WEll. Stuff has a way of working out sometimes....

I went. I tried 3 times and the third was the charm.

If you are a mosaic artist, love colorful pop art or are just a curious soul...I feel certain you will really enjoy this exhibit.

I was so pumped I did this like a military operation. Bing Bang Boom. Camera- check. New battery -check. New sd card-check. Attach neckstrap-check. Money and keys in pocket. Thick socks + comfy shoes-check. Perfect parking place! Sheesh- did I lock the car??? I am already across the parking lot...

I see the first piece!!!! It is big and shiny. Yup I am definitely at the right place. Yeeehaw! I made it.

This is: Le Poete at sa muse.  It is located outside the main entrance to the Garden. This piece is privately owned by a collector in Belgium.( Wow- I thought I dragged home a lot of stuff ....;-). It is just under 10 feet tall and a bit less than 1400 pounds.  It was made in 1999.

Sorry about the glare on the top of the photo- I took all the photos you will see here in this piece. Here is a link if you want to see the professional ones from MOBot. They are just awesome: http://www.mobot.org/events/NIKI/niki_tour/index.htm

Next, to the window, grab the ticket (only 8 dollars- what a deal). And a dash through the entry building. I am not sure what I was thinking- I felt like I was at some sort of timed event- pole bending or barrel racing. I was moving I'm tellin ya.

There was a new chandelier in the entry building- a Dale Chihuily. Wow. Sorry Dale. No time for that photo right now. On to the main event.

I am just going to do a few at a time since I seem to be having all sorts of crashing problems....Here is the skull. This piece has really grown on me.

Thi piece is about 14 feet tall and it weighs 12,000 pounds! The inside is every bit as cool as the outside.

I am totally fascinated by the extreme tactile nature of these pieces. The finish is just awseome- so smooth! Every body loved this piece. I had to wait quite a while to get a shot without folks crawling all over it....This is La Cabeza.

I think my favorite may well be the lions. I just loved the more subtle color palette- the natural semiprecious materials she used here are just to die for_

 Guardian Lion  One of a pair. These pieces are over 7 feet "tall" and weigh about 3,00 pounds. I love the natural materials used so beautifully here. Semiprecious tumbled stones, glass, ceramic pieces.  Kids were really attracted to these pieces. It took a while to get this photo without a child exploring.

The finish on these pieces fascinates me. They are so smooth. So clean. So perfectly finished. Just gorgeous. I am so inspired.

Okey Doke. That's it for now- I'll be back with more adventures with Nikki...What a trip.

I have had a work in progress for a while- I was calling it Easter Hat Lady for lack of a better idea. Suddenly- while watching the pageantry of the Derby I remembered all the wonderful hats and I thought- That's it- She's gonna be "Derby Hat Lady". 

Ta Daaa!!!!                                                                                                                               

Here is a close-up of her-Looks right at home in the Winner's Circle if you ask me......                                                                                                               

This is probably as close as I will ever get to a Winner's Circle again....Sure looks like fun doesn't it?

From what I recall- it was...;-). 

Do you have any Derby stories to share????  

.The beads were built up in a thin layer over and over until they reached the desired depth.

I used Envirotex Lite to adhere the beads to the bottle and to each other. I used thinset (thinned with water) to  prime the glass surface where the tiles are. I then used it "full strength" to adhere the vitreous glass tiles to the bottle. I liked using these two things- resin and thinset- to work on glass. All of my prior glass work has utilized WeldBond. It is a wonderful product. I just wanted to experiment with some different materials.

This is the finished product of experiment using resin and tiny glass seed beads in my mosaic application. I like the effect and I will do more of it.

It is just another technique in the arsenal of things one can do to embellish almost anything.

The fish are recycled buttons. The shells are from a recycled necklace, the bottle is a recycled liquor bottle. The large beads are recycled Mardi Gras beads and there are some vitreous glass tiles and glass gems and some glass charms used in this piece.

I kept it clean enough that it could still be used as a decanter. The top is the original one and works perfectly.

Ternau, originally uploaded by GeoWombats.

Yet another Darwin house number.

With his keen eye and sensitive mind, Nek Chand painstakingly for over two decades collected stones of exquisite form and sizes for reasons nobody knew.

Nek Chand Rock Garden Outsider art picassiette mosaic sculpture - Chris_Walker

Nek Chand Rock Garden Outsider art picassiette mosaic people - Koshyk

Nek Chand Rock mosaic garden art, Chandigarh, India on Flickr - danidavis5

ROCK GARDEN - FANTASY MOSAICS - tHe bLaCk sAmUrAi

He also collected strange looking metal pieces, lag-stones, over-burnt bricks, broken pots, china-ware, tree trunks, weeds, rags, plastic dolls, battered hats, broken coloured bangles, used shoes, fused bulbs, worn out tires, bottles, parts of rusted bicycles, discarded building materials, birds' nests - you name it!

Nek Chand Rock Garden Outsider art picassiette sculpture- travellingdenise

Nek Chand Garden Art Mosaic Sculpture - mirthwood

Chandigarh Nek Chand picassiette mosaic sculpture - Daveybot

Nek Chand Rock Garden smoking hookhas mosaic art sculpture - Carol Mitchell

Chandigarh, India picassiette mosaic sculpture - morleyroarly

Nek Chand's imagination had no bounds and all kinds of objects he came across became handy for its fulfilment. His dreams are unending and so are his creations - he goes on and on! M.N. Sharma - Nek Chand Foundation

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - fiercetigress

Nek Chand Rock Garden Outsider art mosaic sculpture - pedroquintelaborges

Cups and saucers Mosaic People and animals pique assiette - Two little Shutterbugs

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India- Carol Mitchell

Nek Chand Rock Garden Outsider art mosaic wall- travellingjohnny

Chandigarh India - Nek Chand's rock garden art sculpture on Flickr - jratcliff

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - Uli Franke

Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India- sahiljatana

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - P Donovan

THE RIDING MASTER on Flickr - tHe bLaCk sAmUrAi

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - pauldornau

mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - Room 13 Scotland

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - blaighnid

Nek Chand Rock Garden mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - tHe bLaCk sAmUrAi

Nek Chand Fantasy Rock Mosaic Art Garden sculpture on Flickr - Huan1

Nek Chand Rock Garden sculpture Chandigarh, India - wanderer's rest

Chandigarh- Nek Chand's rock garden art mosaic people on Flickr - jratcliffe

Nek Chand mosaic town art sculpture Chandigarh, India - Two little Shutterbugs

Ceramic tile art people sculpture Nek Chand india on Flickr - diametrik

Chandigarh India mosaic art sculpture - jratcliffe

mosaic art sculpture Chandigarh, India - sahiljatana

picassiette mosaic art sculpture - Carol Mitchell

Mosaic people picassiette art sculpture - Two little Shutterbugs

Mosaic Art Source mosaic definition:

pique assiette

pique assiette - or picassiette ( a french term -”stolen from plate”) - pieces of broken pottery, china, glass, buttons, figurines, and/ jewelry are cemented onto a base to create a new surface. Almost any form can be used as a base, and any combination of pieces can be applied, restricted only by the individual creator’s imagination. m.a.s. mosaic glossary

Mosaic Art Source picassiette mosaic photo & resource archive

IMG_1696 (Medium), originally uploaded by behindbabyblues.

Any Oprah fans in the atmosphere? On last Friday's show, Oprah's show featured: Going Green 101 where she shared many tips and insights on how individuals and families can join the fight to save our earth. Feeling inspired, I wanted to provide my own list of simple and easy ways to Go Green this upcoming year. Some of my favorites from Oprah's show are also shared.

Bathroom

1. Turn your water off in between brushing your teeth.

2. Unplug straightener, shaver, blow dryer, etc. when not in use. When items are plugged in, they still use up to 40% power.

3. Buy a shower timer to conserve water.

4. Use tissue and toilet paper sparingly.

Kitchen

1. If you're making a picnic, choose plastic over paper plates. They can be reused and recycled.

2. Buy energy saving appliances to help global warming. Look for the blue Energy Star label when purchasing or visit www.energystar.gov for more information.

3. Use reusable containers to put away leftover rather than plastics wrap or foil. Also, in the same line of thinking, use rags to clean up messes when possible to conserve paper towels.

Cleaning

1. Instead of adding yard waste or lawn clippings to landfills, use a mulching mower. Not only is it healthier for your yard, but its healthier for all of Earth.

2. Use healthier cleaning products. Good clean doesn't have a smell and are safer for our bodies too. Good companies to look into include Shaklee and Method.

3. Remember to inflate your tires about every two weeks. This allows your tires to last longer, meaning more rubber is conserved.

House

1. Turn lights on and off when entering and exiting rooms.

2. Caulk your windows to get the most out of your heating and air conditioning. This will save energy and money. Double bonus!

3. Use energy strips. This helps save power and cuts down on your energy bill. When something is off, but still plugged in, it still uses power.

4. Use GE energy smart light bulbs. According to Oprah.com, GE Energy Smart bulbs use 70 to 75 percent less energy than incandescent light bulbs and last up to 10 times longer than most bulbs.

5. Donate books and magazines to public libraries.

6. Use rechargeable batteries instead of throwaway ones.

Food

1. If you haven't heard about the questions surrounding bottled water, go no further. Bottled water is more expensive...to our pocketbooks, bodies and our world. Save all three. Invest in a Nalgene water bottle or an aluminum water bottle that can be reused, is safer, cost effective, healthier and saves the earth.

2. Buy less packaged food. Read the labels and packaging to see if food is healthy for your body, but also take notice if wasteful materials are being used to sell the item.

Shopping

1. Paper or plastic? Neither! Eco-friendly canvas bags are the new 'it' item to have at the supermarket. Check out these places for your very own: eco-chic shopping bags, Delight.com or Skeeda.

2. Donate old clothes and items you no longer use to The Salvation Army or the Goodwill.

3. Do not throw away leather shoes. Leather takes 50 years to decompose. Donate them.

4. Resell or donate your old, used cellphone even! Lots of companies buy back phones, spruce 'em up and then resell them at lower rates. Green mobile is one such company.

5. Just say no...to receipts. When an ATM or a gas pump asks if you want a receipt, say no. This will save many precious trees.

Activities

1. Visit a landfill. As Oprah's show told us, throwing something away, doesn't mean that it goes away. It goes somewhere else.

2. Plant trees. The more CO2 we can create, the better.

3. Adopt a cause and become an activist. Green is the new pink everyone. Just check out Matt Damon's favorite organization Greendimes, Stop Global Warming!, or Gwenyth Paltrow and Cameron Diaz' organization 'act green' that works to reduce dependence on oil and for energy conservation.

4. Use newspapers as wrapping paper.

5. TreeCycle 2008. Recycle your now old Christmas trees.

6. Take up Shard Art. Also known as Pique Assiette mosaic art. Use pieces of broken glass to create wonderful new pieces of art.

7. Visit and shop at your local farmer's market.

Entertainment

1. Beg, borrow or buy Al Gore's documentary: An Inconvenient Truth.

2. Read The Green Book by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostige.

3. Watch the television series Planet Earth.

4. Attend a Drive-In movie, according to Eath911.org.

5. Carpool. This web service helps you connect with others looking to carpool in your area.

6. Catch Leonardo DiCaprio's film The Eleventh Hour, about the growing dangers of global warming, set to come out soon!

And lastly, one way to recycle I would not recommend....using old condoms as hairbands. True story.

And on that note, hope this was enough to get motivated. Feel free to leave your favorite recycling tips below too!

Eco-Friendly Websites for further information:

Green People
Greenpeace
Idealbite
Global Green USA
TreeHugger

Courting Laura, originally uploaded by perceptual_enigma.

Created for October 06 Breast Cancer Awareness month call for artists. Theme was Cele-bra-tion. Made from broken china, glass, beads, and vangough glass, on plastic maniquine form that was prepared to accept tiles. She was given a cervier and more womanly figure as those forms are freakishly skinny!

Now to be found at the Art League of Fort Myers.

Mosaic Big Vase, originally uploaded by lyndalu_fla.

Blue Mountain Cafe : Back Garden mosaic, originally uploaded by pomphorhynchus.

East Dulwich, UK

Wat Arun Mosaic, originally uploaded by primadonna926.

Wat Arunratchawararam Ratchaworamahavihara
The seashells and bits of porcelain used to make the mosaic designs had previously been used as ballast by boats coming to Bangkok from China.

GeminiMoonMosaics, originally uploaded by etsymosaicartistsblog.

Gemini Moon can be found on Etsy which is a great resource if you are after a mosaic gift at very reasonable prices.
Gemini Moon Mosaics

RoseTable 2, originally uploaded by kristyskrafts1.

Lovely pique assiette...

torso_front_in_garden, originally uploaded by pl8buster.

I love this torso in pique assiette.

99 cent thrift sale shelf and broken china

Mosaic Table, originally uploaded by j.towbin.

Chestnut Street in Philadelphia

I absolutely love the colours of this mirror...

mosaic patio at marle place, originally uploaded by susannasbirthday.

A Kent garden tour in the UK

swan - detail on mosaic vase, originally uploaded by Wendy Tanner.

A mosaic vase at the Rex Hotel in Saigon, Vietnam.

1459.jpg, originally uploaded by Hapto.

Volunteers working on a mural in the Nek Chand Rock Garden. Everything here is recycled.
Check out the rest of the photoset for more photos of this amazing garden in India.

EARTH SPIRAL, originally uploaded by heresatheresatheresa.

Since the Live Earth concerts are still running, I thought I would go with a green Earth theme for a couple of posts...
This is by Theresa Beynon. Not sure where she is from.

Vase, originally uploaded by Virginia Mosaics.

Pique assiette on a glass vase.

Isaiah Zagar's Magic Garden, originally uploaded by skyo.

A great US mosaic artist...

Lagniappemosaic.com, originally uploaded by mosaiclady.

Lagniappemosaic.com, originally uploaded by mosaiclady.

Lagniappemosaic.com, originally uploaded by mosaiclady.

Lagniappemosaic.com, originally uploaded by mosaiclady.

Andree LeBlanc made this fantastic mailbox.

Lagniappemosaic.com