Brenda Smith created this stunning fall themed fused glass platter using No Days Liquid Fusing Adhesive with a frit painting technique. She shared the various techniques used in the Glass Patterns Quarterly article from 2009.
No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive is a dry to the touch adhesive sheet that allows you to create quick and easy mess-free mosaics.
The thickness of the tiles you’re using, as well as the spacing in between your tiles will determine how much of the No Days Groutless you’ll want to use. To illustrate this, I put together this sampler mosaic using 1/2″ thick ceramic tiles.
I chose to make this mosaic in a box with walls that helped to contain the multiple layers of No Days Groutless that I would be using to see if I could get it to rise up to the level of the thickness of the tiles.
As the No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive is heated, it liquifies, and you press down on the tiles to force the adhesive to get pressed out from in between the tiles which lets it rise up around the tiles.
Check out this older but still informative video primer for working with No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive:
Have you tuned into the No Days Studio Sessions on YouTube? No Days Studio Sessions are live streamed to social media platforms and then uploaded to YouTube very lighted edited.
In the Fused Glass Emoji No Days Studio Session, Carrie works with No Days Powder Wafers to create a kissy, winky face fused glass dish. She demonstrates cutting a circle with a Toyo circle cutter, cutting the No Days Powder Wafer sheets on a Silhouette Cameo cutting machine, how to activate the Powder Wafer medium and tricks for incorporating it successfully in fused glass designs.
There is so much to learn from this FREE demonstration. It’s like a class that you can enjoy from home!
Mary Anne Maslanka of Annabelle Art Glass in Locust Grove, GA shared some of her mosaic art made with No Days Mosaic Adhesive film as well as No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive film.
and I assembled it using No Days Groutless.
I have been using No Days Mosaic Adhesive almost as long as it has been produced. The folks at No Days have always been available and willing to take the time to answer any questions I have ever had…This company is doing everything right!
As a stained glass artist and instructor for many years, I had never tried mosaics until the No Days Mosaic Adhesive was introduced. It looked so easy, I had to try it….Then, I realized I could offer my students new projects using the product.
Now, every summer at a local senior center, I offer a glass on glass mosaic workshop so the senior members can bring their grandchildren for a fun few hours of using their imaginations and producing a small framed mosaic to take home…
using a stained glass pattern, and No Days Mosaic Adhesive.
I also really like the No Days Bail Bond. I use it on small projects to attach a bail to hang instead of drilling a hole in the glass….works great!
I used No Days Mosaic Adhesive, then grouted it.
I use the No Days Glaze when attaching a zinc frame to my panels. I have even used it on a wooden frame…
Thanks to Mary Anne for sharing her photos and experience with No Days Adhesives! You can see more of her work on her facebook page. Mary Anne Maslanka of Annabelle Art Glass
We love seeing the work you make with No Days Adhesives! If you’d like to be a featured artist, send an email to info@nodaysadhesives.com.
Originally published July 15, 2015.
Hi:
What is the best way to clean a brush after using it to apply No Days Liquid Fusing Adhesive?
Thank you, R
Hello, R ~
When I’m using a brush with No Days Liquid Fusing Adhesive, I’ll generally have a paper towel next to me while working. I use it occasionally to wick some of the adhesive off of the brush (and little bits of frit when I get build up).
When I’m finished working, I’ll just wipe the brush off on the paper towel by “painting” excess adhesive onto the paper towel. Then, I just let it dry. I generally dedicate this brush (actually, I have two dedicated brushes) to working with No Days. It will harden up, but when I use it on the next project, the brush will get saturated again and soften up.
However, if you don’t want to dedicate a brush for working with No Days, then you can clean it up when you’re done with a bit of oil. Any oil you’ve got lying around will work. I generally use canola oil, or cutting oil, because that’s what I have available at home. Place the oil in a cap, small container, jar lid, etc. and paint the brush around in it. After getting it thoroughly saturated, put a bit of dish soap in the palm of your hand and swish the brush around in it. Rinse and then, VOILA! Clean and ready to use on something else!
Alternatively, you can use acetone (or acetone based fingernail polish remover). Just place a bit of the acetone in a jar and soak and clean the bristles in the acetone. But, I prefer the oil and soap method.
Hope this helps! If you have more questions or this didn’t fully answer your question, feel free to contact me again!
Good luck!
Originally published June 22, 2016.
Hi Leigh, I just received my first order of No Days and am loving it! First, I just wanted to say thanks for the work you did here, pioneering this product for mosaic artists!
will be affixed to the wedi board using thinset.
Second, a question: the No Days Mesh came with an opaque release paper, and the instructions recommended I sketch my design directly onto the mesh. I found I can’t achieve the level of detail I want by doing this, and would love to have my image directly behind the mesh to guide my work. Could you recommend a CLEAR, heat-resistant release paper I could use behind the mesh that would not obscure my image? Thanks so much for your time! Cheers! ~Lynn
I’m so glad to hear you are enjoying the No Days mesh, Lynn! Since it is easiest to work in one foot squares (for installation purposes as well as ease of using the kitchen oven to adhere the tesserae), I create my design on any paper I want and divide it into workable shapes that I can piece together easily and conveniently. Then, instead of using the release paper (save it!), I use waxed paper and put the mesh on top of that. You can see your design and the mesh can be heated and will release. CAUTION! Test your wax paper. Some recent purchases have not been adequately strong, the paper was inferior. Try a test square and keep notes on what works for you And please let me see what you do!
UPDATE: I have found that Reynolds Parchment paper (the side with the writing on it) will also work well as a release liner.
Meet Jackie Doehling of Full Moon Loon Designs!
Full Moon Loon Designs is my artist name & the Doing Business As (DBA) name I chose when I decided I might want to pursue this as a little more than a casual hobby. Why “Full Moon Loon?” The loon is our state bird here in Minnesota, and the full moon – well, that seems to be when I feel the most creative. Sometimes I am just bursting with creative energy around the time of the full moon, and in fact there was a full moon when I came up with the name.
I still consider myself a beginner in this wonderful world of glass as there are so many techniques and methods I have yet to try. I was introduced to glass fusing in a small workshop type get-together a friend of mine had at a local studio. We made pendants out of scrap glass and that was all it took, I was HOOKED! Back in 2010 I bought a microwave kiln and it was a fun way to get started with small pendants and pieces, but I knew I wanted to do more. I bought my first “real” kiln in early 2011 and added a second one a year later. One of my favorite methods in glass design is using stencils and powders. Powders and frits allow you limitless possibilities when it comes to design. You can follow a pattern or create something completely random and unplanned (sometimes those are the best projects!)
and classes on frit painting
For the past two years I have entered pieces into the Minnesota State Fair and on both occasions I won a third-place ribbon. This year I am entering a piece where I used a method I learned in a No Days Road Show, frit painting. The top layer is a pair of Lady’s Slipper flowers (Minnesota state flower), the second layer is our state bird, the loon, and the base layer is a piece of blue swirled glass representing the “Land of 10,000 lakes.” Each layer is actually a design layer plus a layer of thin clear fused together, so in the final firing it was six layers of sheet glass plus frit. I call it “Minnesota in Glass” and while it didn’t make it past the first round of the juried fine arts competition, I am not giving up! Instead I am entering it into the Creative Activities which is where I have entered the past two years. Perhaps the third time’s the charm?
using No Days Liquid Fusing Adhesive
I love the No Days Liquid Fusing Adhesive as it works great for not only the frit painting process, but also for holding things in place before firing. It always burns off clean and has never left any marks or residue on my glass. My first experience with a No Days product was the ThinFuse Adhesive. It works great for building designs with several pieces of glass like a quilt pattern or mosaic design. I also like the BailBond adhesive for attaching bails to pendants, it works like a charm (no pun intended!)
for not only the frit painting process, but also for holding
things in place before firing. It always burns off clean and has never left
any marks or residue on my glass.
While glass is my true passion, I am employed full time in IT as a business analyst. I earned my Master of Science in 2012 in Technical Communication and my Bachelor of Science (2006) is in Management Information Systems. While I’ve never taken any art classes while working on my degrees, I do pursue local workshops and classes from time to time and wouldn’t mind teaching at some point. I keep hoping to win the lottery so I can retire and play with glass full-time! So far, I haven’t sold in any shows but I am getting my website up and running and hope to have my store page live this year. You would think being an IT type, the site would be a no-brainer, but if it’s a choice between working on glass and working on a site about glass, well you can guess where I am likely to spend my time!
Jackie Doehling
Owner & Artist, Full Moon Loon Designs
July 2017