Celebrate Each Step - August 2010

After some reflection and feedback, I have decided to run this space at the start of every month instead of weekly to give us plenty of space for action and reflection (a week just goes sooo fast!). Celebrating Each Step will now run the first Sunday of the month for you to pop over and comment (or link to a Celebrate blog on your post). We can share our aims for the month to come as well as our reflections on the month just passed (steps, successes and struggles you have walked through).  In the meantime,  please do let others know about the space and use the badge to promote it :)

My biggest achievement and reflection  on the past week is the pure energy released by just starting something. I have been brewing several pieces of art and have felt a little 'blocked'. Then, on Thursday, in a somewhat artistic frenzy, I started - sketching like crazy, onto the bases where each piece will be mosaiced. Boy, it felt good. I then started playing with tiles, experimenting with colour and reflection. During this process I had an 'aha!' moment when I realised I could use a whole bottle, cut in half length ways, to make up a central part of one of the mosaics. I found the perfect bottle (an old shisha pipe basen no less!) and faced the challenge of how on earth to cut it in half whilst keeping both the bottle and my hands in good shape!

The joy of the Internet and the beautiful sharing spirit of Mosaic Artists Online bought me the solution within half an hour. Here's a You Tube video of how to cut a bottle (great for crafting, making vases etc...) which I adapted - used a glass scorer to score the length of the bottle, then hot and cold water and - crack - a beautiful, clean cut. Love it. (If you try this, make sure you protect your hands and eyes).

For the month of August, I will be focusing on making lots of art for a forthcoming exhibition. I will also be doing a major overhaul of my blog and site as well as setting up a new Flickr Group for students on my mosaic workshops (and scheduling new dates for workshops as the current ones are all fully booked). I also want to venture into making some mosaic jewellery. Watch this space!

How about you? What steps have you taken? What do you hope for in the month of August?