YET MORE GARDEN ART.
D calls this his gaudy pot...there are copper mirror tiles around the rim which reflect the surrounding greenery beautifully. Black and amber glass stones come next, then the rays, finishing with black tiles and glass beads.





This was a gorgeous Japanese pot, found in a Mexican furniture and sculpture store. The mosaic is copper and silver glass in a Japanese character.




The spiral mosaic for the cacti was a very early one. I always feel drunk looking at it, as it never seems to sit upright....an optical illusion - honest!

D feels an Art Deco mood coming on, so has bought a cylindrical and a cube pot to have a go. Watch this space.

 

SLABBED RECTANGULAR POT.

This was my first attempt and it only took me 2 years! Lots of things got in the way of completing it, but I finally made it this Spring before the garden needed attention. It's now on the steps near the new pergola.


This was done in one afternoon by D, who was using up odd bits, then it got added to with glass pebbles and proper tesserae.
The other two are early ones for fun and our neighbour was so interested, we gave the floral one to her for her new house.












This is a North American Indian design. What a lovely datura (Brugmansia) in the background.....we lost it in the 2004 very cold winter and haven't yet tried again with these gorgeous trees.  

MK 2 MOSAIC TABLE. Here is the finished set, and a close-up of the butterfly. Simple, elegant, don't you think?! Three different grouts used on the benches - dark green, red (which has come out a nice terracotta) and black.




This is an ordinary flower pot, with oddments, proper tesserae and glass pebbles to give a colourful effect, using chocolate brown grout.....nice.

I've forgotten the name of the rambling plant with pink daisy-like flowers in the background. I plonk it everywhere, water it in and it's off.....from time to time it needs a haircut so I put the trimmings in troughs and pots. Glossy leaves all the year round, drought resistant and hardy. Perfect for these conditions. 

MORE MOSAICS. This is the original mosaiced butterfly that D didn't like. We used ordinary bathroom tiles and bought 12 boxes of assorted colours. When we need different colours, unfortunately we bought thicker tiles by mistake and the effect is apparent when the grouting is finished: the surface is uneven and rough. Also, the benches were done in two-tone yellow bamboo design.....very simple, very effective.
So off came the butterfly and black/purple bamboo and a new design done and grouted. Next is the result. 

HOT DAYS AND UNCHARACTERISTALLY COOL NIGHTS, 5 JULY.


Here are some before and after pictures. The green stuff around the winter trees is not grass, but weeds; this dries up to ugly brown straw stuff by June and now that we've finished the path and pergola, we'll give some thought about what to do with these areas. We've started to add shrubs, cypress and bamboo but seeing an empty space, our neighbour could not resist hopping through the fence and planting small tomato plants that will be ready for Christmas, he says! With what I'm harvesting now and rendering into puree, sauces etc. we'll not be short of tomato-y stuff until 2007!






The shrub on the right of the trellis in the last picture is dame de noche and the exotic scent early morning and evening takes my breath away. I wish I could bottle it....very sensuous.