Turning the Stairway Into a Work of Unexpected Art...
by
Megan
4 Materials
Creating art in unexpected places is one of my favorite things to do. My old farmhouse has a very tall stairway that you look directly into when sitting at the kitchen island, so I figured it was the perfect place for a little bit of unexpected art.
Our kitchen island is everyone's favorite gathering place. We have a 15 step staircase going up from our kitchen that is front and center when you are sitting at the island. It also acts as extra seating when we have a crowd in the kitchen... So during our kitchen remodel, my brother the painter decided to get it all out of the way at once and paint the stairs and the hallway while doing the kitchen. And it inspired me.
I decided to do a dandelion every other step, and then abstract flowers every other step. I measured and marked each step with chalk so the flowers and vines were somewhat centered (but its art and they aren't perfect or identical). Once I got all the flowers and vines done, I started filling in the backgrounds like a puzzle.
I wanted to note that the first step I did I used a clear E6000 type glue. But I quickly realized that with the amount of area I would have to cover, and the smell and hassle of the glue, it would be easier and more economical to switch to a tile mastic. The mastic ended up being a better choice and a stronger bond. I simply spread the mastic on each piece of china with a plastic fork.
I am not going to lie. This project is not for the faint of heart. My stairs are steep and narrow and I did not have a comfortable place to sit while doing this. I almost gave up more than once. I could get about 1 step completed in an hour and a half, and did 2-3 steps a day. All in all, getting the pieces on there took me a little over 2 weeks (I had to step away a few times just to give myself a break). This picture is me working on the last group of steps. I was so happy I could have cried.
Now the grouting began.... Because I was using all sorts of different thickness and textures of tile and china, I had to grout completely by hand. I was dreading this, but it ended up not being too bad. It was, however, one of the messiest things I have ever done. Working from the top step down and wearing rubber gloves, I simply picked up handfuls of grout (Premixed charcoal color to match the stairs and make the colors pop) and smeared it over the glued on mosaic. Then I would wipe it off the face of the pattern. I used a traditional grout sponge, old dish towels, even paper towel. Whatever worked for each individual step. They were all completely different. This picture was taken after my first 4 stairs were grouted and wiped as clean as I could get them. There was still ALOT of grout haze and some pieces were partially covered in chunks of grout.
And here is the finished project! After grouting all the steps, which took me about 3 days, I let it sit and cure. Then I went back with an acid solution made specifically for cleaning grout off tiles and scrubbed each step riser with a nylon bristle brush. I scraped areas where there was too much grout and made sure all the pieces were visible. Then I went back and polished each piece of china individually.
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2 of 122 comments
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Absolutely beautiful!! I wonder how well it will stand up to careless feet hitting the risers after all that work, I think I would think very seriously about terrible revenge on anyone who damaged it!
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Bravo! A wonder of imagination, expression and execution! I am agog!
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