Mosaic Workshop: Create a Handmade Holiday Table Accent

Morris Arboretum & Gardens is hosting a two-session mosaic workshop at its Welcome Center in Chestnut Hill, starting Thursday, November 5. Over the two meetings, you'll design and build a one-of-a-kind mosaic centerpiece for the holiday season, working with stained glass and mosaic materials. The first session is on November 5 and the second on November 12, both from 1 PM to 3 PM. The piece cures between the two dates, so the second meeting is devoted to grouting and finishing it. All materials are provided, and the class is for ages 18 and up.

Leading the workshop is Jessica Lidell, owner of Bella Mosaic. She's an experienced mosaic artist who has taught adults and children for years and has exhibited her work in a wide range of venues. The course is built around the holiday season, and the centerpiece you make is meant to be a handmade accent for a holiday table. Between the first and second sessions, the piece sits and cures, and the second meeting is when you grout it and put the finishing touches on it.

This is part of the steady program of hands-on creative-expression classes the Morris Arboretum & Gardens runs, which has included botanical dyeing, woodburning, frame-loom weaving, and botanical printmaking, usually taught by local artists and gardeners. The mosaic workshop follows that same pattern: a local artist leading a small group through a specific project over a couple of afternoons.

The two sessions are Thursday, November 5 and Thursday, November 12, from 1 PM to 3 PM at the Welcome Center in Chestnut Hill. It's $90 for members and $100 for non-members.