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One of the best parts of decorating with mosaics is that it's a way to recycle and reuse all sorts of things; dishes, glass, tiny bits of jewelry, broken pottery, pebbles and sea shells.

A bit of advice if you're doing a large area, say a wall. Purchase a large piece of Masonite or cement board (available at building supply stores or lumber yards). Make your mosaic on this instead of directly onto the wall. That way, if you move or grow tired of it, it's very simple to remove. Also, if you run out of enthusiasm half-way through, you're not stuck with it (excuse the pun).

Think about where you will use your mosaic piece or pieces. A lamp and small trinket box will really jazz up a bedroom or bathroom. Also, a framed mirror and a tissue holder work well together. Inexpensive round decorator tables, that are usually covered with a round table cloth, make excellent surfaces for a patio table. Make three small photo frames and hang them together for a special effect. Old lamps from the thrift shop are fun to use for mosaics. I've also found inexpensive wood trinket or music boxes and covered them. Craft shops sell all sorts of plain wooden objects for making mosaics.

Thrift shops are also great places to find colorful plates and pottery to smash up for projects. I've made stepping stones out of old chipped and broken blue willow plates. This freaked out my neighbor until I told her they were already chipped and broken when I bought them. Go to a stained glass supply store and ask for shards (small pieces of broken glass). There are sites, like eBay where people sell mosaic pieces pre-cut to a uniform size made of ceramic or glass. Places that sell ceramic tile often have bits and pieces they are willing to sell cheap. Those tiny flowers and shapes sold for trim work well. Mosaics are a way of using your own chipped plates or all those seashells you collected on your last vacation.

Lamps, tables, headboards, window molding, decorative boxes, hot pads and just about anything you can think of look great when covered with mosaics.

Getting Started:

I suggest you start small. My first project was a trivet or hot pad.

Choose your item and the mosaic pieces you wish to use.

For your first project, try to stick with three colors.

Find a design you like. I'm a fan of Clarice Cliff's pottery design, so I used one of her patterns for inspiration. Coloring books and stained glass books are helpful. Dover books sells stained glass' type coloring books that are excellent for craft projects and have many works of art by Van Gogh, Monet, Picasso, Kandinsky and so on. Of course you can also draw your own pattern.

Lay your project piece on a flat surface. Transfer your pattern onto it with magic marker.

Lay out your pieces onto your design page so they'll fit the design and leave about 1/8 to inch space between each piece for the grout.

After you have the design totally worked out, glue the pieces to your surface. Special glue is available for mosaics. If doing a round object, start in the center and work outward in concentric circles. This way your pattern will keep it's shape'.

After the glue has dried, mix the grout and follow the package directions. You can purchase colored grout or use dye to color it if you like.

Let dry and you're finished, unless the piece will be exposed to moisture. In that case use grout sealer to insure the grout won't crack and crumble if your mosaic gets wet.

Once you start making mosaic objects, you'll want to cover everything, so be warned, it can be addicting!

Learn more about this author, Pat Merewether.
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