TMG,

I'll be waiting to see what everyone says since I have 4 small tables looking at me and saying "Do me! Do me!". Some have been saying that for a few months...

I have been placing plates and glass beads on top of one of these table - things I'd like to see on it. A strawberry theme is showing up.

Jumping in seems so hard to do sometimes! :O)

I really don't have a theme in mind when I start. On the headboard I didn't want to paint it so I sealed it then just started to lay my plates and tiles in a pleasing pattern until I like the way it looks. Then I start the glueing and hope for the best LOL

Well,shoot I'm the wrong one to ask. LOL- No thought process here!!

Sometimes I have a color glass I want to use, sometimes a plate. Then it ends up almost NOTHING like I started!!
Grout color is last, though, after I finished.

Maria

Not that I have a clue what I am doing. REALLY!! It just happens.So take this for what you pay for it. Heheheh

I look at my stash and try to put together colors and thicknesses of china that work together. I pull out everything trashing the whole area right off.

Then I choose an edge for the table. Remember most of what I do is a mixture of china and stained glass.

I lay out the edge to be sure I have enough pieces with several extra and this is a ruff lay out. Then I scoop it all into a bowl and take it out and grind the top edges of the cut sides of the china that go to the inside. I like to use the rounded edge as the outer table or piece edge to make it nice and smooth if this is possible.

Then I bring it all back in and start laying out the edge cutting and fitting as I go. If it is a rounded edge you need to just nip off the inside corners to try to keep your edge pieces the same distance apart with out the triangle at the top/ outer edge too open. Might have to draw a picture of that one. Then I glue the edge down.

From there I just start building. Sometimes it is from the center sometimes from the corner. Depending on how insane I want it to look. I like to toss out the pieces I think might work and sort of play around until I get a pleasing effect. Nothing glued or fussy cut. Just colors and pieces that go together.

Then I stand back and take pictures and look at it on the computer and this is when the flaws will show up.

I also try to choose thicknesses of china that go with the thickness of the glass. I will try to place the thin edge of china towards the glass and the thicker end of china against another piece of china. I keep feeling it all the time. If I have to go from high to low I grind down the high edge. Sometimes before gluing sometimes after. It feels ok to me to have the table slightly roll and glasses will not tip over if you do not have a sharp drop off. My kitchen island goes all over the place and I have never tipped something over on it. OK Now I said that I am SURE it will happen. Sigh

After everything is glued down I take the whole piece outside and spend as much time as it takes to grind ALL sharp and ruff edges with my dremel tool. This is a real pain but so worth all the effort. It can make or break a piece as far as being happy with it. I think I worked on my lady for several days running my hands over her and grinding every sharp point I felt. Does not take much to grind it enough to make it work.

Then I grout and as far as choosing color I have gotten into several colors on a piece. It is sort of a pain to do because it takes so much longer. Next time I am going to try grouting something all in white and quickly going over with diluted paint when I am done. I had to do so on my lady when I did not like her skin tone grout the first go round and could not take it all off and start over.

I love it when you all use the dark colored grout and love to look at it. For me here in my house I want light grout. My eyes are very bad and I need as much light as I can get to be able to see so everything gets grouted light for me. But I think every one has to decide their style and colors and go with what they like. I do think the purple dresser will have to be grouted in dark purple. So there is a switch for me.

Chris

I think that I either figure out a color or a detail 1st. Then I start looking for complimentary colors or shapes. If I want flowers, do they have leaves, if I want leaves 1st, are there also wildlife themes...???

Sometimes, it's a particular glass or plate that starts it all off, or the room's decor that the item is for...

I never draw it out and certainly would hate to lay out anything just to have to glue it all later... takes the fun away! lol

WOW! A lot of good info here. This is gonna be clipped for me! :)

I tend to start my art projects with pictures I've drawn,
then go from there. After the pix I pick out the size frame or border I want to work in. The colors are chosen by the picture.
For instance, I've always wanted to do a luna moth...so I did a drawing and am currently looking for an old, very
busy frame to do it in. The pix I see in greens and purples with a touch of orange...the frame matte black or dark brown scrubbed off wash over a limey green.
Did I mention I'm a bit of a nit picker?

Boy - this thread is a keeper for me too. I think I tend to OVERTHINK things. I make it harder on myself than it really is. At least now I know that my half a$$ed 'planning' is common ! LOL

If I'm doing tables or like my headboards i paint first knowing I will have to do a top coat when i am thru with the mosaic,,I go to my plates and pick what colors I'm wanting and now since I've started using some glass I match glass to plate colors sometimes I draw a small plan with chalk sometines not like the headboards I wanted the same so had to lay plates out to be sure I had what I needed,I do a lot like Shades but I non't grind and everthing is smooth enough for me ,,,I wish I could just go for it like some of you do but I have to plan a little.Annie

I usually start with a themed idea - fish, palm trees, flowers, etc. Then I try to decide the fill, and any complimentary images. Sometimes I will lay out glass, playing with ideas. My drawing abilities rate at a kindergarten level so I rarely draw anything out. I am much more of a visible, hands on person so if necessary I lay it out to see if it fits before I glue. I have 2 projects right now that I am at a stop dead point because I can't figure out the fill.

I tell ya...my designs are usually very thought out...once I figure out what design I'm gonna do then I start figuring out texture (beads, blobs, mirror, etc) grout is always the last choice for me and the one that makes me stress the most. I am just color challenged when it comes to grout. Grey and black are my favorites!!!

I'm still mulling over my mannequin. I love the ones I've seen by you girls but I want mine to reflect me and my emotions..a legacy to be left when I am dust. I am sooo challenged on that one. Everytime I think of a design, somehow it just doesn't feel right. It will get done some day I SWEAR!!!! I just have to find that little bit of inspiration that takes me over the top....nothing is impossible in our hobby.....

Ok...now back to your regular scheduled program.......sorry toomuch I couldnt got sidetracked there!!!!

wow - good question - and great thread. Very interesting to find out how everyone works.

shades - wow - that was a great write-up! I loved what you said - "I pull out everything trashing the whole area right off." LOL - I totally know what you mean - I do the same thing!

I start by pulling from my stash of dishes - I usually start with a patterned plate and then choose solid colors to coordinate with it - this is the time that I love that I've collected soooooo much stuff - cause it makes it easier to find all the solid colors I need to go with the patterned pieces I've chosen. I usually lay out a few of each selected color/pattern along with some glass globs and look at all the combinations together. Usually let it sit for a couple of days - keep looking at it and make sure it all "works".

Sometimes I place the pieces randomly, but more often I draw some kind of a pattern on the object. It practically always gets revised in one way or another before I'm done, but it does give me something to start with.

I think I start thinking about the grout color as I'm working on it, and by the time I'm finished placing all the tesserae I've pretty much decided.

I sketch ideas all the time. On the computer or on a tracing paper pad I keep next to me most of the time.

Of course what I sketch doesn't always translate to the piece. LOL

I'm just finishing up a photo frame for DD. I wanted to "loosen up" my design, so I placed globs randomly and then used all triangles as fill in. I wish I had done what Shades suggests - take a picture and view on computer because now that it is grouted I see areas that I wish I had done differently. It doesn't look bad, but it could be better. For my first photo frame it's good.

Taking a picture is one of the biggest helps. I discovered that when I started posting pictures here. Sometimes things look better to me, sometimes - "what was I thinking!!!"

If I get stuck it helps to look at it on the screen, too

Maria

As I answer both my mosaic and pottery students all the time..."It all depends."

Sometimes I have a "big" idea so the layout is planned and drawn, colors chosen and all nipped and ready for layout. But I never plan so everything is written in stone so to say. I always leave room in my plan for the unplanned so I am not disappointed if the results differ from my "big" idea vision in my head.

Sometimes I start out with a half formed idea. The project germinates as things get put down. These half formed ideas are like "Wouldn't it be neat to make this lacy plate edge look like the edge of a center doillie." or "I have four of these flowers so lets make one in each corner." So I do a partial layout and then do the rest as it comes. Grout color may or may not get chosen til after everything is down cause I am not totally sure what will happen when I start.

But most times I just let the shards take me where they want to go.

p

I'm working my way into larger projects now, so this topic was an inspired idea for me too! Thank you for posting it TMG! Loads of great information here.

Ditto! Just started one of my tables. Thanks for the 'kick' TMG!