Just seeing this now in July 2024 via Mosaic Mentoring FB page recommendation - for we beginners who asked about mosaic-ing onto a stepping stone. Can't thank you enough for this video! Your detail is something I need, it's how I absorb info 😂. Such a beautiful piece, and I learned SO MUCH! TY!
Beautiful work Peter. You’re so precise with your cutting, and the tile pieces slot into each other perfectly. You definitely inspire us mere newbies to try out different methods and designs.
Thankyou so much appreciate that. I tend to compromise my cutting because I really don't want to spend 10mins on getting one piece just right, otherwise it would take a really long time to finish a large mosaic. Sometimes near enough is good enough and sometimes its good to be accurate just depends on the project. "Perfection is the killer of creativity". Thankyou for watching and thanks again for commenting. :)
Thankyou very much appreciate that. I was pleased with how it turned out and enjoy looking at it in the garden. Thanks again and thankyou for watching. :)
Thank you so much. I'm learning a lot from your great educational videos. I'm a mosaic newbie, so I'm more than grateful to you. Have a beautiful day.🙏🤗🤗
Thankyou very much Dunia, appreciate that and I still consider myself as an apprentice because we are always learning. Have a beautiful day as well and thanks for watching. :)
Thankyou very much Gloria, so glad you enjoyed it. I love the cutting as well but sometimes it can be a bit frustrating when it breaks where you don't want it to. lol
It is absolutely gorgeous! You are a dedicated craftsman! Thank you for mesmerizing me, I am amazed. I personally would never step on something so pretty! Ha!
Thank you for sharing knowledge. Im so grateful 🙏🥰. Im so glad to know that the epoxy sculpt can be used on concrete 😃👍. I enjoy all of your videos and been able to learn lots of things I didn't know despite that I've done some mosaic.
Thankyou so much Rainbow, but to be honest a lot comes down the the make of the ceramic tile. Some are a lot easier to work with than others, some just make my cutting look better. :)
I’m so glad you just shared this with us! The stone is beautiful! Love it! I recently bought a stone from Lowe’s and plan to make a steppingstone, so your video was just in time! Haven’t decided on the design yet, but for sure will be using stained glass. I’m excited now to get started! Thanks so much! 😁
Thankyou so much and Im so glad you enjoyed the video. Just remember if you use stained glass make sure its opaque rather than semi transparent, it will be easier for you if you cant see through the glass. :)
Thankyou so much Steph. No need to seal, l used Litokol epoxy grout which is waterproof, more durable than sanded grout and a smoother finish. I use Laticrete thinset, one that’s rated for the tesserae and the environment it’s going into. Thanks for watching and appreciate your comment. 😊
Great tutorial! I want to mosaic the concrete step outside my back door. You mentioned being careful of what tiles you use to make sure they aren't too slippy if stepped on. Do you have any recommendations for the best type of tiles to use and which to avoid?
Thankyou so much Yas, appreciate it. Anything smooth can be a possible risk, such as crockery (not meant to be walked on but people use it) , glass, glazed tile, etc especially if it gets wet. It really depends on what's in your area/country, you can use outdoor porcelain tiles, some come with a slippage rating, however generally those tiles do not come in any exciting colours. There are Cinca Porcelain tiles which are unglazed, however your colour range is limited. There are also Winckelmans and quite a few of there's have a slippage rating. Its one of those things where common sense and choosing the right product needs to be considered if someone's going to walk on the mosaic but by doing that, it also limits your choices dramatically and can also increase the cost. :)
Thank you so much for this tutorial. Your stone looks awesome! The colours are so far from something id normally pick but it works well. I like the fact that you used the computer. Would you mind doing a future video on how you use the computer and program to do the shapes as a plan?
Thanks very much Rainbow. That would be a very involved tutorial because it depends on peoples existing computer skills and there are so many different programs that some prefer over others. I have been thinking about it so we will see what the future holds. :)
Thanks so much CP. None at all, I used Litokol epoxy grout which is waterproof and more durable than sanded grout. You couldn't have the grout edges exposed like I did on this stepping stone using sanded grout because eventually the sanded grout would chip or crack. :)
Thank you for the gentle vid/nudge to come out of winter mosaic hibernation! It is perfect timing because it is the start of gardening/patio season here (Europe). I am embarking on 'stepping stones' (for my garden gate) and my 'dream project' for this summer is a small pond/fountain. I LUV doing & keeping the MESH pieces indoors during the Winter that can be applied outdoors in the spring/summer. I am a bit PHOBIC about using different thicknesses of tiles, porcelain, glass pieces etc. so, as a beginner, I'm sticking to all the same thicknesses for now. Is there a way we can send & share our mosaic photos with you and the group? Just plain thanks, Max
Thankyou very much Max. I love using tesserae that's different heights as it adds texture and interest, however I can also see why you would want to keep everything at the same height as well. It will be awesome creating a fountain, they are so good, I have three on my property and nope none of them are a mosaic either. lol If you post in the Mosaics Australia Wide group on Facebook I will see your photos. :)
The thing I don’t understand is, how did you end up with any space in between the pieces in order to have enough space for the grout when the tesserae was cut from the shapes of the design and all the shapes were flush with the next shape. I would think a person would have to cut extra off in order to get a grout line.
Generally when we are nipping we take off that little bit more and if you are grinding the tess that takes off a little bit as well. I have my grout lines really close together but that's a personal preference and I find grout still gets into the grout lines because I push it in. I really don't want the grout to impact the piece greatly. If you are going to be have say 5 or 7mm grout lines then you will need to nip more from the tess to give you a wider grout line. :)
BTW I got another question...When you seal the stepping stone, do you seal it all around or do you leave the bottom unsealed?....Also has the tesserae hold up onto the stepping stone or have they fallen out with time? Im working on these tree rings (#80) and im about to start mosaicing them. Im still unsure if I should seal the concrete or not? Im afraid they wont stick or adhere afterwards, But then I see yours adhering very well
I cannot comment specifically about your project, I can only generalize. There are different opinions on sealing. Some people prefer to seal because it stops moisture from being absorbed into the substrate especially when dealing with freeze thaw conditions because water droplets can expand around 8% causing failures of a mosaic. Also the water may interfere with the adhesive or the moisture can be sucked out of the adhesive itself. Other people prefer not to seal substrates because they believe that sealing creates a barrier where the adhesive doesn't actually adhere to the substrate, just to the sealant. So if the sealer fails so does your mosaic. If they are using a cement based adhesive they tend to wet the substrate down and then apply the tessera to the piece, this stops the moisture from being sucked out of the adhesive and if part of the substrate looks to be drying out they just wet it a bit more. All these are fair comments, however penetrating sealers penetrate into the substrate just as the name suggests so it doesn't just sit on the top, unlike surface sealants. Also the type of adhesive needs to be taken into account, such as silicone or a cement based adhesive (thinset) etc. I have spoken at length to Laticrete about this subject and manufactures like Laticrete offer a turn key system where they make a waterproofing membrane such as Hydroban, and the cement based adhesive which are designed to go together. There are many cement based adhesive manufactures which say do not use a sealant if you are using a cement based adhesive, the reason being is there are many sealants and waterproofing membranes on the market, they cannot guarantee their cement based adhesive will work with the sealant. To be honest I think there are situations where sealing is required and their are situations where sealing probably isn't necessary and of course it depends on the adhesive you are using and the environment on where its going. Always read the technical data sheet on what ever product you are using or about to buy because this will have all the facts in it. You can always create a Facebook post in one of the mosaic groups detailing what you are using, where its going, the environment its in and add photos as well, someone may respond that is familiar with your area but no doubt you will receive mixed responses on this because everyone has their preferences on what they like to do and what products they like to use. In some cases I have sealed and in other cases I haven't, I haven't had anything fail on me at this point in time with either option.
@@TreasuryRoad A zillion Thanks for really taking your time to reply and gave it your all ....I'm so grateful 🙏🥰.... In the past I made these mosaic stepping stones that failed. Now I know the reason 1- I burried them deep into the ground at soil level, 2-I used the wrong grout 3- my neighbor kept running over them with the tractor 🚜 (even the glass Nuggets are busted 😅).. Hopefully I get it right on this new project. Again, thanks for your help 🙏...May you have a marvelous blessed day 🙋♀️
If you are referring to plates and cups on a stepping stone, you would need to be mindful of the traffic that would be walked on them. Also there are different qualities of plates and cups, porcelain being generally better. Consider slippage as well when they are wet and also the environment that they are in such as being constantly wet, freeze thaw, etc because plates and cups were not designed to be outside and used in a mosaic. Thanks for watching, 😊
You would need to draw it on free hand, or use carbon paper and trace the design on or an overhead projector and trace around the projected image. If you are not going to use mesh like in this video. :)
Im having trouble hearing what youre saying cos you used the word "actually" about 8 times in one sentence. Its distracting me. It will start annoying me soon.
Just seeing this now in July 2024 via Mosaic Mentoring FB page recommendation - for we beginners who asked about mosaic-ing onto a stepping stone. Can't thank you enough for this video! Your detail is something I need, it's how I absorb info 😂. Such a beautiful piece, and I learned SO MUCH! TY!
Thankyou so much Donna, l like the information as well it helps me too when l need to do a project. Appreciate you watching and your comment. 😊
What a beautiful steppingstone. Thank you for showing us the process
Thanks so much Sunday and thankyou for watching, appreciate that. :)
Beautiful work Peter. You’re so precise with your cutting, and the tile pieces slot into each other perfectly. You definitely inspire us mere newbies to try out different methods and designs.
Thankyou so much appreciate that. I tend to compromise my cutting because I really don't want to spend 10mins on getting one piece just right, otherwise it would take a really long time to finish a large mosaic. Sometimes near enough is good enough and sometimes its good to be accurate just depends on the project. "Perfection is the killer of creativity". Thankyou for watching and thanks again for commenting. :)
Stunning piece of art! You are just amazing. Thank you for all the expertise you share so generously.
Thankyou very much appreciate that. I was pleased with how it turned out and enjoy looking at it in the garden. Thanks again and thankyou for watching. :)
Beautiful and very helpful instructions.
Thankyou so much Patricia appreciate that and thankyou for watching. :)
Thank you so much. I'm learning a lot from your great educational videos. I'm a mosaic newbie, so I'm more than grateful to you. Have a beautiful day.🙏🤗🤗
Thankyou very much Dunia, appreciate that and I still consider myself as an apprentice because we are always learning. Have a beautiful day as well and thanks for watching. :)
Thank you for another long awaited for videos .Lot of patience needed for all the cutting but I find it as a kind of meditation.Beautiful!!as usual
Thankyou very much Gloria, so glad you enjoyed it. I love the cutting as well but sometimes it can be a bit frustrating when it breaks where you don't want it to. lol
This is beautiful ! You surely are an artist , A mosaic artist.
Thankyou very much Donna, appreciate that but I'm more of a apprentice. :) Thanks so much for watching.
It is absolutely gorgeous! You are a dedicated craftsman! Thank you for mesmerizing me, I am amazed. I personally would never step on something so pretty! Ha!
LOL Thankyou very much Tonya, appreciate that. :)
you're Awesome. I love your Videos. I learn so much.
Thankyou very much Donna and I am glad you're enjoying them. Thanks so much for watching. :)
Thanks for sharing your beautiful work. Isn’t it exciting when you get the last of the grout cleaned up and see your finished piece?!
Thankyou so much and yes you are right. It all begins to come alive. Thankyou for watching. :)
Thanks for teaching us your stepping stone technique.
My pleasure Kim and thankyou for watching. :)
Thank you for sharing knowledge. Im so grateful 🙏🥰. Im so glad to know that the epoxy sculpt can be used on concrete 😃👍. I enjoy all of your videos and been able to learn lots of things I didn't know despite that I've done some mosaic.
Thankyou very much appreciate that. Remember always do a test first don’t just take my word for it because every project is different. 😊
Brilliant Peter. I am ready to start mine now I think. Thanks so much for sharing. Sara
Thankyou so much Sara and my pleasure. :)
Another wonderful video Peter!!!
I’ve had a stepping stone sitting just waiting!!
Ur always so thorough & explanative!!
It’s so appreciative 💗
Thankyou so much Tanya, so glad the video helped you and thankyou for watching. :)
Beautiful mosaic art piece!🎆💞
Thankyou so much Dunia, so kind of you to say that. :)
Another excellent video. Thank you for sharing your knowledge
Thankyou so much Sharyn, appreciate that. :)
Your cutting is near perfect. I hope to be able to cut shapes like these one day. I love curves.
Thankyou so much Rainbow, but to be honest a lot comes down the the make of the ceramic tile. Some are a lot easier to work with than others, some just make my cutting look better. :)
Very beautiful steppingstone! I appreciate your videos so much. I’ve learned a lot from you!
Thankyou very much Gaile and thankyou for your support as well. :)
What a lovely and informative video.... thank you...!!
Thankyou so much Bonnie and thanks for watching. :)
I’m so glad you just shared this with us! The stone is beautiful! Love it! I recently bought a stone from Lowe’s and plan to make a steppingstone, so your video was just in time! Haven’t decided on the design yet, but for sure will be using stained glass. I’m excited now to get started! Thanks so much! 😁
Thankyou so much and Im so glad you enjoyed the video. Just remember if you use stained glass make sure its opaque rather than semi transparent, it will be easier for you if you cant see through the glass. :)
@@TreasuryRoad ok, I didn’t think about that, thanks for letting me know.
What a great idea for our many pet graves on our farm. Dogs, cats, lambs, a calf, galahs, magpies and horses.
Thankyou so much Jonna and yes I have already created one for a beautiful dog that I was close to, she wasn't mine but we were so very close. :)
Stunning.
Thankyou very much Sherie, appreciate that. :)
Wow …. Stunning!
Thankyou very much Kathleen, it was a fun project. Thanks for commenting. 😊
Thank you so much . Beautiful
Thanks so much Sunday, so glad you liked it and thanks for watching. :)
Love it thank you. Do you seal it before taking it outside?and any particular kind of thinset? Thanks so much
Thankyou so much Steph. No need to seal, l used Litokol epoxy grout which is waterproof, more durable than sanded grout and a smoother finish. I use Laticrete thinset, one that’s rated for the tesserae and the environment it’s going into. Thanks for watching and appreciate your comment. 😊
Great tutorial! I want to mosaic the concrete step outside my back door. You mentioned being careful of what tiles you use to make sure they aren't too slippy if stepped on. Do you have any recommendations for the best type of tiles to use and which to avoid?
Thankyou so much Yas, appreciate it. Anything smooth can be a possible risk, such as crockery (not meant to be walked on but people use it) , glass, glazed tile, etc especially if it gets wet. It really depends on what's in your area/country, you can use outdoor porcelain tiles, some come with a slippage rating, however generally those tiles do not come in any exciting colours. There are Cinca Porcelain tiles which are unglazed, however your colour range is limited. There are also Winckelmans and quite a few of there's have a slippage rating. Its one of those things where common sense and choosing the right product needs to be considered if someone's going to walk on the mosaic but by doing that, it also limits your choices dramatically and can also increase the cost. :)
Thank you so much for this tutorial. Your stone looks awesome! The colours are so far from something id normally pick but it works well. I like the fact that you used the computer. Would you mind doing a future video on how you use the computer and program to do the shapes as a plan?
Thanks very much Rainbow. That would be a very involved tutorial because it depends on peoples existing computer skills and there are so many different programs that some prefer over others. I have been thinking about it so we will see what the future holds. :)
@@TreasuryRoad I understand. There are a lot of design programs out there.
❤Beautiful work, as always. What is the thickness of the big tiles you use?
Thankyou so much Martha, I think they were around 7mm. Thanks for watching and commenting. :)
Love the stick people comment! Thank you for the tutorial, Peter.
LOL I definitely cant draw. Thanks for watching and appreciate the comment.
Looks gr8!
Whether its in garden or used as stepping stone, does it need any type of sealer to protect from rain/weather etc?🌻
Thanks so much CP. None at all, I used Litokol epoxy grout which is waterproof and more durable than sanded grout. You couldn't have the grout edges exposed like I did on this stepping stone using sanded grout because eventually the sanded grout would chip or crack. :)
Thank you for the gentle vid/nudge to come out of winter mosaic hibernation! It is perfect timing because it is the start of gardening/patio season here (Europe). I am embarking on 'stepping stones' (for my garden gate) and my 'dream project' for this summer is a small pond/fountain. I LUV doing & keeping the MESH pieces indoors during the Winter that can be applied outdoors in the spring/summer. I am a bit PHOBIC about using different thicknesses of tiles, porcelain, glass pieces etc. so, as a beginner, I'm sticking to all the same thicknesses for now.
Is there a way we can send & share our mosaic photos with you and the group? Just plain thanks, Max
Thankyou very much Max. I love using tesserae that's different heights as it adds texture and interest, however I can also see why you would want to keep everything at the same height as well. It will be awesome creating a fountain, they are so good, I have three on my property and nope none of them are a mosaic either. lol If you post in the Mosaics Australia Wide group on Facebook I will see your photos. :)
@@TreasuryRoad Thank you ... I've just found and asked at the Facebook group.
The thing I don’t understand is, how did you end up with any space in between the pieces in order to have enough space for the grout when the tesserae was cut from the shapes of the design and all the shapes were flush with the next shape. I would think a person would have to cut extra off in order to get a grout line.
Generally when we are nipping we take off that little bit more and if you are grinding the tess that takes off a little bit as well. I have my grout lines really close together but that's a personal preference and I find grout still gets into the grout lines because I push it in. I really don't want the grout to impact the piece greatly. If you are going to be have say 5 or 7mm grout lines then you will need to nip more from the tess to give you a wider grout line. :)
BTW I got another question...When you seal the stepping stone, do you seal it all around or do you leave the bottom unsealed?....Also has the tesserae hold up onto the stepping stone or have they fallen out with time? Im working on these tree rings (#80) and im about to start mosaicing them. Im still unsure if I should seal the concrete or not? Im afraid they wont stick or adhere afterwards, But then I see yours adhering very well
I cannot comment specifically about your project, I can only generalize. There are different opinions on sealing. Some people prefer to seal because it stops moisture from being absorbed into the substrate especially when dealing with freeze thaw conditions because water droplets can expand around 8% causing failures of a mosaic. Also the water may interfere with the adhesive or the moisture can be sucked out of the adhesive itself. Other people prefer not to seal substrates because they believe that sealing creates a barrier where the adhesive doesn't actually adhere to the substrate, just to the sealant. So if the sealer fails so does your mosaic. If they are using a cement based adhesive they tend to wet the substrate down and then apply the tessera to the piece, this stops the moisture from being sucked out of the adhesive and if part of the substrate looks to be drying out they just wet it a bit more. All these are fair comments, however penetrating sealers penetrate into the substrate just as the name suggests so it doesn't just sit on the top, unlike surface sealants. Also the type of adhesive needs to be taken into account, such as silicone or a cement based adhesive (thinset) etc. I have spoken at length to Laticrete about this subject and manufactures like Laticrete offer a turn key system where they make a waterproofing membrane such as Hydroban, and the cement based adhesive which are designed to go together. There are many cement based adhesive manufactures which say do not use a sealant if you are using a cement based adhesive, the reason being is there are many sealants and waterproofing membranes on the market, they cannot guarantee their cement based adhesive will work with the sealant. To be honest I think there are situations where sealing is required and their are situations where sealing probably isn't necessary and of course it depends on the adhesive you are using and the environment on where its going. Always read the technical data sheet on what ever product you are using or about to buy because this will have all the facts in it. You can always create a Facebook post in one of the mosaic groups detailing what you are using, where its going, the environment its in and add photos as well, someone may respond that is familiar with your area but no doubt you will receive mixed responses on this because everyone has their preferences on what they like to do and what products they like to use. In some cases I have sealed and in other cases I haven't, I haven't had anything fail on me at this point in time with either option.
@@TreasuryRoad A zillion Thanks for really taking your time to reply and gave it your all ....I'm so grateful 🙏🥰.... In the past I made these mosaic stepping stones that failed. Now I know the reason 1- I burried them deep into the ground at soil level, 2-I used the wrong grout 3- my neighbor kept running over them with the tractor 🚜 (even the glass Nuggets are busted 😅).. Hopefully I get it right on this new project. Again, thanks for your help 🙏...May you have a marvelous blessed day 🙋♀️
does this work with pieces like plates and cups?
If you are referring to plates and cups on a stepping stone, you would need to be mindful of the traffic that would be walked on them. Also there are different qualities of plates and cups, porcelain being generally better. Consider slippage as well when they are wet and also the environment that they are in such as being constantly wet, freeze thaw, etc because plates and cups were not designed to be outside and used in a mosaic. Thanks for watching, 😊
Can you explain how to place a design on a stepping stone only. No other pieces on it
I have a pic but don’t see a way to upload it for you
You would need to draw it on free hand, or use carbon paper and trace the design on or an overhead projector and trace around the projected image. If you are not going to use mesh like in this video. :)
Im having trouble hearing what youre saying cos you used the word "actually" about 8 times in one sentence. Its distracting me. It will start annoying me soon.
Hopefully the other videos won’t be annoying to you. 😊