Fri, 17/04/2020 - 15:16
Diane Daley is the creative behind China Petals and uses old fine china cups, saucers and plates, nipping, carving and shaping them into little pieces to create new and exciting mosaics. Diane believes using fine china creates a delicate mosaic different to what people usually imagine.
"It all started one Christmas when my husband went into the attic to bring down the decorations. While he was up there he found a box of broken, chipped and unwanted bits of china, mainly Royal Albert. 'Do something with it or throw it away' he said. It was no good to use but I couldn't bear to throw it away because it was so pretty. I racked my brains, searched the internet and mosaic was my answer. The first thing I created was a large jewellery box decorated with mosaic flowers made from the Royal Albert china I had hidden away. I gave this to my mum for Christmas that year and made a few hanging hearts to give away as gifts. People loved what I was doing so I did more and more and honed my skills to what they are today."
Diane specialises in creating personal keepsakes using clients own china, giving new life to the old and broken, letting precious memories live on. She takes commissions creating special mosaics for anniversaries, birthdays and weddings (check out her mosaic shoes). "Making something that has special meaning to someone else is an honour and I feel it a great privilege when asked to do so" says Diane.
"Fine china can be so beautiful I love to see what I can create from it, however I do not hold an unlimited supply of any colour or pattern and have to think creatively to make most of what I have". This means that all Diane's pieces are unique whether its the china she uses or the design itself.
Diane already holds regular china mosaic workshops around the county and is looking forward to offering a variety of mosaic workshops at her studio at Banks Mill later in 2020. Diane has also recently launched her mosaic kits which contain everything needed to create your own shaped coaster at home, these can be brought from her shop and posted out to you.
See more of Diane's work, including commissions and workshop information on her China Petals website and follow her on her social channels: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest