How to Make a Mosaic Tile Table Design

Materials and Tools:

marker
3-4 colors of shiny wall tiles
hammer
cloth to wrap tiles
mastic adhesive
grout
grout float
grout sealant
table or other surface to mosaic

Steps:

1. Start by sketching a design for the table on a piece of paper. Using a marker, transfer the design to the tabletop (or other surface, or a piece of wood that will become the base for the mosaic design).

2. Decide on the general color scheme, using about three or four different colors: one background color and some accent colors. Buy shiny wall tiles that are either 3" x 3" or 6" x 6."

3. Take one tile at a time and wrap it in cloth. (Note: It's important to wrap the tiles in cloth and/or wear safety glasses. The broken tiles in the photo aren't wrapped so they can be visible for instructional purposes.) Using a regular hammer, break the tile. Be careful about how hard you hit the tile, because it's easy to damage the glaze.

4. Look for tiles that match the outline of the sketch, so you can actually "draw" the outline of the sketch on the tabletop using the small tile pieces. Attach the pieces one at a time using tile adhesive (mastic). Mastic adhesive is pre-mixed and comes in a bucket.

5. Fill in the design with other tiles pieces, breaking tiles along the way.

6. Fill in all the gaps using grout and a grout float. Wipe off the excess with a sponge. It takes about a day for the grout to dry.

7. Finish the mosaic by applying a wipe-on sealant.