the mirror has been completed! i think the frame works for it... do you? i am very happy with it. next year, perhaps, i will do another one... i will be more adventurous and try something more colorful! this will not be easy, as i tend to really like the rich, warm colors like i chose for this one. we will see...

i have been very busy finishing up my latest floating planes piece from my above and below series, which i have titled la piazza. this piece was very challenging for me. i went from 5 planes on gold rising to 21 planes. this piece uses 6 different shades or orsoni gold, and planes at 3 levels.

overall, i am very happy with the result. about midway through mosaicing the planes, i realized what i needed to do to get the planes mosaiced more accurately on the grid. i ended up having to go back and redo some of the previous planes to make them more accurate. i still could have done better, i think, and on the next one, i should get even closer. i hope that you like it.

the gold is really quite irregular... quite noticeable when you are trying to grid it like for a project like this. i had to trim just about every piece... and they vary so much in size... so that is part of the challenge. i tend to be a bit too obsessed with precision, and i have to remind myself that mosaics are hand-made, and should not look machine-made.

also, i have been upgrading my laptop to the new apple operating system, new photoshop, new pages... new everything, it seems. the weekend has been kind of crazy. a little problem with photoshop... but i trust my brilliant son will get it figured out in no time!

i have vowed not to buy any more mosaic materials until after january. this is a big deal! this is in part to make an effort at self-discipline, and in part to help save money to pay for my new imac...

i am having the mirror framed, and when it is ready, i will get a new photo... should be quite nice!

all for now...

my apologies... i just realized today that my journal links to some of my artcraft mirror photos were linking to the wrong photos. this happened when i moved the mirror from my current work portfolio to my mirrors portfolio a few days ago. this has been corrected, and i am sorry for any inconvenience.

take a look at these wonderful pieces by pam givens, a northern california mosaic artist and email pal of mine. they are titled as follows:

1) emma's mandala
2) pink mirror
3) emerging peace
4) spring in the foothills
5) finding my way

pam creates wonderful mandalas, and has a great sense of color... more bold than i am... which i love about her work. and notice the frame on the pink smalti mirror?... i never would have thought to pair smalti with a distressed frame like that, but i think it is perfect! thanks, pam... for the inspiration!

the mirror is now installed, and the piece is grouted. i am not real happy with this photo, but i will take another one after i have the mirror framed. i will also mask out the mirror for my final photo.