Mirror Mirror on the wall

Lately it seems like the fairy tale of Snow White is making a comeback. I love the original movie by Walt Disney. He invented an innovative technique using 7 cameras and shooting down vertically from above to get a wonderful 3 dimensional look that was missing in the early animations.
There are two movies out: Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman. The first one I saw, and was pretty disappointed. The second looks very dark and spooky, and I'm not sure I want to see it.

At any rate, today's project is a mirror, so I figured I'd tie it in with the "mirror mirror" trend. Of course this mirror will not talk to you, or have magic powers, but it sure will look nice hanging on your wall.

Today's project is:
Mosaic Mirror

You will need:
a mirror (if it has a frame around it, that much the better)
tile adhesive
grout (it comes in many colors)
old dishes (find a garage sales, or thrift shops)

You will have to break the plates into usable pieces. I did this outside, using a hammer.
I wrapped the plate in newspaper, then wrapped this into an old towel. On a hard surface (driveway, or sidewalk) gently but firmly hit the plate in several places to crack it up. 

After you have enough pieces, lay them out in a way that they are close to each other, but not touching. You want a gap between the glass. I used brown glass pieces in the photo to 'frame' the mirror. But the beauty of this project is that you don't need any artistic talent, the designs are already done for you on the plates.

Lift each piece in turn, using a popsicle stick, slap on some tile adhesive and press onto mirror.
Continue until the mirror perimeter is filled with glass pieces. I like to use the edges of the plates facing into the center of the mirror. In other words, so the glass not grouted on the inner edge, has a nice smooth finish, and not the sharp broken part. Keep those inside where they will be embedded with grout and not exposed to cut you).

Wait 24 hours and  mask off the inside of the mirror to keep it clean while grouting.
Then apply the grout. You will probably have to mix this up yourself. Get an old bucket or old bowl, pour the grout in and A LITTLE BIT AT A TIME add water while you are mixing it in.

When the grout is the consistency of bread dough, spread it around the pieces. After you have all the spaces filled in, take an old damp rag and gently wipe the grout off the glass pieces. This does not have to be perfect, but the more you take off now, the less you will have to scrape off later when it dries.
Then use a wet sponge and go over the mosaic pieces and grout to smooth it out. Let dry overnight and go back with a damp rag to clean off any grout from the pieces. But be careful not to gouge out any of the grout between the pieces.

This mirror will be heavy, so before you hang it up, make sure you have a strong fastener in the wall (a molly bolt is good to use).  Once you get this technique 'down', you'll be covering all kinds of things.
(I showed you how to cover a clay flower pot in an earlier post.)

tip of the day:
Pick up a couple of plastic silverware organizers at the thrift shop when you are looking for those plates. These work great in your bathroom drawer to organize makeup, hair accessories or any of those goodies we have in our drawers.

That's all for now!
:D

Smashing idea!

I love to make new stuff out of old things...

Hi there,
I'm in Wisconsin right now, enjoying my Midwest vacation.
The weather is hot, the food is great, the company is outstanding.
So all is good.

Today's project is:

mosaic flower pot

Ever break your favorite plate or mug, and wish you could do something with the beautiful glass pieces? Well, probably not...but IF you did - here's an idea for you.

You'll need:
~bits of glass (the flatter the better)
~strong glue (tile glue, e6000, or Amazing Goop)
~grout mix (get at hardware stores, Home Depot, etc.)
~flower pot (clay) this can be an old one, just clean it with soap and water, and dry.

If you don't have glass already broken, you can certainly get a couple of plates and break them yourself. The re-sale shops and garage sales usually have odd pieces for very cheap. I like to break up a few plates, so I have a nice assortment of sizes and colors.

Put the plate into a ziploc bag (or similar plastic bag), then put it into one more bag, then wrap it in an old towel, or several layers of newspapers. Take your hammer and smash down onto the plate. You should do this outside if possible, and on a hard surface (sidewalk? driveway?) The pieces should end up approximately the size of a quarter.

Carefully unwrap the outer towel or newspaper and check the sizes of the pieces. Your plastic bags will start to rip, so be very careful you don't let the glass shards fall out as you're checking.

When you've broken up the bigger pieces, and have enough to cover your pot, carefully open the bags, and either use pliers, or put work gloves on take the pieces out. I like to tap them inside the bag, to loosen any glass dust. You can rinse them off in a bucket of water too. Just remember to dump out the water in a place where no one will be walking and not down the drain. Discard the plastic bags, and towel/newspapers carefully, as not to let any glass shards fall.

Put the pot on a folded old rag or paper towels to create a padded surface. This way it won't roll around, plus it will have a cushion for the glued pieces to rest on.

Take your broken pieces, one by one, and glue them onto the pot. If they are too curved, either break them into a couple of smaller pieces, or discard them. If you can't get the glue to touch the surface of the pot fully, the piece will fall off later.

You'll have to keep the pot on it's side for several minutes to allow the glue to set a bit. Then turn it and continue to place the glass pieces on it until the pot is covered.

Leave a bit of room between pieces. This usually is not hard, since the pieces are in odd shapes. When the glue has completely dried (I'd wait overnight) then you're ready to grout.

Follow directions on package for mixing the grout. It should end up being the consistency of sour cream. You'll smear this into the areas between the glass pieces. Don't worry if you get some grout on the glass, we'll clean it later.) Use a popsicle stick, or your hands (in heavy rubber gloves) to get the grout into all the areas around the glass, being careful you don't cut yourself on the glass edges.

After you have grouted, take an old damp rag and wipe off the glass surfaces. Also run the rag over the grout GENTLY to get a smoother look. But this does not have to be perfectly smooth, just not lumpy.  When the grout dries (follow package directions) you can clean the glass further for any residue left behind.

This project can be messy, so it's perfect for working outside now in the summer!
Once you get the hang of this, you'll be covering all sorts of things. I've done serving trays, table tops, wooden picture frames, mirrors, and wooden boxes.

Tip of the day:
I bought some old trunks for my daughter, but found they had a really musty smell inside that I could not get rid of. I tried lemon juice, bleach, household cleaners. But nothing helped. My neighbor told her hairdresser, who does a lot of furniture refurbishing. She had a great idea, that she used herself on her antique trunks.
Take vodka (the cheapest you can buy) and put it into a spray bottle (UNdiluted) and spray the inside until saturated. The alchohol seems to turn the musty smell into more of a 'woodsy' scent. It worked great! I had the trunks outside in the sunshine to dry between several spraying and I am so happy with the results.
Thank you Mary Ann, we 'toast' you.

That's all for today
Dee