FanningSparks – Page 29 – A DIY and lifestyle blog authored by Peg Frizzell.

We Dined on the Ocean Floor

The Bay of Fundy is one of the many natural wonders found along the coastlines of Canada’s Maritime Provinces. Located between the provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, the Bay of Fundy is the site of the world’s highest tides. Globally, the average difference between high tide and low tide, called the tidal range, is about 3 feet. But in the funnel-shaped Bay of Fundy the tidal range is about 52 feet—more than 17 times the global average! Since the tide changes about every 6 hours and 13 minutes that means the water goes up and down by about 52 feet twice every day. And since the Bay of Fundy is no small body of water—it’s about 250 miles long and has an average depth of about ½ mile—that’s an astonishing amount of water moving in and out of the bay. To help paint the picture here’s the Boar’s Head Lighthouse on a foggy section of the Bay of Fundy viewed from East Ferry, Nova Scotia.
Wikipedia puts it this way “the tides that flow through the channel are very powerful. In one 12-hour tidal cycle, about 100 billion tonnes of water flows in and out of the bay, which is twice as much as the combined total flow of all the rivers of the world over the same period. They are as powerful as 8,000 train engines or 25 million horses.” Imagine—25 million horses!
All that tidal action creates some dramatic shorelines and some astonishing opportunities. At Burntcoat Head, for instance, one can visit at low tide to walk around the ocean floor. The tide was out at the time these photos were taken but we never forgot that within 6 hours this entire area would be totally submerged.

The trees, visible on top of the red sandstone cliffs, provide a strong visual clue as to how high the water will rise.

There were tide pools to observe and rock piles to explore…

…as well as, invertebrates, crustaceans and seaweed to examine.

One might wonder how “Burntcoat Head” got its name. As the story goes “In 1795 … residents Thomas and Robert Faulkner were burning the marsh and hung a coat too close to a fire. Another story tells of the crew of a ship landing to spend the night. One of the men got too close to the fire and set his coat ablaze. His crewmates woke, yelling “Burnt coat!”. As colourful as these stories are, it’s more likely that “burnt coat” is an English pronunciation of “Pointe Cloche”, French for “Bell Point”.“
Exploring the ocean floor during low tide is a pretty amazing adventure but it gets even better than that. Visitors can “experience the ultimate culinary adventure at the site of the world’s highest tides” by participating in a Dining on the Ocean Floor by Food Fantastique event. A local chef hosts the event which includes guided tours, a lunchtime seafood feast, a 3-course sit-down dinner and a beach campfire—all on the ocean floor. It’s a super posh once-in-a-lifetime event. Alternatively, it’s possible to do what I did—host my own ocean floor dining experience.
We cracked open a locally-brewed beer from our fisherman’s lunch bucket. This item was handmade using the same skills practiced by Newfoundland coopers for hundreds of years. These buckets were used to keep a fisherman’s lunch safe and dry at sea.
Later in the day, we enjoyed with a nice glass of white wine…
…followed by cheese, crackers and fresh fruit.
It was a simple meal in an extraordinary setting!

Slowly the sun started to set as the tide returned.

A gorgeous sunset topped off an extraordinary day!

More Info

You can learn more about visiting the Bay of Fundy and the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia, Canada on the Tourism Nova Scotia website.
The Burntcoat Head Park website provides information about the Park, shore life and ocean floor adventures as well as tips for planning your visit.
Special thanks to my sister Marian for collaborating on the Burntcoat Head photo shoot and for taking the below picture.
Tip: Rubber boots are best for traversing the muddy sections along the shoreline—plus they make quite the fashion statement!

You can learn more about Dining on the Ocean Floor by Food Fantastique on their website.
You may also enjoy these FanningSparks’ posts about picnicking and dining out-of-doors:
. Picnic Under the Wisteria
. A Colorful Backyard Picnic
. Sunrise Breakfast Picnic
. The Ultimate Picnic Blanket – DIY Tutorial.

Today’s Takeaways

1. The Bay of Fundy, located between the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, has the highest tides in the world.
2. Explore, observe and relish nature’s wonders.
3. Sometimes a do-it-yourself version of a packaged experience is a great alternative.

Fiber How Tos Make

From Classic Jacket to Wearable Art

Denim is a true classic. Whether it’s a worn pair of jeans or a favorite jean jacket, denim garments have staying power. That’s why a denim jacket seemed like the perfect foundation for my latest project. The jacket is embellished with hand-painting and accented with cotton thread embroidery. It’s my first project using this technique but I suspect it won’t be my last—especially since this one was a gift and now I want one for myself! To that end, I decided to jot down a few instructions while it’s fresh in my mind. Today’s post will explain how to embellish a basic denim jacket with fabric paint and hand embroidery.

The starting point is a simple denim jean jacket. Be sure to choose one that’s comfortable and fits well. Look for a jacket back with a yoke and a back panel without a center seam. You’ll be investing a fair bit of time to turn this jacket into a one-of-a-kind garment so don’t skimp on the foundation. Once you’ve found the perfect jacket, be sure to wash it at least once before starting your project.
Take your time to choose a design and color palette you like. I selected a mandala design for my jacket and adjusted the pattern to fit the back panel. In hindsight, it would have been easier to select an asymmetrical design for my first attempt. Trying to mirror the design between the two sides, first when painting and then again when embroidering, was a challenge.
I purchased a set of Jacquard Textile Color fabric paints in 8 colors. This was ideal because any color can be mixed from the set of primary and secondary colors. I used matching gel pens to plan the design on paper.

Once I had an idea for the color palette, I made a color swatch to test the colors on denim. My original plan was to follow the colors of the rainbow. But when I saw the sample, I decided to narrow down the number of colors to the below palette of Yellow-Orange, Yellow, Yellow-Green, Green, Blue-Green, Blue and Blue-Violet.

To begin, find the center of the jacket and mark with a white chalk pencil. Then find the center of your pattern and align with the center line of the jacket and the bottom of the yoke.
Next transfer the outer edge of your design. Don’t transfer the entire design at this point—instead work in layers, tracing and painting, from the least detailed to the most detailed. This approach allows for flexibility as the work progresses. Originally, I used Saral Wax Free Tracing paper in white to trace the design but I found a white chalk pencil works better. Simply cut out a paper version of your design, carefully position it into place, and trace around the outside of the template with the chalk pencil. The chalk is much more forgiving than tracing paper since it can be rubbed off easily. This means you can recover more easily if you deviate from your design lines while painting.

After tracing the outline, block in your background with Jacquard Textile Color 123 White paint. Alternatively, you could use Jacquard Textile 200 Super Opaque White. The white base is needed to make the other paint colors show on the dark denim fabric. Block in the design’s outline with a small angled brush; I used a Royal & Langnickel gold taklon size 8 angular brush. Fill in with a larger flat brush such as a size 14 Flat. A wider brush reduces the number of brush strokes that will appear. Allow to dry. Add a second coat if needed.

The next step is to block in the major color elements. Cut out paper templates for these shapes, position carefully and trace around them with a dark-colored chalk pencil. Mark only the outlines for the major elements that will be painted different colors. Don’t trace the interior design lines as I did and as shown in the photos. The reason is twofold 1) the tracing paper lines can’t be removed and 2) it’s easier and more accurate to position individual design elements as the painting evolves.

Working in the same way as before, block in each color element using a small angular brush and then fill in with a larger flat brush. Take care not to smear painted areas as you progress. Allow paint to dry before starting the next set of color elements.

Continue until all color elements have been painted.

After all the major color elements are painted, it’s time to paint the details and add shading. Once again, use a paper template and chalk pencil to draw the design lines. You may wish to first test your technique on a sample. I used the piece of denim pictured below to try shading the outside edges with white paint. I applied a thin line of white paint along the outline with a small angular brush and then blended it into the base color with a dry flat brush. It took a little practice but worked quite well.

Here’s how the white shading turned out.

After all the paint has been applied and dried, apply a coat of Jacquard Textile Color in 100 Colorless Extender. This clear finish will help protect your work. Allow to dry overnight. Then heat set the piece as indicated on the Jacquard instructions “Heat set by ironing on the reverse side for at least 30 seconds at the temperature best suited for the fabric.”
Here’s how my jacket back looked at this point. I’m quite pleased with the color palette and the mandala-inspired design. The white shading around the outlines seems to work. But I wasn’t crazy about the painted design lines in the yellow section. It might have looked better to not paint those lines but I had to cover up the tracing paper lines. Luckily, I was able to disguise the painted lines with embroidery in the next step and it turned out fine.

The final step is to embellish the painted design with embroidery. I used DMC Pearl Cotton (Size 5) with a sturdy needle. Look for a slim needle strong enough to work through the denim fabric and an eye big enough for the pearl cotton. The heavy cotton embroidery adds dimension and volume to the design.

It may be tempting to skip the embroidery but perhaps this side-by-side comparison will convince you it’s worth the effort.

As before, I found the best way to transfer the design lines for embroidering was to use the paper cutout technique described above.

A row of French knots add texture and interest.

I tried several different stitches to outline the design elements. But in the end, a simple straight stitch made with very short stitches, positioned just inside the white shading worked the best.

A threaded straight stitch covers those painted lines in the yellow section that I mentioned above. And to finish it off, a few detached chain stitches accent the center orange petals.

In addition to the mandala design on the back of the jacket, I added small design elements to the flaps of the front pockets. I pulled a sub-section from the mandala design.
Then painted and embroidered them in the same way as the back.

Voilà… a simple, classic denim jacket becomes wearable art!

More Info

See the Jacquard Products website for more information about Jacquard Textile Color fabric paints. The site explains that “Textile Color leaves fabric as soft as possible and holds up exceptionally well to washing.” I’d recommend washing with care and using the delicate cycle.
Gathered.How, publishers of Mollie Makes and other fine craft magazines, provides helpful instructions in their Library of Embroidery Stitches for Beginners.

Today’s Takeaways

1. A classic denim garment can be transformed into wearable art.
2. Add personality and style with a design and color palette you love.
3. Combine fabric painting and hand embroidery for an impactful design.

Agritourism Nature Plants Southeast Travel USA Wildlife

In the Sunflower Field

Who can look at a field of sunflowers and not break into a smile? Not me. The minute I saw Farmview Market’s U-Pick Sunflowers field my mood brightened.

There’s something uplifting about the vibrant yellow colors and the jaunty, face-like blooms.

But sunflowers are more than just a pretty face! In his book “The Sunflower”, Charles B. Heiser noted the following: “Frequently overlooked in the uses of some plants is their important role in teaching and in pure research. Probably no other plants—unless it is the cocklebur—has been used more in plant physiology than the sunflower. The ease with which the sunflower can be grown and its rapid growth make it a favorite experimental plant. Few courses in botany are complete without a study of its seed structure. Countless biology students have looked at slides of cross sections of the sunflower stem in an attempt to understand the internal structure of plants. The flower head, because of its large size, serves as an excellent example of the structure of the composite type of flower.” Heiser was a professor of botany and a leading expert on the sunflower genus Helianthus.

Heiser explains “One of the important characters … is that a sunflower … is not a single flower at all, but a whole bouquet. If one examines a sunflower closely, he will find that there are many—perhaps a hundred or more—small flowers packed together in a structure known as a head. … On the outside of the head is a series of greenish bracts. One who knows a little about flowers might regard them as sepals, but actually they are phyllaries, or little leaves.”

Heiser continues, “Next to the phyllaries are found the ray flowers, usually yellow in the sunflower. Although normally flowers serve to produce seeds, the ray flowers of the sunflower are sterile, and apparently their sole function is to attract insects.”

Based on my observations at the U-Pick Sunflower field, the ray flowers do a stellar job of attracting insects! Bees were in abundance.

Butterflies, those beloved winged beauties, were also plentiful. This is my favorite shot from the day—an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail AND a bee on a single perfect sunflower head in front of billowing grass seed heads and a soft blue sky. I couldn’t ask for better staging!

I spotted several other butterflies for the first time. The stunner pictured below is the Common Buckeye (Junonia coenia). The spectacular markings on the Common Buckeye include 4 pairs of eyespots, 2 on the forewing and 2 on the hindwing. In general, eyespots are eye-like markings which can be explained in at least 3 ways. Eyespots can deceive predators by making a butterfly appear to be a different insect. Eyespots can intimidate predators by making a butterfly appear inedible or dangerous. Or eyespots can deflect attacks away from a butterfly’s more vulnerable body parts. Whatever the reason, the Common Buckeye’s colorful eyespots are splendid!

While not quite as flamboyant as the Common Buckeye, the Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) also has eyespots. Here a Painted Lady with her wings closed shares a sunflower with a bee.

This next butterfly with its gorgeous orange markings is a Variegated Fritillary (Euptoieta claudia). It’s perfectly camouflaged on the sunflower head.

It’s actually quite stunning to see these 3 butterflies side by side. Here’s a screengrab from my iNaturalist observations.

Returning to Heiser’s description of the sunflower, “The flowers in the center of the head, called disk flowers are smaller and quite different in shape from the ray flowers and sometimes even of a different color.” Interestingly, according to Wikipedia, “The disk flowers are arranged spirally. Generally, each floret is oriented toward the next by approximately the golden angle, 137.5°, producing a pattern of interconnecting spirals, where the number of left spirals and the number of right spirals are successive Fibonacci numbers. Typically, there are 34 spirals in one direction and 55 in the other… This pattern produces the most efficient packing of seeds mathematically possible within the flower head.” The spiral pattern is quite visible in this sunflower head.

Heiser says “If one examines one of the disk flowers closely, he will find a tubular five-lobed corolla which represents five fused petals.” The various components of the disk flower work together to bring about pollination. Pollen is produced and positioned “to be picked up by any insects that happen to visit the flower in search of pollen or nectar.” In reverse, the stigmatic surface prepares to receive pollen. “Although bees are the most common visitors, almost any insect that brushes against the stigma or walks over it may leave pollen.” When this happens, a seed sets and begins to grow. Open disk flowers are visible in the below photo.

The seeds, or more accurately the “achenes”, are the fruit of the sunflower. The sunflower begins to “dry down” as the achenes mature. The ray flowers wither and the head droops. Some references indicate the sunflower head faces down to prevent damage to the ripening seeds.
Despite getting distracted by beautiful butterflies and carried away by all-things-sunflower, I got back to my original purpose in visiting the U-Pick Sunflower field. The timing was ideal as the fine folks at Farmview Market were running a promotion to showcase their cheerful sunflowers. I was able to cut 6 stalks, with numerous sunflower heads, for free!

I love my wooden garden trug. It’s so useful and it makes everything, including these sunflowers, look pretty.
Speaking of pretty, isn’t this vintage, white enamelware perfect for this bouquet?

More Info

For more U-Pick fun, check out the FanningSparks’ posts Peach of a Day and Blueberry Zaniness. If you like butterflies as much as I do, you may also enjoy the posts Chasing Butterflies or A Flutter of Butterflies in the Closet.
Farmview Market is located in Madison, Georgia, USA. This is not a sponsored post but I don’t mind sharing that we shop there regularly. As described by Farmview Market, they offer “a wide selection of unique and delicious foods from the very best local farmers and producers, including a specialty grocery with lots of local artisan gifts and crafts, a full-service butcher shop, casual café and seasonal farmers market.” See the Farmview Market website for more info.
The book, The Sunflower by Charles Bixler Heiser, was published by Norman: University of Oklahoma Press in 1976. It is available online on Archive.org.
I’m a huge fan of iNaturalist and their Seek app. I frequently use these tools to identify plants and wildlife including insects and birds. See the iNaturalist website for more info.

Today’s Takeaways

1. A field of sunflowers can be educational and entertaining.
2. Where there are flowers, there are insects and wildlife.
3. Consider supporting your local U-Pick businesses.

Artists Make Southeast Travel USA

A Rainbow Sky of Fluttering Ribbons

Imagine gliding with a huge flock of vibrantly colored birds—each one soaring high and dipping low—all part of one huge undulating swirl. Imagine being surrounded by a giant school of tropical fish—each one darting in and out—all part of one shimmering kaleidoscope. Imagine strolling along a forest path under a rainbow sky of fluttering ribbons—each one dancing in the air—all part of one multicolored blaze.

Lucky visitors can experience the latter while strolling along the paths of the Kendeda Canopy Walk under a gigantic, immersive, aerial art installation at the Atlanta Botanical Garden.

The installation, called Dream Flora, is an aerial sculpture created by artist Patrick Shearn of Poetic Kinetics. It is part of Shearn’s signature Skynet Art Series which was inspired by flocks of birds and schools of fish and serves as a reminder of nature moving around us. Poetic Kinetics is based in Los Angeles and specializes in large-scale art installations and experiential design. Their roots are in the film, concert/live event, and circus industries.
Dream Flora is a spectacular sight and an installation wonder. The Skynet installation is a long, narrow streak of magic floating 12 to 40 feet above the garden’s winding paths. It varies in width from 5 to 25 feet and covers over 12,500 square feet.

A net structure was made from over 13,000 linear feet of transparent, ultra-light Dyneema cords hand-tied into over 800 technical knots. Over 79,000 streamers, made of ripstop nylon, were attached to webs of fishing net. The barely-visible rigging system is attached to the majestic, mature trees of the Storza Woods at the Garden. It’s apparent great care was taken to hide the mechanics of the installation; unless you look very closely, the colorful streamers appear to be floating in the air.

The streamers dangle and flutter in response to the air currents and weather conditions.

Sunlight filters through the streamers casting sun beams and shadows.

Only 4 colors of streamers were used, including red, orange, purple, and yellow, but they are deftly mixed to give the illusion of many much broader palette.

The Dream Flora Skynet is part of an illustrious, global playlist of grand-scale art installations. It is the first Skynet installed in a wooded area; the others were installed in open spaces. For instance, in 2019 a Skynet called Visions in Motion was installed at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. It was commissioned to mark the 30^th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution and the fall of the Berlin Wall. “The artwork’s rectangular shape conjures the form of the wall; but instead of a heavy, impenetrable border, the form takes flight.” states the Poetic Kinetics website.
Other spectacular examples include the River of Light Skynet which was installed above Hong Kong harbor in 2021 and the Sunset Trace Skynet which was installed over Main Beach Park in Laguna Beach, California in 2020. Photos and videos of these amazing installations can be seen on Poetic Kinetics’ website.

There’s another Skynet to look forward to in 2022. The artwork, called Change In The Air, “is a large-scale, outdoor, participatory art installation that visualizes our collective voice and calls for change for a better, shared future. Made up of messages collected from all over the United States, the public artwork doubles as a voting awareness campaign. … the work will be suspended across the length of the National Mall in Washington D.C. in September 2022 ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.” says the Poetic Kinetics website. Follow this link to submit a message for the Change In The Air Skynet.
The idea of writing messages on streamers is intriguing. I saw something similar, albeit on a much smaller scale, at Cornerstone Gardens in Sonoma, California. The Wishing Garden featured beautifully-crafted, metal sculptures in a unique garden space.

At the entrance to the garden, visitors were invited to “1) Cut a Piece of Tape 2) Grab a Pen 3) Write Your Wish and 4) Add Your Wish to the Others“. Hundreds of holographic ribbons shimmered in the California sunshine.

Some messages were specific and personal while others, like the one shown below, were universal.

A sign at the Wishing Garden provides this insight “Wishes inspire hope for what’s possible… collectively expressed they can represent the dreams of an entire community.”

More Info

The Dream Flora Skynet is part of the SUPERnatural exhibit at the Atlanta Botanical Garden in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The exhibit runs from May 15 to Sept 19, 2021.
Artist Patrick Shearn and his creative studio, Poetic Kinetics, specialize in large-scale art installations and experiential design. See their website or Instagram page for my info.
Cornerstone Gardens is a cultural and creative haven in Sonoma, California, USA which celebrates the connection between art, architecture and nature.

Today’s Takeaways

1. Consider visiting a public garden or horticultural destination.
2. Art installations allow us to experience our surroundings in a fresh new way.
3. Participatory public art can increase awareness and inspire hope.

About General

My Cherished Poesie Album

Squirreled away with my prized collection of family treasures is a small, 80-year-old, poesie (poetry) album. The album was given to a little girl named Cornelia van Dieren to mark her tenth birthday.

The good-natured, 10-year-old girl, affectionately called Corrie, carefully shepherded her album through the hands of all the people that were important to her—including her father, her mother, her 8 sisters, her 4 brothers, her nieces, nephews, classmates and friends. Each one of those people took the time to write a thoughtful verse and record their best wishes. It is like a multi-faceted snapshot of her life.
Here’s a rare photo of the van Dieren family taken on the occasion of the parents’ 25^th wedding anniversary. Corrie, standing on the far right, had just turned 10.

The first page of Corrie’s album serves to introduce the owner. It is dated 19 Maart 1941 in Moordrecht. Moordrecht is a small town in South Holland, the Netherlands. Corrie was born and raised on the family farm which looked like this about 70 years later.

Here’s Corrie’s introduction.

The word-for-word translation is:
“This album belongs to me
As long as I have life.
Cornelia is my name,
By elders given.
van Dieren is mine because
That is my father’s tribe.
Moordrecht is the place
Where I came into the world.”
The next entry was by Corrie’s father. He followed the custom of emphasizing family ties and religious piety. It is followed by this message from Corrie’s mother.

The word-for-word translation of her Mother’s entry is:
“Dear Corrie
It’s not always in this life
warm sunshine.
No, there can be dark days
in our lives.
But whatever your share may be
joy or sorrow,
think of me and our love
and forget me not.
In memory of your loving Mother.”
The next entries are written by Corrie’s sisters—all in birth order. Most entries are embellished with colorful stickers of flowers, birds and kittens. These stickers, I’ve learned, were called scrap pictures or die cuts and sold in sheets. Here are a couple of examples.

The entry with the most lavish embellishment was crafted by Corrie’s sister, Stien. It features a blue silk ribbon woven through the page into a charming wreath.

It’s obvious the authors took time and care with their entries. In addition to meaningful messages and pretty embellishments, their penmanship is outstanding. Here’s an example.

Even young authors, such as Corrie’s youngest sister, Paulien, entered beautifully crafted messages.

Translated word-for-word, the verse reads:
“Roses wilt
Flowers perish
The love of us
Will last forever.”
This author, Marry de Jong (Corrie’s niece I believe), took the time to create a particularly lovely entry.

Corrie collected entries, a total of 49 messages, until 1953. That’s really quite a feat considering the circumstances. The poetry album was presented to Corrie in 1941 which was two years after World War II started and during the German occupation of the Netherlands. She collected entries throughout the War and beyond.
Poetry albums, like Corrie’s, have an interesting history. It is believed they originated from the German and Dutch speaking areas of Europe where they were known as an album amicorum (book of friends) or stammbuch (friendship book). The first known stammbuch dates back to 1545. Originally, it was “fashionable among graduating university students to have one’s personal bible signed by classmates and instructors. Soon inscriptions went beyond simple signatures to include reminiscences of common experiences, good wishes for the future, or a favorite passage from literature or poetry. Publishers foreseeing a lucrative market printed bibles with empty pages and soon also turned out small decorated books with only empty pages.” reports Antje Petty from the Max Kade Institute for German-American Studies. She goes on to explain that over time, the practice shifted to young girls using what is now commonly known as an autograph book. Petty notes that although these albums were once dismissed as trivial, they have been re-discovered as a great source of historical insight providing unique perspective of life at the time.

Back to the heroine of our story. In 1955, shortly after marrying the boy next door, Corrie sailed across the ocean with her new husband and immigrated to Canada. They settled on a dairy farm in Nova Scotia and had a family. As you may have guessed by now, Corrie was my mother. Sadly, she passed away this week. My Mom wouldn’t have appreciated a public tribute nor would she have approved of a showy display of affection so I’ll simply say… she is loved and she will be missed.

More Info

I credit my Mother for instilling my love of “making things”. You can read more about it on the FanningSparks About page. Her specialty was hand knit socks which the family affectionately called “Oma Socks”. I shared this story in the post Socks by Mom.
You can learn more about the history of autograph books in the article From Album Amicorum to Autograph Book by Antje Petty, Max Kade Institute for German-American Studies at University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Cheers,

How Tos Make Mosaics Repurpose

A Transformation Worthy of HGTV

If you like home renovation shows, this post is for you! It has all the key ingredients… an outdated house, a complete gut job, extensive renovations, structural challenges and a total transformation!
It all started with this neglected bird feeder which I’d stuffed in amongst the old flower pots.

Upon closer inspection, I determined it wasn’t a complete teardown—this old bird feeder could be converted into a modern, triplex birdhouse. The overall structure was sound and it had good bones. Plus that weathered copper roof was an architectural feature worth saving.

It was, however, a real fixer-upper! The existing interior had to be demolished. It needed some major structural work including new exterior walls, new doors (well… round openings), new flooring, and a new ceiling. It also needed a new interior design to convert it from one large, open floor plan into 3 individual units. The exterior needed some attention to give it curb appeal. This was a major renovation! (Yes, I may be watching too much HGTV! I am, in fact, hooked on Home Town with Ben and Erin Napier.)
Let’s get started. I eliminated the interior seed tube and holder, the outside pillars and the exterior copper band. With all these elements out of the way, it was time to start rebuilding. Here’s a look at the beautiful, new wood floor. In true Home Town fashion, I used lumber left over from another project. The new floor is made out of cedar fence picket scraps from the Strawberry Tower Planter I made earlier this year.

This next photo, taken from underneath the house, shows the new walls. The outside has 6 sides—3 with round openings. The inside has new interior walls as well as a new ceiling. One of the exterior wall pillars was repurposed as a center column to anchor the interior walls.

The plan was to cover the exterior in trencadis mosaic. I’ve wanted to try this technique ever since visiting Park Güell in Barcelona. Regular readers may recall, this mosaicist’s dream of a Park and the trencadis technique from a previous post Gaudí’s Trencadis Mosaics. Trencadis, which is also called pique assiette (or picassiette), crazy paving, or simply “broken china mosaic”, is a style of mosaic made with broken china and tiles.
The biggest question was how to construct the exterior walls so they could be covered with a broken china mosaic and survive out-of-doors. It was tempting to simply make the walls from plywood but I knew the mosaic would be short-lived if I did. The extremes of water and temperature cause wood to expand and contract but mosaics, which are set in mortar and sealed with grout, have no give. The resulting tension would likely cause the structure to crack or the mosaic pieces to pop off.
After some online research, I decided to construct the exterior walls from wedi® building board. This product is actually designed for building bathrooms (see More Info below for the details). Working with wedi board isn’t difficult. It can easily be cut with a jigsaw or box cutters although it will quickly blunt the blades. Proper safety precautions, including wearing a respirator and safety glasses, are necessary due to the harmful particles in the wedi coating.
After cutting the wedi board to size, the cut edges need to be sealed. It’s a two-step process. Start by wrapping the cut edges with an alkaline resistant mesh tape such as Fibatape which is typically used for dry wall repair.

Next apply a thin layer of thinset mortar over the tape to seal the edges.

After the exterior wall sections dried, I donned my respirator again and gave them a light sanding. I used construction adhesive (exterior grade Liquid Nails) along the top edge to secure the wall sections to the outside frame. Then I taped the edges between the sections and covered the seams with thinset mortar. Finally all the new structural elements were in place. It was almost time to “bring in the pretty” as my hero Erin Napier would say. But first, a little more demolition was required.
There was china to break! After trying a few different methods, I settled on the technique described below. Here are my top tips for breaking china for mosaics:
Take Safety Precautions Wear gloves and safety glasses.
Use China Dinner Plates Collect inexpensive, colorful plates from thrift stores and flea markets. Dinner plates, as opposed to saucers, mugs or other vessels, provide the most flat pieces. It isn’t an exact science but, as a rule of thumb, a 10” dinner plate yields about 12” x 11” coverage. China plates were easier to break than stoneware. Select different colors and patterns to provide some design options.

Work in a Box Use a flat cardboard box about twice the size of a dinner plate. Tape up the box flaps on 3 sides to create a small, 3-sided booth. Place the plate inside the box working over the unbound box flap. The cardboard walls prevent shards from flying around and the bottom of the box collects the bits and pieces.
Use Tile Nippers The ideal tool for this task is a pair of two-wheeled tile nippers. To use them, place the nippers at the very edge of the plate where the break should start. Then squeeze the nippers—hard. The nippers will nick the plate’s surface and cause it to crack across the entire surface. With any luck, it will break as planned. But be prepared—cuts don’t always go as planned—there are many unpredictable factors that impact the break such as the thickness of the plate, the pottery material, and the structure of the plate’s foot ring.

Tape Designs China plates may have designs or motifs that would look nice reassembled on the finished piece. To keep these pieces intact, cover the section with clear packing tape before breaking that section.

Cut Down To date, most of my mosaics have been made with 3/4” or 5/16” square glass tiles or custom-cut stained glass (See Pair of Mosaic Mirrors Completed, DIY Turkish Mosaic Candle Holder Tutorial, My Mandala-Inspired Oval Design, and Serving Up My OOAK Mosaic Tray). But it’s simply not possible to break china plates into nice, neat ¾” squares. The china pieces will vary in size and shape. Continue to break down the china plate with the two-wheeled tile nippers until they’re about 1½ – 2” in size. I found it best to do my final cutting when I laid out the design.
Spread Out Tesserae It’s most efficient to spread out all the tesserae (ie the small pieces used in mosaic work) on a flat surface. This is the same idea as laying out all the pieces for a jigsaw puzzle—it’s easier to fit everything together when all the pieces are visible. The flat lids from plastic storage tubs worked well for this setup.

Create Design Draw a paper template of the surfaces to be covered and place on the working surface. Then just like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, select tesserae to fill the spaces. Unlike a jigsaw puzzle, though, the pieces can be adjusted to fit with the two-wheeled tile nippers.

Embrace Irregularity This is probably a good time to point out that the tesserae won’t, and shouldn’t, fit together perfectly. The irregularity ensures a good grout gap and makes the overall piece visually interesting. The imperfect perfection of broken china mosaic is what makes it beautiful. I readily admit that it’s a challenge for me to deliberately make something imperfect!
The next steps are the same as for most mosaic projects. Thinset mortar is used to attach the mosaic pieces to the surface. Then grout is used to fill in the gaps.

There was one more architectural detail to address before the new birdhouse was finished. This curtain rod finial, painted white, was the perfect topper for the copper roof.

And now for the big reveal! Here’s the new, modern triplex birdhouse in all its glory!

Three colorful doors and windows, in red, green and blue broken china, enhance the exterior.

Here’s a closer look at a few of the details.

This new birdhouse will be installed in our front yard. I had the mounting post ready but then, at the last minute, decided to enhance the post with a few bands of broken china. So the new homeowners will have to wait a little longer!

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Making mosaics is one of my favorite crafts. Check out these FanningSparks’ posts for other mosaic projects Pair of Mosaic Mirrors Completed, DIY Turkish Mosaic Candle Holder Tutorial, My Mandala-Inspired Oval Design, and Serving Up My OOAK Mosaic Tray. You may also like the post Learning from the Ancient Masters and Gaudí’s Trencadis Mosaics.
Check out my Pinterest board, Mosaic Artwork – FanningSparks Favs, for over 235 inspiring pins.
If you’re not yet a Ben and Erin fan, check out HGTV Home Town on their website.
The wedi® building board I used in this project is made by a German company of the same name. You can learn more on the wedi® website. As mentioned above this product is designed for bathrooms. It was a bit of a challenge to actually find wedi® building board—it’s sold in large sheets so it’s not a simple, online purchase. I found it at The Tile Shop in Buford, Georgia.

Today’s Takeaways

1. Find beauty in existing structures and objects.
2. Consider re-purposing or re-using materials for your next project.
3. Add personality and fun with broken china mosaics.

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