Turn your scraps and off cuts into a fabulous mosaic.
What You Will Need
Dry Heat (see dry heat)
Off cuts or small pieces of FP in lots of colours.
A piece of FP whatever size and colour takes your fancy.
Cold water
Aluminium foil
Bamboo skewer or similar tool
Lay the large piece (or joint two pieces) of FP which is to be your background, onto the aluminium foil and heat with dry heat (heat gun, oven etc)
When soft place each small off cut or random shape onto the FP strip and push it in to the soft plastic with the flat end of the bamboo skewer until it is firmly embedded.Do this one piece at a time.
Repeat with each of the small off cuts pushing each one in as you go. If the FP cools before you have worked your way across then simply reheat the bit you want to work on with the heat gun.
When all pieces are embedded then zap with dry heat again for a few seconds just to make sure that all pieces are firmly attached.
Use your crazy mosaic for:
Soften on the tin foil and shape into a bracelet (if it is long enough
Cut out sections with metal shape cutters and inlay other pieces, or turn it into a picture frame.
Re heat and use a needle tool to swirl the plastic about, moving one colour into another.
Cutting regular shapes to inlay with small metal shape cutters
Use a ribbon cutter to cut strips and then cut again at right angles to create little squares to inlay
Use a circle cutter and cut and over-cut circles from FP to inlay, you get lovely variations on half moons and pointed lozenges.
© Liz Welch June 2005
