Category Archives: Crafts

Making Memories

Crafts, Crafts for Kids, Easy To Do Crafts, family, Fun, Happy Valentines Day, hobbies, Mosaic Tile, mosaic tile classes,found object art, Mosaic Tile Parties, recycled craft ideas, recycled crafts, , , , , ,

mdf heartWhile dusting … for a change … I noticed all of the handmade gifts that we still have out in the open.

Some treasures are tough to hide away.

I love the feeling I get when I look at them, remembering the day they were given to me. Warms my heart.

If you haven’t done an art project with the kids lately … you should.  Take an hour and help them create something handmade for someone they love this Valentine’s Day. You still have time!

We’re going to be making Mosaic Tile Valentine Hearts today with wood heart shapes and heart picture frames.

Always excited to see where it goes!

Have a great day.


Mosaic Tile Garden

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terracotta pot crafts

Pieces won't lie flat? Cut them smaller.

What are you going to do with all of those terracotta pots that you have laying around?

It only takes a few hours to create a single mosaic tile flower pot or … go nuts and mosaic tile a bunch of clay pots to create a mosaic tile totem pole for the garden.

Terracotta and clay objects offer a wide variety of shapes and sizes to create amazing mosaics!

PREPARATION IS EVERYTHING!


  • Before gluing, clean the pots out with soap and water. Let them dry.
  • Seal the inside and outside of the pot with a water-based polyurethane … or a couple of coats of Weldbond adhesive. Let it dry between coats and make sure the piece is completely dry before tiling. If you don’t seal it it will eventually start falling apart.
  • Use the proper adhesive — waterproof/weatherproof mastic or silicone.
  • Grout with a sanded grout that is mix with a grout additive (instead of water) for flexibility.
  • Seal the grout with grout sealer, once it’s dry.
  • Reseal the outside of the piece with grout sealer, once a year,  especially if the piece is exposed to the elements or water.

Totem Pole

# of pots to use ... 5/6/7 ? Think weight!

Mosaic Tile Totem Pole Instructions

  1. Prepare clay pots with similar size drainage holes.
  2. Glue mosaic tile materials to pots. Let dry.
  3. Grout mosaic tile pots. Let dry.
  4. Seal pots with grout sealer. Let dry.
  5. Glue clay pots together as shown. (May need to insert the pole first)
  6. Glue the stacked pots to the bottom of the saucer to protect the bottom pot.
  7. Insert a piece of re-bar or heavy pole into the holes of the pots. If you haven’t already.
  8. Secure pole with … well … It’s a MacGyver thing.
  9. Stick in garden.
  10. Bring in when cold weather hits.

mosaic tile store

The Trill of the Hunt

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Mosaictileproject

It doesn’t take an enormous amount of material, to complete a personal mosaic tile project. 

Just gather some vintage china, a couple of pounds of tile, or glass, and a few odds and ends.

You’ll need  mosaic tile tools, a base to glue the materials to and the proper adhesive for the job.

Approximate number of tiles needed to cover 1 square foot

  • 225 – 3/4″ Tiles
  • 729 – 3/8″ Tiles
  • 400 – 5/8″ Tiles
  • 144 – 1″ Tiles

Approximate Number of Tiles by the Pound

As tile weight varies by style & color … there may be more or less per bag.

1″ inch Sheet Tile

144 tiles per sheet 12″x12″

3/4″ inch tiles

Approx. 225 tiles to cover 1 square foot

1/2 pound bag = approx. 70 tiles

1 pound bag = approx. 140 tiles

3/8″ inch tiles

Approx. 720 tiles to cover 1 square foot

1/2 pound bag = approx. 300 tiles

1 pound bag = approx. 600 tiles

5/8″ inch tiles

Approx. 400 tile to cover 1 square foot

Vintage China · Gems · Bits & Pieces

Quantity of materials will vary depending on the weight

We Hand Cut Vintage China & Stained Glass • $5 per pound

mosaic tile jug

Just Glue It!

The Games People Play

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Man Cave DecorWhen I created this piece, I envisioned guys in a basement (Man Cave) throwing darts.  

Maybe that explains the finger hooks:-)

Strange how found objects make you feel.

This one wound up with …

  • Magnetic mosaic tiled chalkboard boasting funky finger hooks, off beat bottle caps, domino’s, dice dishes and a vintage Coke glass
    Perfect for a game room or kitchen. 29″ high x 19″ wide
  • Ready to hang

Hope it warms up soon!

Have a great day.  – Mara

FYI … you can save on shipping, if you live in or around the Twin Cities Metro Area. Just contact us to arrange pick up.

Man Cave

A Grout of a Different Color

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Mosaic Tile and Recycled Art

One of the more frequently asked questions is how to create custom grout colors. If you step into a home improvement store or tile shop, you can find grout in bright white, shades of gray, brown, beige, sandstone and black. Sometimes you can find a cool blue or green grout, but it’s not often.

I’ve used acrylic paint to change grout color but wasn’t happy with the shiny bubble gum look you get after the grout dries.

Grout pigments … or grout colorants are very easy to use in creating custom grout colors.

Bright Blue Grout
Brown Grout Pigment
Grassy Green Grout Pigment
Plum Grout Pigment
Red Rose Grout Pigment
Sandstone Grout Pigment
Terr Cotta Grout Pigment
Yellow Grout Pigment

Grout pigments are highly concentrated and small amounts should be added incrementally until the desired color intensity is reached. Important note! Make sure to mix all of the custom grout color needed to complete a project to ensure color matching.

We just replenished our stock of our highly concentrated grout pigments. These pigments are specially formulated for use with mosaic tile grout (both sanded or non sanded), and indoor/outdoor cements.

FYI … I prefer sanded grout in most of my projects.

Good rule of thumb is …

  • Sanded grout is best used for tile projects with 1/8-inch or larger gaps
  • Un-sanded grout is suggested for gaps smaller than 1/8 inch

Grout Pigment Directions:

  • Use one teaspoon of dry colorant for every 8 ounces of dry mix.
  • Dissolve pigment in pre-measured water (or grout additive) before mixing with dry grout.

A single 3 oz. bottle ($4.99 each) will color approximately 36 mosaic coasters,

or up to 100 cups of outdoor cement.

In the Twin Cities Metro Area? Contact us to arrange pickup to save on shipping.

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Promised To Post A Project

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Taking a u-turn

Taking a U-Turn

Instead, I’m going to finish the things on my list and we can talk about it in the morning.

Don’t you just love Fridays?!

I do.

Have a good one;)

When Life Smashes Things To Bits

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You can glue it back together to make something beautiful with the pieces!

CLICK HERE Back in stock!

Iridescent Stained Glass Tiles are authentic stained glass with a lustrous rainbow-like play of color that changes as the angle of view changes.

Use whole or cut with a Wheeled Tile Nipper. Apply a small amount of glue to the back of each piece and it will stick to any clean (dry) surface. Each piece is approx. – .75 in x .75 in x .125 inches

3/4″ Glass squares are hand-cut … which means the stained glass tile pieces are random in nature and are not perfectly squared. (with the exception of the white iridescent tile which has a clean beveled edge)

Cost: $12.00 per pound + shipping / Live in the Twin Cities Metro Area? Contact us to arrange pickup and save on shipping!

Black Iridescent Tile
Blue Iridescent Mosaic Tile
Green Iridescent Mosaic Tile
White Iridescent Mosaic Tile
Pink Iridescent Mosaic Tile
Red Iridescent Tile

FAQ: How much mosaic tile do I need?

Rule of thumb …  it takes 218 uncut -  3/4″ inch glass mosaic tiles to cover 1 square foot. That’s factoring in a grout line that is approximately 1/16″ inch. If you cut the tile, or add bits and pieces to your project,  you won’t need as much tile as you think.

1/2 lb. bag of 3/4″ tiles holds approximately 72 tiles.
1 lb. bag of 3/4″ tiles holds approximately 145 tiles.

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In progress…watch for NEW things coming soon!