Local trio brings back art of ancient mosaic

KAYSVILLE — It all started because Kathy Scarbrough wanted a new table.

The Kaysville resident was looking for a mosaic table to put in her garden room. She searched around the state and in neighboring states but couldn't find anything.

Scarbrough and her daughter-in-law, Jessica Weaver, decided to take a class to learn how to work with stained glass. However, after the class, the two decided that working with stained glass was boring and wanted to bring back the art of ancient mosaic.

"I was determined to make myself a mosaic table. We learned how to work with stained glass — how to cut it properly, how to lay it," she said. "We went through four to five years of very expensive trial and error.... Every year we had a new experience in disaster."

Despite all the hardships, Scarbrough and Weaver discovered they loved this new and complicated art, and Mosaic Mayhem was born. A few years after learning how to work with stained glass, Scarbrough's daughter, Joey Phillips, expressed an interest in joining the budding business, and now all three spend hours making intricate mosaic designs for various sizes of tables.

Scarbrough has branched out from stained glass and now enjoys making masterpieces with tile instead of stained glass.

The three display their wares at various arts fairs around the valley, but the main venue where they sell is the weekly Farmers Market in Pioneer Park in Salt Lake City. They don't have a Web site and show tables only by appointment because they want to keep their business small, but they enjoy it.

"It's so fun to make them and see the reactions you get. It's a nice pat on the back," Phillips said.

Each specializes in a different style of mosaic. Weaver's specialty is intricate flowers made with 4,000 to 5,000 pieces. She enjoys working with the tiniest shards of stained glass and is very meticulous in her designs. If even one shard is out of place, she will re-do the entire design so it's up to her specifications, she said.

"I love the creating. I love the final outcome," Weaver said. "I think it's just so neat to be able to put together a beautiful picture."

Phillips likes working with the bigger, non-uniform pieces to make more colorful, striking designs. She likes to go for the unique designs like pinwheels and nautical scenes.

"It's fun to watch us grow together and cross new milestones together," Phillips said.