CasaSugar

Before and After: J Paige's Amazing Kitchen Transformation

CasaSugar — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:00:02 -0700

Su Casa member and artist J Paige bought her house six years ago, and while it was, as she notes, "dirt cheap," it also hadn't been updated in over 40 years. "The bedrooms had shag carpet and the kitchen had indoor/outdoor carpet (eck!) and ugly cabinets and plain laminate counters and matching laminate backplashes," she reports.

Instead of lamenting over the ugly, outdated look of her new house, J Paige set about remaking it into her dream home. She writes, "First, I tiled the floor, since that was in our budget at the time. Then we had new cabinets, a new counter, a dishwasher, and new lights installed. After that, we put French doors out the back of our kitchen and actually put a fan over the stove! But it took me over a year to finally figure out what I wanted to do with the backsplash. I am a mosaic artist and sculptor but it is always hard to get to work on your own house."

Well, even if it took a little while for J Paige to ruminate on the perfect kitchen backsplash, I've got to say that it was time well spent. To see the magnificent results, read more.

Wow! It's hard to believe this is the same space. I love J Paige's use of color and pattern in her mosaic backsplash. The whole kitchen is absolutely stunning. Want to see what else she's up to? Find out on her house blog.

Have you changed anything in your home? Post photos and stories in my Su Casa group!

View 3 Photos ›

Before and After: A Tired Table Gets a Fiesta-Ready Look

CasaSugar — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:00:31 -0700

Craftster member Princessnance recently posted photos of a table that she took from drab to fab with some DIY know-how and a lot of hard work. I love how this tile table, which many of us might have seen little potential in, has been completely transformed thanks to Princessnance's hard work.
She writes, "We had a tile table that was made with really good, solid wood...but I hated the way it looked (hello, 1996). I really love Fiestaware so I decided to rip the tile out and make a mosaic out of Fiestaware. My husband took the day off of work and went down to the infamous Fiestaware tent sale (all of the seconds are 1/2 off). He stood in line with about 600 other people just to get me the plates that I needed (I know, he's a great guy!)."

To see the fab results, read more.

Princessnance and her mom took nearly all day tearing the original tile off of the table. Then, after her awesome hubby returned with the plates, they broke them into pieces, and laid them in the tile adhesive, making sure that there were no pieces that were the same color beside each other.

I love the finished result. As a fan of mosaics in general and Fiestaware in particular, this is such a cheery update to Princessnance's kitchen. And, to make things that much more festive, Princessnance reports, "I painted the dark dining room Fiesta Orange and sewed up curtains to match." Check out the gallery for a glimpse of the new kitchen color and curtains.

View 4 Photos ›

Crave Worthy: Chandelier Mosaic

CasaSugar — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 08:00:41 -0800

Minneapolis, MN, mosaic artist Sharra Frank has been creating custom mosaics for residential, commercial, and public spaces for the past seven years. Frank's work can be found in both private homes and exhibitions and galleries, as well as in the Gerard Cafesjian Museum of Art in Armenia. Her work is notable for its use of innovative materials, including pearls, tiny beads, and semiprecious stones. I was particularly taken with her Chandelier Mosaic ($5,350), which was created with Victorian textured mirror glass, freshwater pearls, filigree, Italian glass, mirror, vintage rhinestones, and Czech glass beads. At four feet tall, this amazing piece would make a gorgeous centerpiece for a formal dining room.

View 5 Photos ›

Source

Before and After: Amazing Mosaic (Out of Beans!)

CasaSugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 07:45:54 -0700

I was blown away by this incredible mosaic that Craftster member Boogaloo made out of various types of dried beans. Curious as to whose portrait she's crafting? Then read more.

Boogaloo writes, "I wanted to make a bean representation of the oh-so-cool poster by Shepard Fairey." She also went on to note that her copy of the 1966 Better Homes and Gardens Guide to Stitchery and Crafts notes that “Seeds, glue, and imagination are all you need to do seed mosaics.” However, adds Boogaloo, "They forgot to mention patience and a ridiculous amount of time."

Now, no matter what your thoughts are on the US presidential election, or your political affiliation, I think we can all agree that this portrait is an incredible work of art. Nice work, Boogaloo! (Oh, and I'd be more than happy to post a bean mosaic of John McCain, if anyone's made one!)

Read more about Boogaloo's project here.

Source

Love It or Hate It? One Morning They Woke Up Coffee Tables

CasaSugar — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 16:30:55 -0700

If you've ever felt alone in the world, or wonder why you were always picked last in kickball, you can take comfort in the fact that Marcel Wanders is wackier than you are. His One Morning They Woke Up Coffee Tables (inquire for price) will turn your living room into a mad hatter's social club, and give your grandmother a heart attack when she finds out they're made with mosaics.

Arno Coenen's Video Game Mosaic

GeekSugar — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 07:00:46 -0700

I dare you to count how many intricate video game images you can see in these themed mosaic walls created by Dutch media artist Arno Coenen of Rock and Royal. Coenen’s work predominantly involves computers, 3-D animation, radio programs and video clips and he's gaining some serious cred in the geek and art worlds. He currently resides in Amsterdam. I can count at least five different video games intertwined in the mosaic. How many do you see?

To check out more images of this beautiful mosaic, read more

View 7 Photos ›

Source: TechEBlog

Trend Alert: Mosaics

FabSugar — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:00:22 -0700

By the time you read this, I will have bought Nicky Hilton's Tolani Mosaic Tunic in Pink ($109). It's just so fresh, feminine - so Rio. Clearly, Nicky digs mosaics. The exotic graphic pattern definitely interests the eye, and comes in poppy colors as well as earth tones. Nicky loaded on nomadic jewelry - check out that blingin' turquoise ring - a studded belt, and a snakeskin bag for extra style points. I always say I need more prints in my life, so no buyer's remorse here.

How To Turn A Pic Into A Beautiful Image Mosaic

GeekSugar — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 14:00:47 -0700

This is such a neat tool. Go to image mosaic generator and choose an image file to convert to an artsy mosaic. It really works! Just upload the pic and after a few minutes the generator will covert it into a mosaic- very cool!
One word of advice. Try using smaller images as I uploaded a huge (3MB sized) image, and didn't get the full effect because the mosaic boxes were so big. Unless you are making a life size mosaic picture, you won't be able to see any details, especially from portrait shots.

Million Dog Mosaic

PetSugar — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:30:00 -0800

If your furry friend is still itching for his moment in the spotlight, the Million Dog Mosaic is a great way to get your pet's piccy out there! As part of the Pedigree Adoption Drive, the company makes a $1 donation for every dog photo that is uploaded into the mosaic (up to $20,000). Of course, I wanted to do my part to help the less fortunate animals, so I uploaded North's picture. Photos need to be horizontal with no people and I picked one of my lil' fella resting on an old laptop bag. After filling out some information about him, I received an email with a searchable code to zoom in on his mug and, about 48 hours later, my little guy was part of this piece of art. The finished product is that floppy-eared pup in the bottom right corner - it's fun to zoom in at random and click on other dogs to learn more about them. Can you find North in this shot?

Pedigree's also offering Dogs Rule apparel and gear and, if you're in NYC, today's the final day of the Pedigree Dogstore, a temporary center featuring adoptable dogs in an indoor dog park.

Inspiration: Mosaics

FabSugar — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 02:35:53 -0700

Sequins are so last year. For this year's sparkly going-out tops, dresses, and accessories, why not evoke the look of meticulously placed mosaic tiles? Here are some of our favorite tile-inspired designs.

Carolina Herrera Jeweled Dress, $3,990, available at Saks Fifth Avenue (not sold online)

For further inspiration, read more

Patricia Candido Honey Turquoise Double Bracelet, $187, available here

Tory Burch Sequined Velvet Clutch, $378, available here