Salvaged furniture and mosaics

Further on the topic of revitalising salvaged furniture are mosaic tables.
After doing a course with a wonderful lady named Sonia I created what I consider my masterpiece.
My mother had bought the table for me, sans top (it previously had glass), my husband had a metal top welded in place. All that was left was for me to mosaic the top. I procrastinated until I heard Sonia was offering a class at her house.  I must have talked about my plans for the table a lot until a friend gave me the four hand painted tiles that were to become the centrepiece. I was going to simply border them with terracotta until Sonia inspired me to be bold. I let my hair down and ended up with a result that still surprises me.

One day on my way to a cheese making course I spied an old outdoor table on the footpath waiting for the Council cleanup. New to scavenging and not entirely comfortable with it, I knocked on the door and asked the lady of the house if she minded if I took the table. She kindly said I was most welcome to.  The old timber slats were rotten and it needed a coat of paint but was otherwise in great shape.

A coat of rust kill paint later and a new plywood top made it the perfect canvas for a mosaic.  Uninspired by a design my husband suggested a map of Venice. A little bit of research later I found an antiquarian map that was perfect. On our next visit to the divine Venice my husband bought a gorgeous terracotta head of St Mark's lion which is now the centrepiece and a little plate of a key landmark.

I am very happy with my rendering of Venice and the outer isles in its lagoon. The table looks like new.

My last example is a little occasional table that would once have belonged to a nesting set such as my grandmother had.  Again scavenged off the footpath, I tired to sneak it into the boot of the car while my husband wasn't looking. Failed there but anyhow.  It was coming apart a little:

and couldn't stand upright. 

Some glue and clamps later it was easily fixed.

I made a cheerful blue and white sun pattern on top with lots of mirror to catch the light.

The Venice table and little coffee table completed.  And my salvaged rocking chair with covers made from an op shop tablecloth.