~Fun & Funky Garden Art Series ~ Mosaic Project "Colors of the Rainbow"

~Fun & Funky Garden Art Series ~ Mosaic Project

 "Colors of the Rainbow"

Colored glass holds all the colors of the rainbow as it shines and shimmers in the sunlight. Imagine capturing all of that and filling your garden with  the colors in the prism..The idea for this project came because we had a table top type of fire pit  where all the tiles had fallen off over the years. I have always loved having fires in the fire pit, it is such a great way to share the evening with family and friends.. making smores and enjoying each other's company. As you all must know by now... my garden areas are more like "living areas" and I love to fill then with "pretties" which have been found , re-purposed and now re- loved!

 So this fun project began with purchasing supplies such as - glass beads/ shapes, tiles,broken pieces of glass regular beads, ceramic beads etc, glue for setting the glass beads/tiles/ceramics and un sanded grout.

  

~Supply List~

*Several pounds of Glass rounds/glass pieces/ceramic beads/shapes ( depending on the size of your project)

* 4 oz Tube WeldBond Glue for setting the items into place ( I have found this glue, which is waterproof,non toxic and a non irritant to be a superior product to use for this project!!)

~Steps~

1)Lightly sand the area to be designed so it is smooth.

2) Using a small glob of glue  cover the bottom of the glass beads then place glass where you want to start designing. 

3) Continue placing the glued glass pieces on the project until you have finished the project.

4) When fully dry ( my project took several days to completely dry and you know when it is fully dried when the white color in the glue turns to clear)

5) To finish your piece, the final step is to then grout all the glass pieces in place, filling in all the spaces around the glass.( Follow directions for you particular grout product) I chose un sanded  grout as to not scratch the glass ( grout comes in sanded and un sanded and  also assorted colors... I will just use a basic beige)

Soooooo I now was on a roll and decided to tackle this unsightly large wooden spool that was left at the house when we moved in. Someone previously had decided that 1,000 nails might be a good addition to the spool so my first task was taking out all the old bent nails. It was even sitting there to be burned in a big bon fire soon because it did have some issues..but after i did the fire pit I thought how beautiful it would look to be turned into a table next to the hammock and finished in glass beads!

Here is the sad looking spool

I have begun with a free flow design

I am now filling in the empty spaces and still wanting to keep the" movement"

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It was fun to add some interesting items to it as well.. keeping the eye busy and moving!

I must admit I ended up making alot more trips to the store than I had wanted to! First I bought out the last 2 tubes of WeldBond at Michael's then had to make a trip to Joanne's  several days later when I ran out of glue since I bought the last couple of tubes at Michael 's! Come to find out Joanne's really doesn't carry mosaic supplies but did have a tube of glue on clearance that I was able to use. I also went to get more glass beads at the dollar store ( Trust me... for all that you will need, go to the dollar store to save you money!!) So last night I went to Micheal's to see if they had gotten in anymore WeldBond and they did, but it was in smaller tubes in another area. So I bought 2 of those and today thought I would finish it off.... well guess what.. I now have ran out of the glass beads!!!! So first thing tomorrow I will hit the dollar Store,get some more and finish up that beauty! Finished pictures of both ( the fire pit needs to still be grouted but I was going to do them both together)  will be posted next week!!! So fill your garden area with rainbows of color with glass mosaic pieces!! Have fun and enjoy!!

In Love & Light

Sherri

"Creative Magic Series With Featured Artisan Sandi Tygar!!

~Creative Magic~

So happy to able to announce our first "wildly creative" woman for our "Creative Magic Series each Wendnesday!! Sandi Tygar  is a kind soul and her artwork reflects her fun and creative side.She also will be offering several workshops at our" Wild Heart Art Retreat" right on Folly beach in South Carolina in the fall of 2013~ So stay tuned for that as well~ It will be an awesome adventure!!

I am a late bloomer in the art world. Up until I was in my 40's I didn't have a creative bone in my body - at least I didn't think so. One day about 9 years ago, my girlfriend dragged me (kicking and screaming) to a Creative Memories Scrapbooking party. She didn't want to go alone, and apparently I owed her one. I ended up loving playing with paper, and while I didn't continue scrapping in the CM style, I continued scrapping for many years. Once I discovered there was a way to connect with other scrappers online, I jumped in with both feet. I discovered a love for message boards and the community of other people that loved to do what I do.

In January of 2011 I was gifted Soul Restoration taught by Melody Ross. That class changed my life... It also introduced me to Mixed Media. I discovered a love for the forgiving nature of MM - if you don't like the way something looks, layer over it!!

After Soul Restoration 1, I did Soul Restoration 2, which made me sit down and really look at where I wanted to take my life. Set my goals, then work toward them. And everything brought me back to creating art. Going to Brave Girls Camp cemented my dream. 

I took class after class online, and learned more and more about mixed media, drawing faces, color. I actually just taught my own online class which is running right now - 'I doodle, do you?' which was a TON of fun, and I'm working on 'I doodle too, two, 2!' now, which should have a start date of July 15th. I've already got a 3rd class rumbling around in my brain - I love teaching others to create something - because there is no better feeling in the world!

My perfect day would be a rainy one (so that I don't feel the pull of the sun outdoors) spent in my studio, peace and quiet, just creating and playing all day. With occasional facebook breaks. Since part of the fun is showing people what I'm working on!!

And YES she has awesome rain boots just like that in real life:)

Sandi's latest Creations.. beautiful and full of creative life!

Thank you Sandi for all the beauty you add to our everyday lives! Visit her blog also for details on workshops she offers!!

Blog - www.sandi-mybravesoul.blogspot.com

Etsy - http://www.etsy.com/shop/ADragonflysSoul

~In love & Light~

Sherri

And please let us know if you would like to be featured in this fun weekly series!! 

~Fun & Funky Garden Art #2~

 

I cant tell you how much I love to create a beautiful garden for not only my enjoyment but more importantly for family and friends to gather and have fun! 

Our last home was a beautiful old Victorian  ( which was the "scary house" on the block when we bought it.. no gardens or even grass in the back yard !) So we basically started from scratch!

 Over the 12 years we lived there we gradually fixed it up and brought it back to its beautiful self. One thing we did every summer was to expand and improve upon our gardens and ponds, which gave us such joy.

 Over the 12 years we've had 2 garden weddings ( one was mine to my husband Russ and the other one was my  beautiful daughter Ashley's wedding to her husband Joel). My husbands 50th (surprize) Birthday Bash and a wedding shower.Also including many other birthday parties and just relaxing times sharing good company.

Many beautiful moments happen in the garden

 and I love to create spaces of  comfort and serenity and many of us know how expensive that  trip to the store can be by the time you buy plants,garden furniture,seeds, the " fun things" seem to be put  on the back burner. So that is why I thought this series would be fun because I have been known to create and showcase "crazy" things in the garden... just ask my husband!! I even taught workshops on creating the fun,funky and recycled for the garden!!

Yes we have had old vintage bikes with ivy in each side basket climbing on it and a huge old mirror hanging on the side of the carriage house!  So I will share many of my "secrets" including projects I have done or am in the process of doing each week! I think a garden should be fun and "talked about" :) In a good way of course! I love to help inspire other people to think outside the box and find their creative self!

A beautiful addition of a trellis to have the vertical view of color

Believe it or not... I found this on the side of the road and come to find out it is an antique coal stove! I added a faux birdcage to the top with a trailing plant inside.

Well, instead of moving this HUGE stump I figured I would just use it as a plant stand! I put a basket on top and added  a pretty combination of annuals.  

This is a 3 foot tall vase that was on clearance as it was chipped on top... I got it VERY inexpensively and figured that you would never see the top anyway once it was turned into a planter! I filled the base with Styrofoam peanuts 3/4 full and then placed a planted pot inside ... Voila.. saved a ton of money and it looks great!

Pocket basket hung on the side of the arbor filled with lobelia.

Over the the summer I will  also share with you all some funny situations and interesting stories on my journey to find ,forage and foster a unique and amazing garden experience!! I wanted to give you a peak and share with you my  many gardens ( some I have had to leave behind and others are yet to create!), fun and funky ideas and next week we have  a very interesting and useful project creating a table from something most people just through away!!  I look forward to seeing you each Friday and  feel free to send  me pictures of your garden art or creations for the blog! We will have a section each week to share with each other here on my blog!! So have an awesome day and ENJOY your garden!
~In Love & Light~
Sherri

~CREATIVE MAGIC~

We will now be offering a new addition to our blog called ~Creative Magic~ where I will feature one artisan  each week on Wednesday's (  in art or jewelry) and share their story of how they acquired their "creative magic" and love for their craft but most importantly how they became inspired! 

I am deeply inspired by nature... the beauty,colors and textures are amazing! I love to just sit outside listening to the birds sing their duets and breath in my beautiful surroundings! I also enjoy listening to music while creating and find it very inspirational as well... I love many different types of music and it just depends on whether I am in a fun dancing mood or a laid back quite mood while creating... but all of that together creates a wonderful experience for creating magic!!

So if you or anyone you know would be interested  to be featured in our~ Creative Magic~ Spotlight let me know!! Have a beautiful day Creative Friends!!

~In Love & Light~

Sherri