Nah. We live in a mobile home. If I had a more permanent building (home or business), maybe. PS- I should add, something like that on a slightly smaller scale would make a real jim-dandy tabletop, though!
Been thinking about that for years, and even got as far as attempting some acrylic paperweights with some shark teeth and pansy flowers I picked from the flowerbed. My results weren't so great, though. I had issues with bubbling and also didn't use the right material for the molds, so part of the mold stuck to the finished product. It was a bit of a mess. There's no doubt a learning curve there, and I didn't get too far along it. But I would love to learn how to do this sort of thing, with World coins and fossils and stamps and all sorts of small treasures like that.
I rather hope that some future preservationist will treat it like they do Roman mosaics, and after it’s spent a century or three in its present location, it will be carefully moved in one piece and put in a museum. We’ll all be playing harps in the clouds by then, but we can all look down and smile, and say, “Hey! I remember that!”
Kudos to you for the patience to complete this project! i can't say I would have the same amount of patience, reverence or dedication to this project. Kudos.
@JCro57 I'm flabbergasted at the level of detail you accomplished. Your math skills are abundantly clear with this project. My question to you, as a former GC who built single family homes for many years, is this. In order to lay out a project like this you need to have consistent and precise square walls. That is not always the case in construction. Even the biggest and best homes can lay out with 1/4", 3/8" out of square walls. Did you have to do any prep work on your walls to give you the perfect palette to work on? Those small variances can easily show on a project like this. And yours looks awesome my friend. Looking forward to seeing the finished project. Are you going to run base trim to sort of picture frame around the perimeter?
I'm sure you realize the use of traditional sanded or non-sanded grout contains Portland Cement and will have a caustic and abrasive effect on the coins. I suggest making a small (2' x2') mock-up and test different methods of application on small sections. Off the top of my head, I would try coating a small section with lacquer before grouting. Another consideration is to float a slow setting epoxy if such a product is available, but in any case, test your methods before attempting to finish the floor. Good luck.
That is really nice I hope your back is feeling good. What's next, nickels in the bathroom? When we drive west on HWY-50 towards Canyon City Colorado, the Fremont County Airport has a "IN GOD WE TRUST" penny display you can see from the highway. The first photo shows the display shortly after being built. Soon after a shade cover and some benches. The second photo shows what it looks like from Google Maps. I have stopped a few times but not long enough to check the dates and such. I'm never with the right crowd when I go by. If your ever out my way let me know, we'll go check it out. .
The epoxy should protect the Integrity of their current colors for quite a long time, it's probably be good even when I sell the house in about 15 years