How to Mosaic a Tray

Once you've created a beginner project, like a trivet, and you are familiar with the basic mosaic steps, it's time to move on to something a little larger and more complicated--a tray. Here you will learn how to create a picture with broken tiles and how to grout an enclosed edge properly. Have fun!

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Rectangular tray
• Tile
• Towel
• Hammer
• Ceramic tile mastic/adhesive
• Plastic butter knife
• Grout
• 2 buckets
• Grout float
• Grout sponge
• Safety glasses
• Inspiration!

1. Choose a rectangular tray, not a circular one, made out of any material. Look for one with carved, raised edges and interesting handles to give your project more character. You can find these at thrift stores or choose a plain, unfinished tray from a craft store. Plan to use flat, even tiles for your first tray for easier grouting.

2. Prepare for your project by setting up your workspace and getting out all your tools and tiles. Break your tiles into small pieces by placing them upside down in a folded towel and using a hammer to smack them. Look for any pieces that are larger than 3 inches and smack them again with the hammer. Once you have all your pieces broken and sorted, you're ready to begin.

3. Learn to use your broken tiles to create a picture for this project. Think of a simple shape or design you like and draw it to size in pencil on the tray base. Some shape examples include vines and leaves, a sun, a yin-yang, a horizon line or a fish. Keep it simple for your first picture. You will place your tile edges, whether straight or curved, to follow the lines of your drawing. Think of the pencil lines as grout between tiles.

4. Adhere your placed tiles with ceramic tile mastic or adhesive. Use a plastic butter knife to apply a small amount of the mastic (about the size of a dime) to the back of each tile, then push the piece into place.

5. Mosaic the edges, but leave an 1/8-inch space between your straight edge of tiles and the sides of the tray to hold a grout line.

6. Fill in your picture with your broken tiles. Remember, mosaic is an abstract art, so don't think of it as an exact science!

7. Stand back and evaluate your project. Notice how the grout line (for now, the empty space) is what forms the picture, not the colors of the tiles. The better you get at keeping a solid grout line by choosing appropriate shapes to fill spaces and follow lines, the better your pictures will be in the future. This will be even more noticeable once your project is grouted, and you'll be able to see your progress in your next projects.

8. Tape your tray sides using blue painter's tape before you grout. Place tape at the height of the tile so you don't get grout smeared all over the exposed raised sides of your tray. Mix up your grout to the proper peanut butter consistency and grout up your tray. Use a grout float to push the grout into corners and along the straight edge, filling up the space between the tile and the side of your tray below the tape line.

Tips & Warnings

• Once you've followed the basic steps for choosing and breaking tiles, adhering them to a surface, mixing and applying grout a few times, you'll remember all these steps by heart because they apply to all mosaic projects you'll ever create.
• You can use uneven, curved tiles and other objects in subsequent tray projects, but they are harder to grout because you need to do it with your gloved hand and not a float. Also, this type of tray will only be decorative and not even enough to be useful!
• Keep lots of mosaic art books on hand for visual ideas and inspiration while learning techniques and choosing projects. You can check these out at the library or order used ones very cheaply at Amazon.
• Take your time. A picture takes longer to create than a random design because you are trying to fit specific shapes.
• Keep finger bandages on hand when working with broken tiles.