Our How to Mosaic posts are indexed alphabetically by the first letter in the title, which isn’t too helpful, and so use the Search blank at the top of the right column to find relevant posts by keyword.
Inspiring mosaic table tops with abstract geometric patterns were recently created by artist Risa Puno as part of her public ...
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We never have to worry about evaluating new adhesives in our work because we use conventional mosaic backers like plywood ...
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The primary reason for grouting tiled surfaces is to prevent water from penetrating behind the tile and weakening the adhesive ...
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Putting a mosaic on a metal mailbox is problematic because either the metal is painted and you risk the mosaic ...
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Many people are drawn to the idea of making mosaics from marble and stone, mostly because that was the material ...
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An architectural mosaic can cut someone if sharp edges are left exposed or crush someone if it's not mounted securely ...
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In my previous post, I wrote about the improvised double-reverse method one of our customers Tobin was using to lay ...
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The Mosaic Art Supply warehouse is filled with artist studios in appropriated spaces: the loading dock, the office, the reception ...
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Recently a customer emailed me asking if there was an ASTM-D4236 certification for one of our glass mosaic tile lines ...
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Outdoor mosaics must be made on concrete or stone or masonry, but that doesn't mean you have to pour a ...
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Mosaic is a great medium for beginners because it is accessible for people who don't have much confidence in their ...
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Stylized or Photorealistic? Mosaic is usually used to make stylized images, meaning images that are simplified in certain ways, and that ...
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Black grouts bring out the intensity of tile colors while white grouts overwhelm them. Natalie Knox's Day of the Dead ...
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We just added three different types of glazed porcelain tile for use as accents in mixed media mosaic art projects, ...
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People often email me asking where to get 4-inch glazed ceramic tile in a range of colors to break up ...
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Keira Miller recently made a mosaic bench in the shape of the state of California with a class of 4th, ...
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First I want to clarify that I am not talking about the invisible pore sealers that are used to seal ...
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The pattern for a mosaic is sometimes referred to as a cartoon because it is just an outline with no ...
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We have an exciting new type of tile that fills a void in our product offering and not just because ...
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Artist Betty Ackerman recently used our fire-polished millefiori (the Mud-Turtle Mosaic brand) and stained glass to make a circular mosaic ...
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The following method is only recommended for dry indoor mosaics. Artist Megan Adams recently used it to save a mosaic ...
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Tracy Kaplan recently emailed us a picture of her FIRST mosaic, and it is nice solid work, impressive even, especially ...
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Recently artist Jill Miller emailed me wanting some advice about choosing colors for a mosaic table top she was making, ...
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Mosaic Art Supply tries to hire only professional artists from a working-class background, which means people who pursued their art ...
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Artist Frederic Lecut has agreed to teach a class in which student will create a naturalistic mosaic portrait of their ...
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Vitreous glass tile has a lot fewer surface pits than it did a few decades ago, but it still has ...
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Texture and three-dimensional elements make two-dimensional art much more interesting. Having thicker pieces and pieces that stick out make people ...
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Many artists like to choose background colors after the central figures have been tiled. It is best to tile from ...
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Artist Marilyn Keating makes wonderful whimsical mosaic sculptures, and she recently completed a mixed-media mosaic mural as part of her ...
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A competitor is selling crafts-grade tiles that are clear glass with a thin coat of color that scratches off. They ...
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In my recent blog article about black and white grout, I wrote the following tip for minimizing the width of ...
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Artists can create a sense of motion in their mosaics by using concentric curved rows of tile, especially in the ...
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Contrast is a good way to create visual interest in your mosaic, and when contrast comes in the form of ...
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Cutting glass tile with a mosaic glass cutter is a relatively quiet and gentle process because not much force is required ...
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Fredrik Tigerstrom ("T29ART" on Instagram) has made some impressive mosaic portraits of rock icons David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Joe Strummer, ...
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Rolando Jose made a mosaic of his favorite cartoon character Doraemon using broken pieces of glazed ceramic tile obtained locally ...
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Artist Apryl Howard sent me some pictures of her recent Arizona Sunset Mosaic, and it is the exception to several ...
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Here is an anecdotal case study of how craft kits get it wrong and actually detract from the art experience: ...
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Figurative mosaic art (mosaic pictures) can be used as an element of interior design in the same way that paintings ...
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Artist Jen Vollmer recently completed a shower mosaic which features fish and flowing water executed in the same colors as ...
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"Amateur" artist Tobin recently completed his Four Elements garden mosaic, and it is amazing for several reasons, the least of ...
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A few years ago, Karen J created a mosaic bench in her backyard using mining debris (large stones), cement, and ...
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We now sell glass beads for use in mosaic artwork. We have several types including murano, lampwork, millefiori, etc., but ...
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Ceramic tile can be used for outdoor mosaic patio tables provided you live someplace warm year round, but otherwise glass ...
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Artist Melanie Squires recently completed a stained-glass mosaic table, and I wanted to show it off for several reasons, and ...
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Artist Sherri Grasmuck created a mosaic facade of Guatemalan women on her house in Philadelphia that is the perfect case ...
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This is not a straightforward question because most of the grout does not end up in the gaps between the ...
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Mosaic artwork can include rough textural elements that would be impractical in architectural tiling such as a shower wall, which ...
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For dry indoor mosaics, areas can be built up to support thinner tile next to thicker tile by mixing sand or ...
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Low areas on a surface can be built up with thinset mortar mixed with an additional aggregate of very coarse ...
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Already Grouted? If you have already grouted your mosaic, you can still use these instructions, but you will first need ...
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The background in a work of mosaic art serves two purposes: contrast the colors of the figures in the foreground ...
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Background colors for mosaics should be chosen based on how well they contrast with the colors used in figures. For ...
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This article is about coloring grout for mosaic art before the grout is applied. This article isn't about staining grout ...
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An Easy First Project? Many aspiring mosaics artists decide to copy an existing mosaic for their first project instead of ...
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Two Types Of Cement Board There are two types of cement board: The first type contains wood fibers or wood ...
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Many people report having trouble cutting vitreous glass mosaic tile reliably because of the embossed patterns on the back sides, which ...
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Recently a customer emailed me asking how to cut a piece of marble mosaic tile into very small pieces. He ...
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Why You Shouldn't Pour It Down Drains Acrylics are a great alternative to traditional oil paint because they are water ...
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Grout and thinset mortar are types of concrete and should never be rinsed down drains. That includes the muddy water ...
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Artist Phyllis Kempter emailed me some photos of the ornaments she made using our kits for 3-inch spherical mosaic Christmas ornaments ...
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It is easy to enlarge a mosaic pattern or drawing even if you have no confidence in your ability to ...
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Irregular Shapes It's easy to estimate the total area of a rectangular or circular mosaic using our tile estimator, but ...
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In my previous post, I wrote about how to remove and replace glass mosaic tile to make changes to a ...
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Small mosaic plaques can be mounted on a wall with a the same type of hangers and wires used for ...
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Thinset Mortar is concrete with polymers added for enhanced strength and adhesive properties and is the recommended material for all ...
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You have to build the factory before you can make the product, and that includes when you work sitting on ...
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Avoid Studio Obsession Setting up and organizing your studio or corner workspace can become an end unto itself and just ...
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If you work with stained glass over time you can end up with buckets full of scrap. When the pieces ...
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Rectangular backers are fine for most mosaic designs, but sometimes you want to make an irregularly-shaped mosaic or a mosaic ...
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You can and should spend more time "drawing" with tile than drawing with a pencil when most of the details in the mosaic are ...
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Frames That Match The Art If the mosaic is a mixed-media mosaic with rounded and irregular sculptural elements, a frame ...
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Concretes, mortars and grouts have the potential to create significant amounts of dangerous dust when the water is first added ...
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Replace Glass Top With Concrete Board Glass-top metal patio tables can be used to make a mosaic table by replacing ...
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This article is about how to incorporate mosaic art into the design of your tiled bar top and is less ...
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It is easy to mount a mosaic nipper to a scrap piece of plywood and extend the handle with a ...
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Not too long ago, I included a request in our email newsletter for customers to send us pictures of their ...
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Pricing art is difficult because it is subjective, and pricing mosaic artwork is even more problematic due to the extra labor ...
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I have often used a small screwdriver to pry up tiles when I wanted to change some detail in a ...
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The grout removal tool we sell is typically used to remove grout from between glazed ceramic bathroom tile, but it ...
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Tools Are Cheaper Than Craft Supplies I have often made the claim that a person could buy a sheet of ...
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Mixing up grout and thinset require that mosaic artists wear dust masks on an occasional basis. I wear an N95 ...
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This article explains how to use a charcoal pencil (or graphite pencil) to color the back side of a paper ...
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Recently someone emailed me about how to estimate how many plates would be needed for a medium-sized mosaic of several ...
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Making and grouting a mosaic from ordinary flat tile is relatively straight forward. However, adding three-dimensional objects such as porcelain ...
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If we gave an award for best use of iridescent tile to create a sense of lighting in a scene, ...
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Religious icons make heavy use of gold leaf glass to represent halos and divine light but also to adorn the ...
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The new Mud Turtle Mosaic brand of smalti was selected based on how well the material cuts, and it is ...
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One of our customers Tobin is making an 80 square foot garden courtyard mosaic, the theme being the four elements ...
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It's EXTREMELY important to allow yourself to do creative projects on impulse without overthinking it. The reason is simple: research ...
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You can increase visual interest in your mosaic by using variegated colors (multiple colors in patches or streaks) instead of ...
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David Armstrong has created some inspiring mosaic portraits, and he did it using whole tiles arranged in a grid instead ...
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Interpreting a work of art in a different medium is a matter of capturing the essence of the original without being ...
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You Can't Force Freshness To make it as a professional artist, you have to keep your art fresh and always ...
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If you search Google Images for "kitchen backsplash mosaics," you can see some good work, but you will also see ...
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Don't Rush The Design Process It is easier for me to explain what I mean about pace and long term ...
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To make detailed mosaic images using whole uncut tile, you need to use a tiny brand, such as the 8mm ...
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Artist Jill Gatwood uses the following method to make water-resistant foam-core mosaic backers for exterior mosaics, such as the Pet ...
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Artist Susan Watson created a stained glass and stone mosaic for her studio exterior wall and chose the background color and ...
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Natalija improvised this picture of a lighthouse using the Colored Mirror Tiles to show that they can be used to ...
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Artist Jason Oakley made this great pixellated mosaic of Mario and some of the other characters in the Mario games ...
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Choosing a grout color is more of a situation where you want to avoid making a mistake that causes the ...
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Artist Risa Puno recently completed her interactive mosaic sculpture Common Ground for Rufus King Park in Jamaica Queens, NYC, and ...
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Adam and his sister Teneisha of Toni Craft made a video of their micro-mosaic jewelry project using deep-bezel jewelry findings ...
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Micromosaic is merely mosaic which is made from small to extremely small pieces of tile. Note that there isn't a ...
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Silver-backed mirror must be glued down using a special mirror adhesive; otherwise the reflective silver will oxidize and turn black ...
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Recently artist Wendy Schroeder emailed us some photographs of her mixed-media mosaic bar top, and it is worth taking a look ...
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Artist Frederic Lecut's Opus Pixellatum Technique is a tool for rapidly creating original photorealistic mosaics and incorporating improvised elements. Artist ...
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Mosaic Artist Michael Kruzich has a body of work worth taking a look at, especially if you have any doubts about ...
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There is ample information online about how to go get sheets of tile from a building material store and mount them ...
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Artist Sondra Jonson recently completed a mosaic baptismal font for St. James Catholic Church using our gold glass mosaic and metallic ...
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Artist Lyn Richards sent me some pictures of the mosaic bird bath she made this past summer, and it is ...
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Today someone emailed me about using 1/4-inch concrete backer board to make mosaic birdhouses more weather-resistant and durable. I think ...
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Mosaics cannot be a "food safe" surface as defined by the Food and Drug Administration because grout is porous and ...
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Artist Morgan Halford recently emailed us some pictures of some mosaic Christmas-tree ornaments she made with the spherical bases we ...
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Please email us pictures of your Christmas tree ornaments made from our mosaic ornament bases. I would really like to receive a ...
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Our shipment of hardwood bases for making mosaic coaster recently arrived, and I just now added them to our website ...
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There are two options for bases for making a mosaic sculpture for your lawn: Buy an unfinished concrete sculpture from ...
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Mosaic furniture can be made from glass mosaic tile more easily and more affordably than it can be made from ...
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Mosaic gazing spheres are popular outdoor mosaic projects, and they offer a few simple advantages over mosaic-covered concrete lawn ornaments: ...
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Artist MC Holt-Evans of Nashville recently made a mosaic sculpture very much in keeping with spirit of The Music City, ...
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I have designed a base kit that people can use to make a mosaic holiday ornament, and I plan to ...
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Brian Kyle's mosaic interpretation of Picasso's painting "Man With Ice Cream Cone" is a refreshing departure from the cute themes that seem to ...
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The following picture of 24kt Gold Leaf Mosaic Glass Tiles mixed with Faceted Glass Jewels is the best evidence I can ...
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Artist Marilyn Keating has some mosaic lawn sculptures of animals that are very much worth seeing, especially if you are ...
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Recently artist Bernie Taylor emailed me some pictures of his mosaic lawn sculptures including some concrete bird baths and benches, ...
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You can make mosaic street numbers and signs using a grid, but mosaics made from irregular shapes of non-gridded tesserae ...
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Georgia Art Teacher Connie Wells has been working with her students on a memorial cross project: Highland Christian Academy in ...
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The best way to mount an outdoor mosaic mural is to use thinset mortar and mount it directly to a ...
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Angela made a mosaic picture frame using our irregular glazed ceramic tile and left the sides of the frame uncovered. She ...
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Mosaic Fireplace and Oven Surrounds: The Basics A couple of years ago, I wrote a page explaining how glass, ceramic, and ...
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Historically, mosaic icons were made with traditional materials like smalti, marble, and gold leaf glass. Those traditional mosaic materials might ...
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Someone recently asked me about how they could make a Moroccan-styled Glass Mosaic Sink, and that got me thinking about ...
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Mosaic stepping stones are great first projects, but they don't have to be cheap and cheesy or dangerous. Keep in ...
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Natalija decided to test some materials and methods by putting our street number on the loading dock of the warehouse ...
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Artist RJ Spurr recently completed two mosaic tables for his home, and I wanted to share them because the level ...
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I frequently get emails asking me what is the best color mosaic tile we sell for rendering skin tones. I ...
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Yesterday I wrote up some recommendations and instructions for Outdoor School Mosaics that focused on a project where each child ...
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Artist Cindy Christensen emailed us some pictures of several mosaic projects that she collaborated on with her woodworking husband, and ...
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Artist Jill Gatwood has emailed me her procedure for using GE Silicone II to mount mosaic tile to steel mailboxes, ...
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Clear contact paper can be used to temporarily mount a design of mosaic tile, but it really isn't sticky enough ...
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Artist Cherie Bosela has some mixed-media mosaic sculpture that you really should see, especially if you are considering making some ...
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Color family assortments of 12mm recycled glass mosaic tile are now available. The 12mm Elementile brand of tile is some ...
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Correcting a Decade of Misinformation For the past eleven years, I have been answering numerous how-to-mosaic questions via email on ...
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People ask me about mosaic mannequins from time to time, and usually it is which adhesive to use for attaching ...
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Frederic Lecut's "Opus Pixellatum" Mosaic Class was a lot of fun, and I think the mosaics were very successful, especially ...
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In the last section of one of my previous posts, Custom Shapes For Mosaic Backers, I showed some pictures and ...
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Recently I received an email from an art teacher whose school mosaic project was an outdoor mosaic where each child ...
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Artist Frederic Lecut's "Pan's Head" mosaic has a style that matches its theme, and it is a great example of ...
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I have written in the past about "passion projects," which is a term I use to describe first-time projects in ...
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Patios are excellent locations for mosaics, but the patio floor itself is not as good a surface for a mosaic as a ...
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We regularly see questionable information online concerning how to mosaic and how to do other art and craft projects. Mostly ...
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Recently April Costigan sent us some pictures of pet memorial mosaics made on stepping stones and some portraits of pets ...
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For people wanting to make a portrait of their furry friend, I wrote an article on pet memorial mosaics using ...
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Yosemite Mosaic Landscape Limitations of the Grid and Tile as Pixels Jim Price's Yosemite Mosaic is an excellent example of how ...
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Ana Bonnin emailed us some pictures of her recent entranceway mosaic, and I wanted to share these with our readers. Ana's ...
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Thinset Mortar The first thing you need to know about outdoor and wet mosaic (pool, fountain, shower) is that thinset ...
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The Pace of Art Taking time to reflect on what you are doing can be the difference between producing a ...
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Artist Steven "Stevo" Sadvary has a broad mosaic portfolio of pet portraits, cityscapes, signage, educational murals and other public art, ...
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One of the things I always notice in cities like New York or San Francisco are the older buildings that ...
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We now sell 24kt gold mosaic glass, and it really is gold and not the brass alloy imitation products that some ...
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This method for altering a mosaic can be used before grouting, or grout can first be removed by scraping it ...
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Repeating simple designs or motifs is an effective way to make iconic compositions that catch the eye, and you can ...
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We recently received a shipment of mosaic glass cutters and the factory included some replacement springs in the crate. Fits All ...
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Artist Janet Flom used some of our vitreous tile in some pubic space mosaics in 2016-17 that are photorealistic and ...
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Sanded grout is recommended for grout gaps larger than 1/8 inch, but we recommend it for all grout gaps larger ...
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Grout does not shrink, but it is prone to forming voids and bubbles if it is not rubbed thoroughly into the ...
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Finding the "Right" Color There is tremendous power in getting the colors right. No matter how loosely executed, an impressionistic ...
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These instructions explain how to set up and make a small mosaic from glass mosaic tile. I use our new ...
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In my article Stained Glass Mosaic Art, I explained how stained glass can be cut up into small pieces and ...
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Artist and MAS employee Natalija Moss has recently completed a series of mosaics made from stained glass, and they are ...
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Mosaicists sometimes mix in artist acrylic paint to create custom colors from white grout, but you can also use acrylic ...
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Artist Megan Heazlewood makes strong use of contrasting colors in her iconic mosaics, and I think her work is inspiring for ...
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Terracotta flower pots are highly susceptible to freeze damage because the material is extremely porous. Moisture seeps into the tiny pores, freezes ...
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Contrast is critical for creating images that catch the eye and text that is readable. A mosaic sign recently completed ...
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In my previous post, I wrote about improvisation being a critical skill for visual artists working in multiple mediums. I ...
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In my previous article about how to cut cement board for use as a mosaic backer, I explained how I ...
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In my previous post about how to use found objects in mosaic art, I made the claim that small experiments ...
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A common mistake made in first mosaics is a variation in the width in gaps between the tiles which results ...
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I have written many times about black grout and why I recommend it for making tile colors look more intense, ...
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At Mosaic Art Supply, we have always tried to promote contemporary mosaic as a fine art and help people of ...
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Thinset mortar can be used on a plywood mosaic backer provided the plywood has been sealed with a white PVA ...
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I recently saw some stained-glass mosaics by artist Debra D'Souza, and they reaffirmed my belief in the mosaic business and ...
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Why break up ceramic figurines to use the pieces in mosaic artwork when you can use the whole figurine? Artist Laurie ...
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Choice of Pattern This method for transferring a mosaic design with contact paper works whether you are improvising on a quickly sketched ...
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Found objects can be used as mosaic tesserae based on their color and texture and shape, as another form of ...
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The new SPARDUSTER™ Small Parts Dust Remover looks like a simple vacuum attachment, but it is actually nothing less than ...
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Recently Doug Harris of Elementile sent me some photos of a mosaic rendering of Vincent Van Gogh's 1889 self-portrait, and it ...
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Recently, artist Jackye Mills emailed me about a problem she was having with her first mosaic project, and it really caused me ...
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I would like to insert some of my mosaic pieces into store bought sheets of mosiac mounted on mesh, for my backsplash. Any words of advice?
Hi Joanne,
People do inserts all the time. The most common issue is a difference in thickness. This can be overcome by building up the insert area with a layer of thinset mortar. Thinset shrinks or thins slighly as it hardens, and so you would need to build up the area a few days before mounting the insert.
I hope this helps,
Joe
Joe,
I just discovered your blog. You have the very best mosaic blog I have ever read, and have just answered the many questions I have had over the years about my mosaic work and troubleshooting. I really appreciate your practical intelligence and you are singing my song in many of your posts. Are you the owner of mosaic art supply? Thank you for distilling and organizing your information for us.
As a mosaic artist, I wish I had an engineering degree for all the material questions I have, but now, I have you!
How do you grout stain glass that has been glued to glass without having the grout ‘flow’ under the stain glass?
I really enjoy your website. I discovered your blog after exploring your website and read a few. I can’t wait to read the rest though it’s going to take me a while. There is so much information on mosaics!
Your site is a such a great support to people like me!
Fabulous Blog!!! Thank you!