We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Julie Weilbacher a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Julie, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

When my Dad was in college in the 1950s, he had a roommate who made mosaic art as a hobby. That roommate kept pushing (encouraging) my Dad to give it a try. My Dad was studying science in college, not art. But he finally caved in and learned the mosaic process, and enjoyed it! His first piece was a mid-century modern coffee table inspired by the front cover of Scientific American magazine.

I was lucky enough to grow up with my Dad’s mosaic art in our home. He made a handful of pieces like tables, coasters, and small dresser trays. I was always intrigued by the materials, colors, and construction of his pieces.

Fast forward to when I was in my 20s, and a friend asked if I was interested in taking a mosaics class with her. I jumped at the opportunity. At the time I was happily working full-time in magazine publishing and just wanted a hobby. It was during the first night of tiling in that class that I became hooked on mosaics.

I continued my mosaic making after that 4-week class ended. I started sourcing materials, getting more comfortable with the cutting tools, and experimenting with grouting.

I drove 70 miles a day to and from my daytime job, and yet, no matter how tired I was at the end of the day, I couldn’t wait to get home and work on my current mosaic project. Sometimes those tiling sessions went into the early morning hours, and I didn’t care. I was definitely burning my candle at both ends.

It was around this time in 1998 — while I was still working in publishing — where I got more serious about my mosaic art. At this point, despite things being new and I didn’t really have a plan, I decided to take a leap and give my hobby a name, Mosaic Madness.

I loved mosaic making so much. I would dream about making mosaics. While in meetings at my day job I would doodle potential mosaic designs. And I did more to inspire my creative mind — attend more live music events, go on trips, visit museums, and look through publications that inspired me.

At this time I also shared my new hobby with friends. They purchased my art, commissioned pieces, and some even hired me to teach them how to make mosaics. I exhibited my work in art shows which helped create a mailing list of potential customers and students.

I also started teaching private lessons, was hired for bridal and baby showers, birthday parties, and I hosted workshops where I could teach the art of mosaics. I was juggling all of this while still working at my magazine job.

A friend created a website for me which — at that time was considered a bit of a luxury to business owners. My website caught the attention of an editor at The Knot Wedding Pages magazine. They requested a few pieces of my mosaic art to be included in a couple issues. That was definitely my first big moment. The internet in the early 2000s wasn’t what it is today so I was thrilled my website was working for my business.

It wasn’t until maybe six to nine months after the September 11th terrorist attacks that my mind started to change about my purpose in life and what I was doing for a living. I loved magazine publishing, but our business had to pivot significantly since we produced travel-based magazines. Understandably, no one had been interested in traveling for a while after the attacks.

I started to reverse-engineer my ‘retirement’ from publishing. My love of mosaic art was so great, and I wanted to see if I could make a go at doing mosaic art full-time. I was in my early 30s, and I didn’t want to live with the woulda, coulda, shoulda regrets. It was hard leaving publishing, but things in our industry and the world had changed drastically. It was all I had ever done in my professional career since graduating from college. Each magazine I worked on was like a piece of me, but little by little I started to pull my emotional connection from the projects and kept my eye on the ‘doing mosaics full-time’ prize. I left my job in 2005 once the last group of magazines was completed.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Julie Weilbacher and I live in Miami, Florida. I enjoy taking care of my orchids and hydrangeas, drinking chai lattes, watching sporting events, traveling, listening to live music, and enjoying good food. When I was little, I wanted to be a professional race car driver. I live with my husband and son.

I initially learned how to make mosaic art as a hobby, then it became a side hustle, and now it’s been my full-time job since 2005. Just as my relationship with mosaic art has changed, so has the type of mosaic art that I create.

I started by making mosaic art using tiles I hand-painted in a beginner mosaics class. Then I discovered plates, bowls, and cups which is piqueassiette mosaic. I visited a stained glass store and added a glass mosaic to the mix. Then I branched out more and started working with vitreous glass tile, smalti, beads, stone, glass rods, murrini, millefiori, recycled glass tile, and found objects.

I create mosaic art to sell online, plus commissioned work for clients. Throughout the years, I’ve incorporated other mosaic-related products into my business, such as wall calendars, t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, notebooks, and notecards.

Once I had my son, I pulled back significantly on my workload and stopped teaching all together. However, in 2020, during the pandemic — as my son was a little older and at home a lot more, plus I missed the teaching aspect of mosaics — I learned how to start a YouTube channel.

The goal of the YouTube channel was to teach to a much larger audience and help them with all things mosaics, from not only tools, materials, substrates, adhesives, and grouting, but also tips, tricks, and techniques that wouldn’t be taught in a typical mosaic class, either due to time or relevance.

I’m responsible for every step in the creative process of my videos, from the idea brainstorming to the mosaic making, editing, and social sharing. I have a unique perspective of knowing how to match up what the A Roll is saying to what the B Roll is showing. I want to make sure every video is worth the viewer’s time and attention and that it’s as professional as possible, given my skill set.

I’ve created a warm and wonderful community on YouTube where I’ve gotten to know some of the viewers. They share their highs and lows in mosaic making, and I do the same. It’s been a really nice support system because we have a general idea of what each other is going through when creating mosaic art. I often get comments from folks who are so thankful for my channel and the generosity of what I share….for free! And that feels great!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Throughout the last 25+ years of making mosaic art and running a small business, I’ve learned how to put my head down and keep moving forward. I’ve experienced some things that might make someone hang-up their tile nippers and throw in the towel. For example, things like someone stealing my website, an (ex) friend who stole the original name to my business, and not getting paid by a party client.

I think the true test of resilience for me was when I had come to a point in my art and business where I was burnt out, uninspired, and bored with everything. I wasn’t sure my heart was in it anymore. This went on for a few years. I was dealing with family stuff, my father had passed away, and I was just barely hanging on to the idea that I was still enjoying mosaic making.

I needed to pivot if I was going to keep going with making mosaic art because my current system and methods were no longer fulfilling me. I decided to switch things up in my studio in hopes it would give me a fresh start. I moved everything out of my studio, got rid of stuff no longer serving me, gave the walls a fresh coat of paint, and set up my space in a totally new way.

If you ask a mosaic artist about the thought of moving out of their space they’ll grunt at you and roll their eyes. It’s an agonizing process that most mosaic artists would rather not think about. The materials we work with are heavy, and some are very fragile. You have to mentally psyche yourself up for moving everything out.

But it worked! Afterwards my space felt different, and not just refreshed. I suddenly had a sense of purpose again when I’d walk into my studio. I was back to my old mindset of taking things more seriously or intentional. My bucket was being filled by making mosaics again.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

There are a few rewards for being an artist or creative.

If I’m not working on a commissioned piece, then I can make whatever mosaic I want. How fulfilling! No rules. I can use whatever materials and substrate I want.

Also, being an artist on YouTube or any visual platform, allows me to share my knowledge with viewers and then hear how they used my information to complete their own mosaic. It’s exciting when folks fall in love with mosaic making. I remember that feeling so well and I wish that for everyone.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mosaic-madness.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julieweilbacher
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mosaicmadnessstudio
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-galvin-weilbacher-6041945/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/julieweilbacher
• Other: Etsy: https://mosaicmadness.etsy.com

Image Credits

Julie Weilbacher