Making a Mosaic Table

Mosaics are very easy to do, creative and fun. Few tools are necessary and for the most part the craft itself is pretty inexpensive. I warn you now.........it's addictive.

You can use:

• broken plates
  
• glass


• broken tiles
  
• beads
  
• pieces of metal, copper, silver or brass

You can make a completely random design or plan it out by drawing it out first. You basically need a surface to work on, usually something rigid and free of dirt or grime. Examples: clay pots, wood (seal it first), a cement slab, glass or even ceramic.

Tools and supplies:

• Welbond is a great adhesive that most professionals use. The craft stores also carry tile adhesive especially made for mosaics. I've also used Elmers white glue and that worked fine for me.
  
• Tile nippers. You can find these at Home Depot, Lowe's or craft stores like JoAnn's & Michael's.
  
• Your broken tile or glass. I'm lucky in that I have tons of glass at home that I cut myself into any shape. I checked on Ebay and many people sell little glass squares of glass by the pound. They seem to run about $10.00 and up for a pound or two. You can also get an old thrift store plate, a towel and a hammer. Place your towel over the plate and smash away. This technique can also be used with tiles.
  


• Grout- I buy in the home improvement store. It comes in many colors so take your pick.

The way that I create a mosaic is to place a drop of glue on my surface then place my glass or tile square onto it. When my entire piece is all dry I then grout my entire piece.


This piece I recently finished for my good friend for her birthday. I thought she would like this to put out on her porch. The design is totally random. I placed the flower pieces in the middle and just randomly placed the rest of the glass tile around until I came to the end where I placed a border.

I decided to make a table in this case so before applying any tile I sprayed the pine with a sealer first. I learned this lesson years ago after making a larger table mosaic. A few days after it was completed it warped like a potato chip. Apparently the water that was in the grout absorbed into the wood. You live and learn..............................