Darcy's 3rd Guitar Done

Guitar shape cut from Wediboard.  Features:  Blue glass bead "tuners," Texas longhorn, sterling silver Lone Star, purple and black stained glass, silver metal and mirror fretboard and neck, iridized blue stained glass, custom fused glass triangle by Cathy, bronze sun, dichroic glass and silver bridge, iridized black glass paw print, sterling silver "lasso," and cobalt blue stained glass spiral.  

"Texas Flood" mosaic guitar

The top (the mosaic part) is done.  Next I will paint the sides and back with a black/white pattern.

Darcy's 2nd Guitar, Done

Guitar-shaped Wall Hanging, one of four

This is 23" x 8" stained glass, dichroic glass, and pique assiette on Wedi board.  It will hang straight up and down or at an angle as shown.  The next one will have a South of the Border look.  

British Invasion (My Generation) -- Done!

I started this on January 13, 2013, and it laid around here and there for almost a year.  I suddenly finished it today, December 3, 2013!

Originally titled "My Generation" - song by The Who; now re-titled "British Invasion."

Purple mosaic guitar, bumped up

Favorite of my mosaic guitars; looking at it makes me want to do another one. The textured stained glass, stars, the wings, the dichroic strings ... a few of my favorite things. I am waiting to hear that my cow design is approved. I have started cutting circles of stained glass to represent the planets and today I am creating the comet's tail on mosaic mesh. I ordered 40 sheets of mesh last week, enough to cover a life-sized cow. I love the fabulous look of outer space and I recommend the link to the Ministry of Space Exploration at the right -- fantastic photographs and a mind-boggling video called Epic Voyage Through the Universe.

A new hubpage inspired by a mosaic

My latest hubpage celebrates the joys and trials and tribulations of our lives, represented by ribbons and threads of colors that make up the Tao, the flow of the universe: 
http://hubpages.com/hub/Our-Spirit-River. 

What next?

I had planned to feature the opening of the original Hawaii Five-0 TV show on my next guitar. But now I'm torn. Just listened to Huey Lewis Heart of Rock and Roll (one of the best bands and best songs ever) and I can see a Heart of Rock and Roll mosaic guitar ... hmmmmmm.

Across the Universe mosaic guitar

Click on the image and click again to see more detail.

Images of broken light which dance before me like a million eyes
That call me on and on across the universe

This one has it all, mirror tile, vitreous glass tile, costume jewelry, dichroic glass, stained glass, flat glass marbles, leather bolo, dichroic stringers, glass beads. Note the Crab nebula (for my daughter who is a Cancer) and various spiral galaxies.

Conquistador Guitar done

Click on the photo and then click again for a larger view.

Conquistador Guitar wip, gluing underway

Click to enlarge.


Still need to mosaic the neck and add the tuners, which will be cool raku blue beads. I need to drive all the way to North Austin to Helios Glass and buy the dichroic stringers that will represent the strings of the guitar (and combine that with lunch at Chuys). I plan to use black grout.

Conquistador Guitar wip, cutting and layout

I have the 24K gold plate rims glued. Everything else is still loose. I wish I had matching orange medallions to place on either side of the axe head but I'm probably going to go with his silver shield on one side. Mingling with the flames will be mottled light and dark blue Bullseye stained glass.


















Here's a photo showing the tool I use to cut the flames, a Toyo oil hand cutter TC-600, available at stained glass shops. I score the glass free-hand, use a Fletcher tool (looks like pliers) (also from stained glass shops) to put pressure on the scored line, and voila the glass pops apart right where I scored it (well, almost always).















If you look closely at the 24K gold plate rims that encircle the face of the guitar, you can see how I nip in an alternating slant instead of a straight cut. This helps to go around the curves.

Conquistador Guitar wip, gathering materials

I start with the theme, the song Conquistador, written and performed by Gary Brooker and Procol Harum. Then I decide on the colors, and next I pick out a few pieces to expand on the theme. I come up with a design, loosely, in my head, and start to cut and glue. I'm thinking axe head, stallion's saddle, angel's wing, silver shield, turquoise and blue, the colors of the sea, contrasting with the dramatic reds and oranges of Spain, all framed by the 24K gold of the plate rim.



Click on the photo and then click again to enlarge.

Music inspires me to mosaic

Last night I dreamed about this song and now I am going to think about it while I mosaic my next guitar. See my list of favorite links on the right. Conquistador, Gary Brooker, what a talent ...

Rhythm and Blues Mosaic Guitar

Please click on the picture to see detail and then click again to see even more detail:

©2010, Silva Hayes, Rhythm and Blues

I just got a cool old guitar

I am still working on the head, a little at a time. I nipped and tumbled two more barrels full of glass, all small pieces and with the points nipped off.



I am starting a new project to run concurrently with the head, an old 12 string guitar that has a few holes and cracks in it. The theme is going to be (loosely) a blues club from the twenties. I will use mostly blue stained glass along with some special tiles. I think the two ladies (nipped from a porcelain vase) look as if they are sitting in a club listening to the blues. It is intended to be a birthday gift for a special guy. MUST have it done by the end of June.

Mosaic talk at Bee Cave Elementary today

It was So Much Fun! Ms. Henry and Ms. Cunningham invited me to visit their Art class today and show some mosaic pieces to Ms. Childress's and Ms. Stowe's fourth grade classes (42 kids). The kids were wonderful; such enthusiasm! I took the mosaic guitar entitled Texas Women in Music, and the glass-on-glass picture called Five Candles. I took my tools and showed them how to nip glass and smooth the edges. They were full of questions and compliments; what a great time! Thank you, Bee Cave Elementary!

WIP - Space themed guitar

This guitar will feature my favorite theme, Outer Space. Tesserae include stained glass, vitreous glass tile, glass globs, vintage jewelry, leather bolo, rhinestones, crystal, and glass beads. I need to add strings (probably will use dichroic stringers again) and then it will be ready to grout! I received two old beat-up guitars for Christmas gifts and a cracked mandolin, and recently my friend gave me a beat-up child-sized guitar, all ready to mosaic, so I am happy. CLICK TO ENLARGE IMAGE.

Bumping up my favorites

This is my favorite piece so far so I'm bumping it up in the queue to look at until I get this glass totem done. Whew, working on round glass is quite challenging. The GE Silicone II for windows and doors works great - - the pieces don't slide around at all - - but it is difficult to get out of the tube. My daughter gave me a neat little tool that fits on the bottom of the tube of silicone and rolls up as you go, so that helps enormously. Here are two views of my guitar, my most favorite of all things to mosaic. The second view is painted on the back. (click to enlarge)


©2008, Silva Hayes, Celebration of Texas Women in Music

Mosaic Guitar celebrating Texas women in Music

Click on the picture to enlarge!!!



I finished this project several months ago but wasn't quite satisfied with it because it had no strings. I bought these dichroic glass stringers at Helios Glass back when I took the Fused Glass class, and I added them to represent guitar strings! Now I'm happy. The name of the piece is "Texas Women in Music."