Category Archives: Mosaic and other crafts

A cow in love… with blue flowers

19 Wednesday Apr 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Dating, Finding Me, Mosaic and other crafts

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“Open the bloom of your heart and become a gift of beauty to the world.”  ― Bryant McGill, Simple Reminders: Inspiration for Living Your Best Life

Life progresses likes waves in the ocean, with highs and lows. As the spring flowers blossom, so does M and I.  We continue flying high, so excited to have found each other and so eager for a future together.  

Unfortunately, at work now is a low point.  My co-worker will be having another surgery on Monday, to deal with cancer.  Fortunately, she thinks that it will be an easier operation this time. Is there anything easy about cancer?  I am bracing myself for another 3 months without her.

As she is leaving to have surgery, I am leaving for Brazil.  I am still trying to figure out how to do her job while in Brazil, without driving myself insane.  This time I am unwilling to take it all upon myself.  I have done that for over 20 years at this job.  Everything has always been seemingless and perfect no matter what the circumstances were.  I am not willing to do it anymore. Some people here will have to step up.

In the meantime, the mosaic studio continues to be my happy place.  There, I often do more talking than creating.   The ladies there look forward to hearing about the latest news about M.  They are so happy for me, as you all are.

This cow is the latest piece I finished.  It is a cow that is in love and sees flowers all around.  She was going to have legs, but it seemed too complicated so I just put her behind some bushes. 

              

“Yes, we praise women over 40 for a multitude of reasons. Unfortunately, it’s not reciprocal. For every stunning, smart, well-coiffed, hot woman over 40, there is a bald, paunchy relic in yellow pants making a fool of himself with some 22-year old waitress. Ladies, I apologize. For all those men who say, “Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?”, here’s an update for you. Nowadays 80% of women are against marriage. Why? Because women realize it’s not worth buying an entire pig just to get a little sausage!” ― Frank Kaiser

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Mirror, mirror on the wall

10 Monday Apr 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Mosaic and other crafts

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“It is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being.” ― John Joseph Powell, The Secret of Staying in Love

M. came to spend the Easter weekend.  He is leaving tomorrow.  I will be posting about it in the next couple of day.  In the meantime, here is a mirror I made at the studio a month ago.  I forgot to take pictures at the beginning and along the way.    “Every man carries with him through life a mirror, as unique and impossible to get rid of as his shadow.”
― W.H. Auden, The Dyer’s Hand and Other Essays

  

“For I do not exist: there exist but the thousands of mirrors that reflect me. With every acquaintance I make, the population of phantoms resembling me increases. Somewhere they live, somewhere they multiply. I alone do not exist.” ― Vladimir Nabokov

   

“Mirrors,’ she said, ‘are never to be trusted.”
― Neil Gaiman, Coraline

“Why on earth do you carry a mirror around with you?”
“It’s purely a defensive device. We seldom quarrel, and this is one of the reasons. Can you imagine yourself getting all worked up and contorted and illogical and then coming face to face with yourself, looking at yourself exactly as you look to everyone else?”
― Theodore Sturgeon, Venus Plus X

 

 

 

Just a dog with flowers on his hair, unfinished

14 Tuesday Mar 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Mosaic and other crafts

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“It’s just the most amazing thing to love a dog, isn’t it? It makes our relationships with people seem as boring as a bowl of oatmeal.” ― John Grogan, Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World’s Worst Dog

I was asked by my friend Andi (from https://coffeewithandi.com), if I make all my mosaics only at the studio or at home.

I make most of them at the studio.  It is easier there.  The materials are all there.  L. is there.  L. is the owner of the studio and the master of all things mosaic.  She is always ready to give her advice and direct us when she knows something should be done in a different way.

I have done some at home, before I found the studio.  I don’t have a lot materials at home, but it is fun being resourceful with what I have.  Most recently I have made the one of my sister.  Here: https://blessedwithastarontheforehead.com/2023/02/01/here-is-my-sister-well-something-like-that/

And just last week, I finished the little dog below.  Everything I did with this one is wrong, starting with using canvas.  It is a great lesson, in mosaics and in life.  We have to start with a good base, with firm ground.  Building on shaky ground may result in failure.

I had used canvas before but it had a frame around, so it was a bit more sturdy than this.  Of course I knew I shouldn’t have, but this stubborn Aries thought that she could get away with it.  I didn’t get away with it, as you can see.

As a result the grout keeps cracking.  Then I tried to use resin in middle, but didn’t have enough to cover it. It turns out that mosaics cannot be as forgiving as I thought.

Lesson learned.  I will attempt some corrections, but still, I am in love with this little dog.  It makes me smile when I look at him. 
 

 
“You can say any fool thing to a dog and the dog will just give you this look that says, ‘My GOSH, you’re RIGHT! I NEVER would’ve thought of that!” ― Dave Barry

“They [dogs] never talk about themselves but listen to you while you talk about yourself, and keep up an appearance of being interested in the conversation. ” ― Jerome K. Jerome

“Don’t accept your dog’s admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful.” ― Ann Landers

   “They [dogs] never talk about themselves but listen to you while you talk about yourself, and keep up an appearance of being interested in the conversation. ” ― Jerome K. Jerome

“I’m suspicious of people who don’t like dogs, but I trust a dog when it doesn’t like a person.” ― Bill Murray

    “I believe in integrity. Dogs have it. Humans are sometimes lacking it.” ― Cesar Millan

  “Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one, is a life diminished.” ― Dean Koontz, A Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog

  “Slowly, Anna put up a hand to his muzzle and began to scratch that spot behind the ear where large dogs keep their souls.” ― Eva Ibbotson, A Countess Below Stairs

“The dog’s agenda is simple, fathomable, overt: I want. “I want to go out, come in, eat something, lie here, play with that, kiss you. There are no ulterior motives with a dog, no mind games, no second-guessing, no complicated negotiations or bargains, and no guilt trips or grudges if a request is denied.” ― Caroline Knapp

Why did the chicken cross the road?

03 Friday Mar 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Mosaic and other crafts

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“I dream of a better tomorrow. One where chickens can cross the road and their motives remain unquestioned.” ― Anonymous

I am not sure if I made a chicken, a hen or a rooster.  It didn’t come out as I intended. But then again, most of my pieces never do.  They always end up very different from my original idea.  Still, I love them all.

 

“Roads are no place for naive chickens dreaming of nirvana.”
― Shalom Auslander, Hope: A Tragedy 

“She entered with ungainly struggle like some huge awkward chicken, torn, squawking, out of its coop.”
― Arthur Conan Doyle, The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes

“Alvin smiled back, and kissed her. “People talk about fools counting chickens before they hatch. That’s nothing. We name them.” ― Orson Scott Card, Alvin Journeyman 

“If I didn’t start painting, I would have raised chickens.”
― Grandma Moses

“Ah, that is interesting! Are there chickens?”
“No.”
“Nothing is perfect,” sighed the fox.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

 

A star, not on the forehead

05 Sunday Feb 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Mosaic and other crafts

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“Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them.” ― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

Happy Sunday everyone!

I go to the mosaic studio twice a week, so I am always working on something.  Often, even before I finish a project, I already have an idea of what I am going to work on next.  This time I didn’t.

Looking around the studio I decided to do a star.  But the star shapes we had there didn’t appeal to me, so I decided to use a square frame and draw a star.

Very often, the end project is very different from my initial intention, for a variety of reasons.  Sometimes my initial idea is too ambitious (not in this case), sometimes the materials are not doing what I need them to do, sometimes I lose interest and I just want to get it done to start something else.

It is easy to dream up something… getting it done is the hard part.

I love doing mosaics, and the studio is my happy place,  but there are times that I only focus on the result and not in the process.  Mosaics is a my constant reminder to enjoy the journey and to stop focusing only on the destination.

I am, and forever will be, a student of mosaics and life.

Here is the star I made.  It is done with colored glass, and some small mirror tiles. I used black grout, instead of something lighter, to make more of an impact.  In the end it is not what I initially had in mind, but still I am happy with it.

“I know that I am mortal by nature, and ephemeral; but when I trace at my pleasure the windings to and fro of the heavenly bodies I no longer touch the earth with my feet: I stand in the presence of Zeus himself and take my fill of ambrosia” –  Ptolemy, Ptolemy’s Almagest

Here is my sister! Well, something like that…

01 Wednesday Feb 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Finding Me, Mosaic and other crafts

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“But the love of sisters needs no words. It does not depend on memories, or mementos, or proof. It runs as deep as a heartbeat. It is as ever present a s a pulse.” ― Lisa Wingate, Before We Were Yours

My sister became a U.S. citizen in November and I wanted to mark the date. While I don’t have the skills yet to do something more flattering, I came up with the piece below.  My sister has long curly hair and round glasses.  I think I have captured her essence, in a fun/funny way.  She liked it.  She cannot look at it without laughing.

I want to start doing more mosaics at home.  I get great ideas and advice at the studio, but I am really interested in what I can come up with without anybody’s input and with the material I have at home.

For the record I adore L., the studio owner.  She is the best and does the most amazing things.  She has helped my love for mosaics flourish.

I have also finished two other project at the studio, that I will be posting next.

 

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it may be necessary from time to time to give a stupid or misinformed beholder a black eye.” ― Jim Henson

My 2022 in mosaics – finding peace in the broken pieces

22 Sunday Jan 2023

Posted by in Daily Life, Mosaic and other crafts

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These are all the mosaic pieces I made in 2022.  I have already posted about all of them separately, but wanted to have them all together in one post.  It is fun to see the variety of inspiration, subject and materials I used.

Trust me, they look much better in person.  But then again, I am biased. They are all my babies.

January/February: This piece came out of nowhere.  As I was gathering somes glass pieces, they looked like a face to me.  That is how this very pensive and troubled woman was born. Her name was supposed to be Susie. But it is nameless for now.

 

February/March: This frame was not as I intended.  I intended on a frame for my brother.  But then came the flowers and sparkles.  I don’t think I will be using sparkles again. It is very shiny, but also very messy.

 

February/March: I was inspired by a greeting card.  Many band-aids later, this little bird was finished. It is hard to tell but it is made of glass pieces that I cut very small to give the idea of a snowy forest in the background.

 

March/April. I decided that my pensive and troubled lady needed a boyfriend. Just call him Jean Paul.

 

May/June: This pizza was inspired by the post I wrote called The Pizza Debacle.

 

May/June: I had just returned from the casino and saw some gambling inspiring ceramic at the studio, so why not?

 

June/July: I bought some old frames at a tag sale.  This one had blue flowers on it.  I let them guide me.

 

June/July: This next one also started with an old painting from the tag sale.  It had a painting of fruit in it, so I decided on grapes for my design.

 

August/September: After doing the woman, and then her boyfriend Jean Paul, I decided to create a whole whimsical little family. This is a piece that a lot people disliked, but of course, I loved it.

 

September: This flower is made of mugs and plates.  It has some texture and height to it.  Originally I liked my work to be flat, but the more involved I get with mosaics the more I want to try different styles and techniques.

 

October/November: After doing faces using glass, I wanted to try to make a face using ceramic.  It became a mask and I am happy with it.

 

November:  In an effort to try different surfaces, this time I used a vase.  While it is not my favorite, I am happy with the result.

 

November/December: This was based on a watercolor picture.  It is very hard to translate watercolor to mosaic. I am happy with this first attempt.

 

December:  This is one of my favorites. It is happy and it makes me happy.

 

This is the last piece I did in 2022.  It is out of broken plates.  I made this at home and grouted at the studio.

I am inspired now to make a post with all my mosaics from 20 and 21.

“I must try to enjoy all the graces that God has given me today. Grace cannot be hoarded. There are no banks where it can be deposited to be used when I feel more at peace with myself. If I do not make full use of these blessings, I will lose them forever.

God knows that we are all artists of life. One day, he gives us a hammer with which to make sculptures, another day he gives us brushes and paints with which to make a picture, or paper and a pencil to write with. But you cannot make a painting with a hammer, or a sculpture with a paintbrush. Therefore, however difficult it may be, I must accept today’s small blessings, even if they seem like curses because I am suffering and it’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining, and the children are singing in the street. This is the only way I will manage to leave my pain behind and rebuild my life.”
― Paulo Coelho , The Zahir

Final mosaic projects of the year: A basket of flowers and a picture frame

21 Wednesday Dec 2022

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Mosaic and other crafts

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“The earth laughs in flowers.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

My last 2 mosaics of the year.  The basket of flowers I made at the studio, and the picture frame I made at home.  I am trying to get used to doing projects at home, for those times that the studio is closed.

They are mostly made from dinner plates and coffee mugs.

With each project I get more and more ideas.  The mosaic world is huge and I want to explore it all!  May you find a hobby you love as much as I love doing mosaics!

“I must have flowers, always, and always.”
― Claude Monet

“In joy or sadness, flowers are our constant friends.”
― Okakura Kakuzo

“If you want a forgotten corner to be remembered, a featureless place to be loved, a shadowy emptiness to shine, put some flowers there!” ― Mehmet Murat ildan

“There are no bad pictures; that’s just how your face looks sometimes.”
― Abraham Lincoln

A BLESSED HOLIDAY SEASON TO ALL!  THANK YOU FOR GRACING ME WITH YOUR PRESENCE, ENERGY, SUPPORT AND LOVE!  YOU ARE APPRECIATED AND LOVED! 

A kiss full of color and whimsy

03 Saturday Dec 2022

Posted by in Daily Life, Mosaic and other crafts

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“You should be kissed and by someone who knows how.” ― Margaret Mitchell

My love affair with mosaics continues.  For this next piece I used a painting that I saw online as inspiration. Watercolor paint and glass tiles are very different materials to work with, so I knew the result would be very different.

I am happy with this first attempt. I will try it again with different materials and colors.  At times I still struggle with having the patience not to rush with a project, and the result usually reflects that.

Wishing you all a blessed weekend!  And if you have the chance, kiss!

“When my date takes me home and kisses me good night, if I don’t hear the philharmonic in my head, I dump him.” — The Mirror Has Two Faces

“I didn’t want to kiss you goodbye — that was the trouble — I wanted to kiss you good night — and there’s a lot of difference.” ― Ernest Hemingway 

“I kissed him hard. The few people in the bar must have been thinking that all they were seeing was just a kiss. They didn’t know that this kiss stood for my whole life – and his life, as well. The life of anyone who has waited, dreamed, and searched for their true path.

The moment of that kiss contained every happy moment I had ever lived.” ― Paulo Coelho, By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept

It is still Halloween here

01 Tuesday Nov 2022

Posted by in Daily Life, Mosaic and other crafts

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“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery each day. 
—”Old Man’s Advice to Youth: ‘Never Lose a Holy Curiosity.'” LIFE Magazine (2 May 1955) p. 64”

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a safe and fun Halloween.  Growing up in Brazil there was no Halloween, so I never got into it. I never cared for dressing up in costumes, even at Carnaval, so last night was uneventful.  I have been mostly glued to the news about the elections in Brazil.

Trump, I mean, Bolsonaro lost, and because he has been following Trump’s playbook, he has yet to call Lula, the president elect, to congratulate him and concede defeat.

I fear the protests.  Not the peaceful protests, but the ones that aim to just cause chaos and disruption.  Any kind of fanatical behavior scares me. Most of the ones protesting have really no grasp on why they are doing what they are doing.   Blind allegiance is scary. 

Don’t get me wrong, similar to the US, there was a lack of good candidates.  But between the two, I am taking Lula.  I didn’t vote, but I would vote for taking care of the rain forest, for the better treatment of the indians, the poor, the minorities and the women.  My vote has been always for peace.

I pray. May there be peace! In Brazil, and in the world!

“The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science.”
― Albert Einstein, The World As I See It

Here is another piece I finished.  I am having fun coming up with these weird stuff. It was not meant to be weird.  Actually,  I really had no idea what it would look like.  It has been fun being creative.

My sister adored this one.  She is my biggest fan, but she can also be a tough critic (she hates that pizza one).  She says it is all about the eyes, that it seems to be staring back and looking in.  It is hard to see that in the pictures. 

I continue to fall more and more in love with mosaics.

“As a rule, the more bizarre a thing is the less mysterious it proves to be. It is your commonplace, featureless crimes which are really puzzling, just as a commonplace face is the most difficult to identify.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes