The spackle concept

15 years ago

I had lots of annoyances with my first butterfly because the mortar I spread over my hardware cloth wasn't perfectly even. Ironically, I haven't had this similar problem as I'm working on Mr. Sea. I think because he's a larger piece, he was easier to really keep smooth in the mortar stage. That and, because he's a larger piece, I'm finding it easier to adjust for slight tilts in some of the tiles.

Anyway, I'm trying something a little different on my next butterfly and I hope it helps. I took a putty knife and some thinset and basically "spackled" the butterfly wings. I'm letting it dry good, and then I'll lightly sand over it to get the surface even more smooth.

I have no idea whether or not this will help, but thought I'd share the idea!

I'll keep you posted!

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Comments (5)

loribee2
Original Author
15 years ago
Are these pictures really huge on your computers by the way? I resized them in Photobucket before I copied them in, but it sometimes seems to take a long time before the photo shows up in the smaller size on GardenWeb. I don't get it! If they're huge, I apologize! I'm thinking in the future, I'll probably resize them on my PC before uploading so I don't have the hassle.
texaswild
15 years ago
You must've missed my post on what I learned from a former member - NICETHYME - (miss her). She used a damp paint brush to smooth out the mortar. It works beautifully. I've used that technique ever since I saw her do that on her large leaf project. Just wet the brush and brush lightly over the mortar/thinset.
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loribee2
Original Author
15 years ago
Now that you mention it, that does sound vaguely familiar. I don't think it clicked at the time I was mortaring my butterflies. I will definitely give that a try with the next one.
nanatricia
15 years ago
You can also take a wet sand paper and go over it and smooth out some of the rough parts helps a lot.
concretenprimroses
15 years ago
Looks good. Glad to hear about techniques that I may be using tomorrow!
Kathy