bad crafts happen to good people. and sometimes, some ideas are just doomed from the start.
some of you may recall this photo from a few weeks ago.
well, that was just the start of it all.
let me rewind a little. i was at a thrift store when i spotted a cute little ceramic tile with that bird design on it. it was adorable! the style, the colours. totally me.
one problem: the tile was glued down to a very ugly cheeseboard.
i gave it a jiggle and tried to pry it with my fingers. it seemed to be stuck on there pretty well. some serious epoxy from the 70s no doubt. “they don’t make things like they used to!”
but i just couldn’t put it back and walk on. i figured there had to be a way to get the tile off and make it into something else. at the very least, i could just cut around the wood that was attached to it, and turn it into some sort of garden decor. or something. my mind has a way of wandering and wondering about such possibilities. to my detriment, at times…
so it came home with me. and i showed it to my husband and explained how i wished i could just have the tile part of it. before i could even take a before photo of it though, he had the screwdriver and hammer out, ready to chisel away at the thing.
then, i hear “oh shmmfph!”
*sigh*
the thing cracked. i wasn’t mad, as i had assumed it would break because it was old, brittle, and dang that was some serious glue!
now i was left with an even uglier cheese tray…
and i was sad to see the beautiful tile all in bits…
but then, those silly little gears in my mind got to creaking. you know, the ones attached to my creative cortex, which have been damaged by years of sleep deprivation and all that comes with motherhood. and i began to wonder if i could salvage it after all. salvage the tile, i mean, not the creative cortex. i think that damage might be permanent.
i know! i’d make a mosaic out of it! perfect. brilliant. i needed a stepping stone in the new garden. it would be fantastic! and i would write all about it in my blog, and everyone would think “that ana, such a clever little duck!”…
(this is very much a red herring moment, to divert your attention from just how terrible an idea this actually became…well, just keep reading. you’ll see.)
so, ignore the fact that i’d never done a mosaic. and had no idea what to use to set the pieces. oh silly details, i shoo you away with a swift wafting of my magical creative hands!
went to the garage and found this…
followed the directions. (this was easier than i thought! should’ve been a clue…)
measured and poured the mix into an old frisbee which i’d use as my mold (see? clever, clever duck!)
placed the pieces in the cement.
and promptly ignored the fact that it looked really quite terrible.
(by the way: denial is such an under-rated quality. denial can squash the obvious like a horse’s hoof coming down on an eggshell. it is so powerful. and blinding. and so very, very human.)
but yeah. it was pretty terrible. pictures trump denial in a heartbeat. ick.
so i set it aside, in all its wonky glory, to dry out over the next few days, letting it bask in the sun of the back porch.
the next day, mr.madeItSo and i headed out for dinner while my mother-in-law watched the kids. it was a gorgeous evening, perfect for playing outdoors, which is exactly what they did.
i came home, to this sight:
*sigh* i guess they really wanted to play frisbee…
like i said, some ideas are just doomed from the start.
lesson learned? just use the cheese platter next time, as is, or put it back.
well. maybe… unless! does anyone know how to make a mosaic out of a broken mosaic? or is that another one of those ideas that is better left alone? my creative cortex has been known to misfire…
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