If you have recently done renovations in your apartment or house, then you may have leftovers building materials. There is no need to rush and part with them - sometimes they can do a good job.
First of all, this applies to tiles and tiles - defective and damaged material can be turned into small pieces, from which a good mosaic is created.
This is a great way to update the design of your home or garden. It turns out that everything is very simple!
As you know, specialized mosaics in construction hypermarkets cost a lot of money, but absolutely anyone can make it with their own hands.
In the end, we will get an excellent mosaic design, which can save the lion's share of your renovation budget.
Where is the best place to use mosaic?
An old shoe table can be easily converted into a creative stand for your favorite plants, and an unsightly tabletop into a work of art.
If you have a summer house, you can use broken tiles in a completely different way, for example, the design of a path on personal plot, or decorating the floor in the shower room or decorative pond, or a fountain.
Mosaic can also be used in completely different directions.
Wall panels are a great example of quality ideas and design. The panel will look perfect in many interiors. Or an apron made of mosaic in the kitchen, or an entire wall in the bathroom.
How to make tile pieces yourself?
Of course, if after renovation you have some broken tiles and you don’t want to spend such valuable hours splitting them, you can use it. Not very nice and neat, but it saves time. In addition, all the mosaic pieces will be as natural as possible.
However, many people want beauty and grace. You should cut or break the tiles with your own hands into pieces of the required size, which are ideal for the future design.
The tiles should be cut with a tile cutter, or use a regular hammer.
The tile cutter requires special care when working so as not to cause irreparable damage to the tile pieces.
If you want to use a hammer, you need to prepare a rag in advance in which you will wrap the tiles. This is necessary so that the fragments remain on the rag and not on the floor throughout the room.
Let's move on to the mosaic installation process itself.
There are only 2 ways to lay mosaics from broken tiles:
- clear laying according to the design or sketch;
- random laying.
Clear work is difficult because you have to stick to a clear drawing and constantly check the source. The patterns should be as even and correct as possible, not to mention the selection of colors.
For convenience, the drawing is first created on paper and then transferred to the desired surface (this can be anything from a wall to decorative tables).
The installation of the mosaic is done very carefully.
The last method is a little simpler than the first - the pieces of material are attached absolutely randomly. This is where your imagination can run wild. Fit any broken tile? Why not. If only it seemed that this picture was one whole.
But you still have to adhere to these rules:
This fact depends on how the coating is prepared for the work, and undoubtedly on the size and thickness of the tiles. Glue can be used to further level the tiles in height. Otherwise, the grout can render the mosaic unusable.
What tools are best to take?
- tiles or tiles;
- tile adhesive mortar;
- grout;
- fine-tooth spatula;
- rubber hammer;
- primer and plaster;
- consumables of your choice (rags, paper, writing instrument).
- It is best to use specialized adhesive composition. You can easily find it in all construction hypermarkets.
- Practice laying on a test surface. A little practice is the key to success!
- Don’t be lazy and carefully level the surface on which you plan to install.
- Grout the seams without fail.
Conclusion on the topic
At first glance, everything is very simple.
But it turns out that creating a mosaic from broken tiles is a very painstaking and time-consuming task.
The main thing is a little patience and you will succeed.
Mosaic leaves few people indifferent. These small, inconspicuous pieces, practically waste, but collected by the talented hand of a master into simple pictures, sometimes become real masterpieces. There are ready-made factory mosaics on sale, but why spend money if you can realize your own idea from scrap materials that you don’t even dare throw away. Therefore, it’s worth a try, because a do-it-yourself mosaic will not only decorate your interior, but will also reveal your creative abilities and flights of fancy.
You can use any items for your home composition. A mosaic made of tiles, broken dishes and bottles, and sea pebbles looks very cool. Sometimes wood chips are added to the panel.
Laying mosaic panels consists of several stages:
- procurement of materials;
- preparation of the base;
- development and sketching;
- laying mosaics;
- seam processing.
Procurement of necessary materials
If you have recently done renovations, then there are probably some pieces of tile left that can be used for mosaic panel. If there is nothing like that, then you can ask around in construction or hardware stores to see if they have unnecessary broken tiles or dishes that can be purchased for next to nothing.
Perhaps your friends or relatives are going to get rid of construction waste. Don't let them do this, and you will have a real treasure in your hands, which will turn into a masterpiece in the near future. Try to diversify your assortment and collect multi-colored raw materials so that the picture does not turn out boring and monochromatic. Of course, it’s better to know in advance what exactly you want to fold in order to collect raw materials for a specific design.
A mosaic of broken tiles is made up in small pieces different sizes.
Often, rectangular pieces are used to create a picture, so some part of the tile will need to be cut using a glass cutter or a professional tile cutter. If your passion for mosaics eventually develops into a permanent activity, then it is better to stock up on inexpensive tools. In this work there is no need for even edges, so you don’t need to achieve high precision. The bulk of the tiles are prepared very simply - broken with a hammer. Both the tile and the hammer must first be wrapped in a thick rag so that the pieces are not too crumbled.
The pieces will be different sizes, but this is exactly what you need to get the job done. And in general, you shouldn’t throw anything away, just put all the existing battle in some secluded corner, perhaps it will one day turn into a painting of the author’s work.
If the resulting pieces do not fit into the format, no problem, you can adjust the size with tile cutters.
Preparing the base for installation
Mosaic panels adhere best to cement-sand screeds, plaster, putty or drywall. They have excellent adhesion, so the ceramics are held tightly to the glue. Important condition- a clean and smooth surface, without irregularities and cracks, treated with a primer to strengthen and enhance adhesion.
Sketch development
Even if you are an artist at heart and have a clear idea of the future picture, it is still better to work according to a guideline. And if you are doing mosaics for the first time and doubt your talents, then without a preliminary drawing you will not be able to cope with the task, especially if it is quite complex. Therefore, we arm ourselves with a pencil and begin to apply contours, proportions, shapes to the surface, in accordance with the dimensions. The sketch can be drawn using the grid method or a projector.
Then we move on to planning the color scheme and dividing the drawing into conditional zones based on tones. The main thing is to decide how to make a mosaic in accordance with the diagram so that the process is optimal.
There are certain rules that will make it easier to work on laying mosaics:
- You need to start work from the central part in order to get the desired proportions and maximum proximity to the sketch.
- The background is laid out at the final stage.
- Abstraction is also added at the end, complex geometric objects are immediately laid out, which are the center of the composition - figures of people, animals, trees, flowers, etc.
Glue selection
To lay the pieces efficiently and reliably, you need to choose the right glue.
The main criterion for selecting a mixture is high adhesion to the materials used.
The best option is white glue. Gray in this case is not suitable for reasons of aesthetics. If the drawing is laid out on a regular concrete base, then it’s better to work with whites cement adhesives— , Kreps Reinforced White. If installation is planned on a non-standard base, for example wooden, then preference should be given to reactive adhesive for tiles with an epoxy base - Litokol Litoelastic, liquid nails or epoxy grout.
Mosaic laying
If you have pieces of material with different thicknesses, take the thickest one first. This will be the guideline for installation.
Both the surface and the tile itself should be covered with glue, but on one of the surfaces it should be lightly spread so that the thickness of the layer does not increase and the strength of the installation is not affected.
We begin to apply glue to a small part of the area, in separate fragments. If the pattern in this place is not complex, you can capture a larger area; if it is complex, then start working on a small area. The glue should be applied to the base with a simple smooth spatula, and then the excess should be removed with a comb. If the material has the same thickness, then installation will not be difficult. The laying of heterogeneous pieces is regulated by the thickness of the glue. But even pieces of the same thickness lay differently, because they have different sizes, so they require different efforts to glue.
Small pieces have every chance of “drowning” in the tile adhesive, so for them the layer should be thicker. Using a comb is not a panacea, everyone separate fragment needs to be adjusted individually.
A mosaic panel made of broken tiles laid on the wall does not have to be flat, it all depends on personal preferences. In addition to pieces of tile, the composition can be supplemented with a wide variety of objects that are in harmony with the overall idea. Floor mosaic is a separate matter; it naturally must be level so that when walking it does not get caught on bulges and unevenness of its surface. Perfect flat surface Mosaics are quite difficult to obtain.
In this case, you can use wood, plastic or metal sheets, with which ready-made sections are pressed and leveled to the desired plane. Stock up on sheets of different sizes, because for areas of different sizes you need to use a sheet of appropriate size.
Mosaic pictures made from broken tiles are laid out with gaps. The tiles should not be closely adjacent to one another. It is not easy to accurately adjust the fragments, and it is not necessary - the canvas can be damaged during operation.
Thanks to the seams, the installation does not suffer from thermal expansion of the material, which is inevitable with temperature fluctuations. Very large gaps are also impractical, because the resulting picture may turn out ugly. You should not lay pieces of the same shape and size, but the effect of too different formats will not be very good, so the main rule is to adhere to the golden mean and a sense of proportion.
Finishing work on countertops
We clean the wooden tabletop from the paint layer using the usual acetone or special products. After this, the surface is cleaned using sandpaper: first time coarse, second time fine grinding. These actions will significantly increase adhesion, so we do not begin installation work without them.
Don't know how? Follow the diagram and everything will work out for you:
- We start laying from the edge, moving towards the central part of the tabletop.
- The compaction should be to the maximum.
- Excess glue is removed immediately during the work process, because due to the high density of the seams, there will be a great many, and it will take a lot of time to clean them all at the end of the work.
Check out the video tutorial on laying mosaics on a countertop:
Seam processing
You need to grout all types of mosaics, starting this work 24 hours after installation, which should dry evenly. If the room is too hot, then the panel needs to be covered with something wet. Before grouting, the mosaic must be cleaned of glue residues and wiped with a damp sponge or rag. We perform jointing rubber spatula. The perfect solution for - Litochrom Starlike Crystal. This grout has an epoxy base and a chameleon effect, so it will change color depending on the color of each fragment. It is better not to use a cement mixture, it is not so strong and can crumble.
The grout is pressed very tightly into the seams between the mosaic elements using a rubber float. Excess mass is removed with a simple foam sponge soaked in water. In order to wash off the epoxy mixture, you will need a lot of water, and to remove plaque you will need special detergents Litonet gel, Sopro ESE 548.
So we taught you how to make a mosaic at home. We are sure that now you will succeed. Learn to constantly care for your masterpiece using products with low acidity. After each use special means, the mosaic should be wiped with plain water.
Mosaic is a creative process, so use your imagination, select a wide variety of elements and colors, and the result will exceed even your wildest expectations.
Garden path design with broken tile mosaic
Mosaic pavement of paths garden plot can be made from broken tiles. It may seem that laying broken pieces of tiles is done as expected, but in fact it is done according to certain rules that ensure the symmetry and strength of the garden path.
Principles of laying mosaics from broken tiles
To lay out the outer edge of the path, large pieces of broken tiles are used, which must have at least one straight edge.
Pieces various shapes laid out in the center of the path.
Shards irregular shape used to fill voids between laid out elements.
The covering of such a path depends on the source material and the imagination of the paver.
Broken tile mosaic
Here interesting example paths with a mosaic of broken tiles - with cheerful inserts: bat and a frog.
The process of laying a mosaic garden path
Before laying, you need to select and sort the pieces of tiles by size, shape and color if you plan to lay the path in a certain color scheme. The sorted pieces should be placed near the installation site so that what is needed is at hand.
Bright paths - mosaic of broken tiles
Now you need to make a base for this track. Filming upper layer turf and compact the bottom of the trench. If the soil is very loose, then it should be removed and filled with a 10 cm layer of greasy clay and compacted thoroughly.
Pour a layer of sand 5 cm thick, level the surface and compact it. After this, they begin to lay out the tiles, having previously stretched them the right level marking cord.
Existing tiles with straight edges are laid dry along the perimeter of the path along the cord. Next, you should mix a little cement mortar, lift the first tile, put the mortar under it and press the tile by rotating it.
You need to make sure that it fits well and only then begin laying the next tiles, checking the horizontalness each time. Or you should check the slope of the path if it has one.
Mosaic made of broken tiles - patio at the dacha
Having laid the tiles around the perimeter, make the center of the path from large pieces of irregular shape, laying them directly on the sand base using the prepared mortar, removing or adding base sand if necessary.
Once you have laid all the center tiles, check the level in the center and around the perimeter. To do this, place a wooden block on the path and level the tiles by tapping them with a hammer.
Playground with mosaic made of broken tiles
The remaining free space between large pieces of tiles should be filled with small pieces of irregular shape, securing them with mortar. To do this, apply mortar to the bottom of the tile with a trowel and lay it on the base.
Scheme for laying mosaics from broken tiles
In order to level the path surface after laying small fragments, you should use wooden block and a hammer. The joints formed between the tiles should be filled with liquid cement mortar, which will ensure the strength of the coating. In order to prevent rainwater from retaining on the path when jointing, small holes need to be made.
You can achieve a decorative effect when laying out a mosaic path if you skillfully combine various ways styling and various materials.
Mosaic tiles for garden paths
Nowadays it is very popular to lay out a mosaic path using thick colored glass. Some people will want to get a track similar to patchwork quilt, using the most unusual and vibrant materials. Then feel free to combine colored glass, a natural stone and tiles.
In any version, the path can become a decoration of the garden and the pride of the owners. But do not overuse the number of combined surfaces, the intricacy of the pattern and the number of colors.
Better to use it skillfully different texture surfaces, not color contrasts in the material. Sometimes variegation is appropriate, for example, among a green lawn or on the path leading to the playground.
Path from decorative slabs and large natural stones can be laid along the bank of an artificial stream, then its bed will set the direction of the path.
Mosaic coating does not have to be expensive. Here you can combine red brick, cobblestone, concrete, wooden cuts. The mosaic path should be arranged and designed in accordance with the available material suitable for covering.
Example of round mosaic slabs
The main disadvantage of mosaic coating with various materials- this is the difficulty of caring for the path. In winter, the surfaces will need to be cleared of ice, or in the fall all paths will need to be covered from water with a layer of polyethylene.
Mosaic of broken tiles in garden paths by Antonina Romanyuk
I have always been impressed by those people who, working on their land, transform and decorate the space. How long have I been walking? summer cottages, I always pay attention to those of them where the handwriting of a passionate person is visible.
Antonina and I contacted each other after she commented on my post with a mosaic made of broken tiles, saying that she was also creating paths from this waste material. We talked and Antonina sent me her short story with photographs. Let's admire the author's tracks!
Below is Antonina's text:
We bought a house four years ago. At first, they grabbed their heads: the area was unkempt, the grass was waist-deep, the trees were in disrepair. But the eyes are afraid, but the hands do.
True, we had to take into account our modest capabilities, since we are, after all, although young, but pensioners.
Mosaic is a popular way of decorating household items and interior decoration. Despite its long history, this type of decorative and applied art does not lose its position today. And its most attractive feature is that the simplest ornamental compositions are quite accessible to create with your own hands. In this article we will tell you how to decorate your interior yourself using the stylish trencadís technique using broken tiles.
From time immemorial
The desire to decorate one’s home is typical for humans. Among the many methods, such as painting or sculpture, which require the professional abilities of an artist, there are options that are quite accessible to the amateur. One of them is mosaic.
The art of mosaic has been known as a method of decoration since ancient times. The first known examples of the use of small pieces of tiles, glass smalt or stones fixed to a base with glue to create images or ornaments are dated by archaeologists to the second half of the 4th millennium BC. The mosaic technique became most widespread in Greece and Rome, as well as in the East.
The second wave of interest in mosaics as a way of decorating objects and interiors was Art Nouveau. Mosaic, with its picturesqueness and colorfulness, fits perfectly into the decorative concept of the style.
Mosaic materials
Mosaic panels can be made from almost any material. To make mosaics, natural stone is most often used - cut into tiles or pebbles, ceramic tiles or porcelain stoneware elements, glass smalt, beads and seed beads.
The choice of elements depends on your creative idea and the purpose and operating conditions of the decorated small parts object or room. So for example, to create decorative panel In the kitchen, you can use cereals, pasta, coffee beans or spices as materials. Of course, if the surface decorated with mosaics is exposed to moisture, then pasta will not be suitable as a material.
Roman, Florentine, Byzantine
In addition to the variety of materials, there are various techniques for laying mosaics. Experts distinguish the following main types:
- Roman mosaic;
- Florentine mosaic;
- Byzantine mosaic technique.
During production mosaics in Roman technique elements of different sizes are used. Most often, these are square-shaped pieces of marble of various colors and formats. To create a more accurate contour, additional chopping of the square element is used, turning it into a trapezoid or triangle.
There are several types of Roman mosaic techniques:
- “Opus tessellatum” - elements larger than 4 mm are used.
- “Opus vermiculatum” - laid out from parts measuring less than 4 mm.
- “Opus regulatum” - masonry in a line of elements of the same size and shape, used to create geometric patterns.
- "Opus sectile" - or piece mosaic. To perform this, plates of different shapes and sizes are used, which are selected according to the drawing.
- the most labor-intensive and expensive. In it, elements are cut out from stone, wood, mother-of-pearl or other materials along the contour of the design. The individual parts are pressed tightly against each other so that the seam between the elements of the design is minimal. If the material has its own pattern or texture, such as veins of marble or wood fibers, then the parts are cut taking into account the pattern of the material so that the pattern of the material is included in the laid out image.
Similar to the Roman "Opus vermiculatum". The pattern is made up of identical small square modules made of smalt glass. High image quality was achieved through the use of very small details. In addition, the angle at which the element was glued into the base played a certain role in the decorative effect of the mosaic panel: smalt elements, glued at different angles, reflected light differently, creating additional decorative effects. The view of Byzantine mosaics was supposed to be from a great distance.
Broken tile mosaic
One of the varieties of modern mosaics is trencadís. A real masterpiece in this technique are the creations of Antonio Gaudi, as well as his student and associate, Josep Maria Huhoy. It is Gaudi who is credited with creating this colorful mosaic technique.
The trencadís broken mosaic technique dates back to Roman piece mosaics, but in modern versions it uses broken ceramic tiles, broken dishes, and fragments glass bottles. It’s quite easy to create a mosaic using the trencadís technique with your own hands: remember labor lessons in elementary school.
The simplest ornaments can be laid out without specific patterns, focusing on your own taste and sense of harmony.
Of course, to create masterpieces in the spirit of the work of Haris Cevis, a designer and artist who also uses the trencadís technique in his works, artistic abilities will be required. But even here you can “get out”: in some computer programs for image editing, for example, in PhotoShop, there is a function that allows you to automatically split the image into local color spots. Using the program settings, you can adjust the image detail. Having processed any photo in this way, you can print the image and use it as a sketch.
A sketch for a mosaic can be created from a photograph
Where can you use broken tile decor using the trencadís technique?
To decorate with broken tiles, you can use any surface: household items - garden table, flower pots, garden paths, fences. You can finish the walls and floors of a bathroom or kitchen. For kitchen apron It will be especially stylish to use a mosaic made of broken tiles with the inclusion of elements of broken dishes.
Attention! The edges of tiles or broken dishes may have sharp edges. If you plan to use the mosaic on the floor or in places that can be touched, you need to additionally sand the edges.
Select an image that suits your taste, then select elements based on color, shape and size. The mosaic can be laid using regular tile adhesive.
Advice. When using tile adhesive, do not use a large volume, because laying mosaics is a painstaking task.
After the glue has dried, the seams between the mosaic elements must be grouted using regular grout. In the video you can watch in detail the process of making panels from broken tiles.
Mosaic from broken ceramic tiles - original and stylish decor, which will decorate any interior, making it unusual and memorable. In addition, making mosaics with your own hands is a way to realize the creative potential that any person has.
Decorating a table with mosaics: video
Mosaic made of broken tiles: photo
Each person has his own approach to decorating a home: some use stained glass, some use photo wallpaper, and some gravitate towards various kinds stencils and sculptures... But of all this, the mosaic deserves more attention.
Even as a student, studying at the Faculty of Design and Architecture, I enthusiastically studied the work of the great Antonio Gaudi. It’s my dream to go to Barcelona and see his unsurpassed creations live. But absolutely anyone can create at least a small piece of furniture in his style.
Mosaic cladding- one of Gaudi’s favorite techniques. For his collages, he used fragments of dishes, ceramics, and bottles. Masterpieces were made from trash!
It was these photographs that fueled my desire to create a “piece of Barcelona” at home.
Broken ceramic tile is an excellent material for creativity. It's great for creating decorative elements both in the country house or in the house, and in the apartment.
Broken tile mosaic
This type of work does not require any special skills, but perseverance will come in handy. And if you, like me, want to try yourself in this field for the first time, then for starters it’s better to choose something not particularly grandiose. As you gain experience, you can move on to more complex fantasy decorative elements.
Editorial "So simple!" I have selected 25 great ideas for you on how to use remnants of broken tiles for home.
- What a magnificent frog! It is somewhat reminiscent of the famous Gaudi lizard from Park Güell.
- An original solution for restoring an old table. An interesting effect can be achieved by adding a layer of glass on top.
- A wonderful idea for decorating a work area in a country kitchen.
- Your breakfasts and dinners at such a table will be even tastier!
- And I just fell in love with this table!
- This is a truly unique job...
- The decor of such small architectural forms will obviously require some work, but the result is worth it!
- Path made of broken tiles- a great solution if you have recently had a renovation and have a lot of spoiled or unused material left!
- Amazing magnificence!
- You not only want to sit on such a bench, but also take a photo!
- There's something about it!
- What a wonderful fragment of a snail image made from the remains of broken tiles.
- This is the kind of garden sofa you can create if you wish. Beautiful and practical!
- Bright and unusual solution for facade country house or dachas.
- The combination of colors makes them look very stylish.
- There are simply no words... I didn’t expect such a decision!
- A very interesting and unusual technique. Inspiring!
- What a magnificent dragonfly. Just a sight for sore eyes!
- Using leftover broken tiles you can decorate almost any furniture.
- Exclusive stands for flowerpots: definitely no one has these!
- And you don’t have to invest a lot of money in buying expensive tiles for the kitchen. This is simply a wonderful solution for a kitchen apron that does not require any special expenses.
- It’s not at all difficult to create such decor, but the effect is impressive!
- A very gentle and pleasing combination of colors.
- An interesting idea plus your perseverance, and real designer item ready!
- Painstaking, but very interesting option solutions for cladding a balcony wall.
Coziness in the house is created with the help of fancy details, chosen with taste. And better yet - made with your own hands with soul and immense love for creativity. I hope these ideas have inspired you to create your own. decorative solutions for home.
