Weekend Mosaic Workshop: SMALTI / Mixed Media

Learn more at OzMosaics! Using Italian hammer and hardies, Leponitt tools, shape smalti, pebbles, and more!



2 x 8 hours Class size 1 to 6 guests    

  $325 (Afterpay available)

Create a Bluebird of Mosaic Happiness
Advanced Smalti Mosaic Weekend Workshop | OzMosaics Studio, Brisbane
Soar into advanced mosaic artistry in this two-day hands-on workshop, where you'll craft a shimmering Bluebird of Mosaic Happiness using traditional and modern mosaic techniques. Guided by acclaimed mosaic artist Sandy Robertson, you’ll work with Dynasty and Orsoni smalti, slate, stone, mirror, tinted thinsets, and more to create a truly unique mosaic mobile.
And while it’s called the Bluebird of Happiness—you may fall in love with a palette of serene blues, lemony yellows, or jade greens. Whether your bird hums with harmony or glows with a hint of somewhere over the rainbow, let your instincts take flight and your creativity lead the way.
And the background? That’s all you. Keep it timeless with a classical stone setting adorned with hints of mirror and gold—or go wild with rainforest vibes, layering mixed media textures and even a few 3D leaves reaching beyond the frame for an immersive effect. Let your mosaic tell a story only you can imagine.
What you'll create and learn:
Design and build a one-of-a-kind mosaic bluebird using rich and varied materials
Master andamento—the elegant flow of mosaic lines—and build confidence with the Italian hammer and hardie
Explore push-in and tinted thinset techniques that add dimension and personality to your work
Learn professional layout, shaping, and adhesive methods for both traditional and modern mosaics
Receive inspiration and ideas for optional mirror additions and creative finishing touches
Complete the back of your mosaic leaf at home after the adhesive fully cures (with full instructions provided)
Bonus: Mosaic Goddess Portrait Sampler You’ll also receive a beautifully drawn Mosaic Goddess Portrait pattern to take home. In class, you'll craft expressive samplers of the Goddess’s eye and lips using smalti and hand-formed tinted thinset—an inspiring introduction to portraiture. The techniques you develop on your bluebird will give you the skills and confidence to complete your Goddess or similar projects at home. Substrates, adhesives, and materials are available to purchase from the studio for anyone wishing to bring their portrait to life.
Extra take-home goodies: You’ll also receive supplementary opus and andamento design patterns—perfect companions for future creative explorations.
Who this is for: This is an advanced-level workshop, ideal for students who have completed the OzMosaics Beginner Workshop or are comfortable with foundational mosaic techniques, including the Mosaic Mesh Method.
Location: OzMosaics Studio, 492 Cavendish Road, Coorparoo QLD ⏱ Duration: Two full days Level: Advanced
Why you’ll love it: Sandy’s workshops are a joyful blend of technical expertise and creative freedom. With decades of experience and a vibrant, fully equipped studio, she provides a nurturing space where ideas fly and mosaics come to life. You’ll leave with finished work, fresh skills, and the spark to keep creating long after the weekend wraps.
What you'll get
All materials, loaner tools, opportunity to shop at OzMosaics mosaic studio store, basic notes, comfortable workspace, and tons of mosaic tips and inspiration.
Read more details   
Knowledge required
Book in after completing any previous OzMosaics Beginner Class A.
OzMosaics Beginner class provides the skills and knowledge needed to move into this busy weekend mosaic workshop. Book into the 1 day beginner class before this workshop.
NOTE: This workshop is an advanced workshop and is busy from start to finish the entire weekend.
Please be prepared for standing a grouting and cutting bench and sitting at a desk over the weekend. The studio floor is concrete pavers so wear comfy jogger style shoes.
Students will use hammer and hardies, hammers, Leponitt nippers, tile nippers, tile files etc. and mix adhesives. Materials are smalti, stone, glass tiles, crockery etc so students need the dexterity to shape these materials with the mosaic tools.
We do our utmost to provide a fun, friendly and relaxed atmosphere whilse being wildly creative!
What to bring
Own lunch (sandwich, something simple), labelled water bottle. More info provided on booking.
Session repeats

This class series runs over 2 consecutive days.

Location

Studio OzMosaics - 492 Cavendish Rd, Coorparoo QLD

Weekend Mosaic Workshop: SMALTI / Mixed Media location
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Recent reviews of Weekend Mosaic Workshop: SMALTI / Mixed Media

  • 5/5 from Kerrie Drake, attended Oct 2025: Sandy is a unique teacher and woman. Her offering of learning about smalti and mosaics is unlimited. Sandy constantly gives encouragement and praise to the work ai did. There is endless learning about mosaics and I am so blessed to have the opportunity to be a student of Sandy. I believe I have top the benchmark having Sandy as my expert teacher. Thank you Sandy
  • 5/5 from Kerrie Drake, attended Jun 2025: The smalti workshop was fantastic. I learnt to overcome my apprehensions of ‘hammer and hardy’ with Sandy’s caring, gentle approach of encouragement and outstanding skills. The amount of information and techniques Sandy provided to the class was a gift. Sandy’s years of experience and experimentation to perfect unique and brilliant works of mosaic art is priceless. I can’t wait for the next class and workshops. I’m so fortunate to have the opportunity of learning state of the art mosaics with Sandy.
  • 5/5 from Janet Fairweather, attended Jun 2025: Blue Birds of happiness & stunning goddesses filled my dreams after this fantastic workshop weekend at OzMosaics. Comfortable, well equipped workspaces, thoughtfully prepared for efficient use of time with the effervescent & vastly knowledgeable teacher Sandy. I am most grateful for the sharing of knowledge, generosity & laughs, what a fun weekend.
  • 5/5 from Ann Smith, attended Mar 2025: Thankyou Sandy for providing a fun filled weekend of learning and creating. I feel so much more confident with cutting and shaping tesserae and can only be inspired by all that you have achieved over many decades in your industry (passion). I look forward to being a part of another creative session and showing you my progress in this wonderful artform.
  • 5/5 from Fran Washington, attended Sep 2024: I did the advanced smalti workshop over a weekend. Sandy was absolutely brilliant. Her knowledge on this topic and all mosaics is outstanding. The venue was great and everywhere you looked there was mosaics and everything you could ever need for mosaics. A folder was offered with so much information supplied. Extremely good value and I cannot recommend this workshop enough or any that Sandy presents. Her expertise, patience and willingness to share was well beyond expectation.
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OzMosaics
OzMosaics

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Do you want to make beautiful mosaics for your home, business, community or garden?
OzMosaics provides a creative workshop studio for beginners to advanced students at Coorparoo Brisbane Queensland Australia.
Select a workshop suitable for beginners to advanced students.
Sandy Robertson has been creating and teaching the art of mosaics for over 20 years.
Everything you need to know!
OzMosaics also stocks everything you need to make mosaics.
Book a workshop and begin your creative mosaic journey.
Gain mosaic skills to make birdbaths, mosaic murals, traditional to modern mosaic styles and techniques.
2026-10-23 15:00:00
class 0 V48I01Z33L 34c052b7f77f35dccea660a6ce51910d 1 production brisbane Brisbane QLD AU brisbane