Take the rope and run it around the outside edge of the disc and tie a half knot at the bottom of the disc, as shown. Draw around the two crescents made by the knot then untie and remvoe the rope and cut out these arcs. Replace the rope as before. It should now fit snugly around the MDF disc.
2 In a well-ventilated room, mix up the fast-setting epoxy resin by squirting out equal amounts onto the piece of card. Work on the reverse side of the rope and MDF disc (one side may look more pleasing than the other so choose that one as the top). Place it on a sheet of paper to protect your work surface and check that the two ends of the rope are sticking out equally from the disc. Then, using the modelling tool, run the epoxy resin into the gap between the disc and the rope. Leave to set (15 minutes).
3 Remove the backing paper and, using a scalpel, cut off any hardened glue that has dribbled through the gap. Now mix up the slow-setting epoxy resin by squirting out equal amounts into the small mixing bowl. Mix together the two parts thoroughly and then slowly add the sharp sand. Spread an even layer of the sand and resin mix onto the board, trying to get it as even as possible.
4 Divide the periwinkles into two piles, large and small. Place a row of the larger periwrinkles around the rim of the disc. It is best if you can be assertive in the positioning of the shells and place them firmly into the sand and resin bed and then leave them. However, if you need to, you can use the cocktail stick to finely twweak the shells into place.
Run a second row of smaller periwrinkles inside the outer one. Then, with your modelling tool, mark out your house number (I live at Number 21) and carefully form the numbers with the 'bleeding teeth'. I have placed a starfish at the bottom to add a little colour. Finally, fix the 'D' ring to the back of the board and hang the mosaic on your front door or wall.
VARIATION
Paul Hazelton's alternative design, below, shows how to adpat to an elliptical base. Paul has chosen to omit the rope and simply coat the edges of the MDF with sand and glue. Larger shells have been incorporated into the design to give a bigger, bolder finished effect.
BEAD BOX
Beads have their own natural beauty and so I thought it best to not completely encrust the box with them, but rather to use them sparingly. However, this makes for a 'knobbly effect', so to comprise Incorporated ordinary vitreous mosaic tiles to meet them half way. The beads are very rich in colour so it is important that the vitreous should be limited. I have chosen only two colours: a dark blue and Sorrento blue which has a metallic veining running through it that echoes the stripes of the beads and sets them off.
Grouting would have been possible, but it seemed somehow inappropriate and would have added unnecessary weight to the box. Instead, we painted the box before gluing down any tesserae so that the areas between would look harmonious. The simple addition of some gold and silver wax gilt, dry brushed onto the surface, complements the sparkle of the beads.
Size: 9 * 9 * 9.5 cm (3 1/2 * 3 1/2 * 3 3/4 in) square
Designer : martin cheek
Marker: sylvia Bell
YOU WILL NEED
Mosaic nippers
Beads and vitreous glass
tiles as shown right
MDF box 9 * 9 * 9.5 cm (3 1/2 * 3 1/2 * 3 3/4 in)
(see suppliers)
500 ml (1 pint) pot of white, quick-drying wood primer
Paintbrush
250 ml (9 fl oz) pot of sailor blue high gloss paint suitable for wood and metal (toy paint)
jar of white spirit
Small pot each of gold and silver
non-tarnishing wax gilt
cloth
125 ml (4 fl oz) wood adhesive in a dispenser
Safety spectacles
Face mask
1-4 various beads
5 Sorrento blue (25 tiles)
6 dark blue (6 tiles)
1 Using the mosaic nippers, break a few of the beads in half. If some shatter, keep the fragments, they too can be used. Play with the beads, arranging them on the lid of the box and use vitreous glass tesserae to help set them off. When you are happy with the result, place the beads and tesserae one by one to one side, keeping the pattern that you have made.
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