The LA Times did a story on the “mosaic madness”, good madness we all agree, in the home of artists Jolino Bessera and his partner David Edward Byrd. Jolino has created the most wonderful mosaics throughout their house in Silverlake, CA. The fireplace is just beautiful. There are all kinds of ceramic pieces and glass and it’s the perfect combination of all things whimsical. I want it! And I absolutely love the back splash in their kitchen which uses bits and pieces of plates and mugs. Jolino worked on the restoration project of Watts Towers in Los Angeles and fell in love with mosaic as an artform. Check out the slide show to see all of the pictures of their mosaics…
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Rainy Day Craft Projects for Kids
It’s said that April showers bring May flowers, but where I live the rainy season definitely isn’t over when April is. These crafts inspired by rainy days are great to make when the weather is awful, or they’re just cute crafts to decorate a classroom for spring.
This little paper umbrella from Easy Peasy and Fun is made with folded paper circles, so if you’ve got a round craft punch the prep on it will be pretty fast. Make them full all around or leave a flat space on the back for hanging on a wall. You can also add raindrops to the edge if you like. So cute!
The Pinterested Parent has a printable umbrella template that kids can decorate, cut out and tape or glue together to make an umbrella. Ths would be fun to do in a classroom and see how kids choose to decorate their umbrellas in different ways or using different media like paint, crayons or colored pencils.
Play with oil pastels and watercolors with this rainy day art project from Projects with Kids. This one looks like so much fun I kind of want to make it myself! There’s a lot of fun techniques in this one, including using pastels as a resist, painting with watercolors and doing blow painting with a straw.
I love this raindrop suncatcher project from Pre-K Pages, too. This one might be best to do with a small group or one on one since it includes using a iron. This technique is a great way to use crayons that are broken or have lost their paper, and you can use other colors and shapes to clean out your craft closet.
Or use the rain as part of your art, like with this project from Nurture Store. Start this project when the rain starts falling, and let nature collaborate in your art!