The long-awaited day of completion of all is approaching repair work in the house, and the remains of ceramic tiles are gathering dust on the loggia or, even worse, blocking the passage in the corridor? Don’t forget to get rid of the leftover material, but rather use it to decorate your updated home! Or use it to make a functional item! The main thing is don’t be afraid to show your imagination! Our article offers you 10 original ideas How to use leftover tiles to create real art decor or decorate old furniture.
No. 1: use tilesto create country decor
Tiles that were not used during renovation can become a suitable decoration for a summer cottage. For example, you can use them to lay out a small garden path or decorate the floor in a gazebo. If there are small tiles or mosaics left, you can use them to cover flower pots in the garden. With such outdoor decor, your dacha will sparkle with new colors.
#2: Use tiles to make cup holders
The remains of a small hexagonal tile will become ideal material to create functional cup holders. Just glue several tiles together and enjoy designer accessories that will not only decorate your kitchen, but also protect the surface dining table or coffee table from stains.
No. 3: use tiles to decorate the mirror frame
Has the frame of your bathroom mirror become dull, scratched and no longer looks good? Dont be upset! Cover it with multi-colored ceramic mosaics. A wooden or plastic frame with flat surface. A little glue and imagination - and your mirror will live a new life.
#4: Use tiles to cover up scratches on an old table.
Remains of tiles or mosaics are useful for hiding scratches on the surface of a magazine or coffee table. Just cover the tabletop with colored tiles and you can rest assured that such a piece of furniture will not only fit perfectly into the decor, but will also serve its owners for a long time.
#5: Use tiles to decorate your tray
To make the kitchen tray original and exclusive appearance, its surface can be covered with small format tiles or glass mosaics.
No. 6: tiles are suitable for table setting
If you are planning a picnic outdoors, use large-format tiles for table setting! Guests will definitely appreciate your ingenuity! Plus, leftover porcelain tiles or tiles can be used as cutting boards!
#7: Use tiles to decorate your walls
Don't know what to decorate with empty walls in the hall? Forget about banal posters and reproductions and create your own art object. Combine several pieces of tiles into a single composition, choose a suitable frame for your masterpiece and, voila, your wall decor is ready!
No:8 original photo demonstration
Standard photo frames can be replaced with tiles! Just glue the photo onto the surface of the material, hang the resulting decor on the walls, and best moments lives will always be in sight!
#9: Tile part of the wall
The tiles remaining after renovation can help transform the interior of a bathroom or kitchen in the future. By laying tiles on only one wall or even part of the wall (by the sink, for example), you can add volume to the space and make the room original and effective.
No. 10: colored floor in boho style
After the house has been renovated, many materials purchased with reserve remain unnecessary. Tiles are no exception. Of course, if there is very little left, it is better to store it just in case: already laid tile may get damaged, then it will be nice to have a perfect replacement on hand.
If there are a lot of tiles left, but the store won’t accept them back, or several generations have accumulated, you’ll want to put them to use. Here are some ideas for using leftover tiles:
Furniture decor
It is most convenient to use for furniture decoration broken tiles and make a mosaic out of it. If the remaining tiles are intact, they can be carefully broken by placing them in a cloth bag and hitting them from above with a hammer. By selecting pieces of tiles according to size, laying out a pattern or alternating colors, you can achieve something interesting. decorative effect. Attach the mosaic with tile adhesive and fill the gaps between the pieces with grout. Even large pieces of furniture can be decorated in this way. You can use mosaics to lay out a kitchen countertop, a coffee table or a coffee table.
For small items like flower pots, vases or for mirror frames, photographs and paintings, mosaic will serve in a great way registration For the same purpose, you can use long tiled borders without breaking them.
For cladding countertops will fit and a whole tile. To make the edges look neat, you can close them wooden profile or put it in smaller pieces.
Large tiles or porcelain stoneware can themselves become a small table: you just need to glue it to a sheet of plywood for strength, come up with legs and trim the corners.
Practical use in the kitchen
From beautiful tiles A small format makes a convenient and heat-resistant stand for hot dishes, and very small tiles make a place for mugs.
Larger tiles or porcelain stoneware can be used to make a durable cutting board. And others useful crafts, not only for the kitchen: 
Now it's fashionable to post kitchen apron multi-colored tiles. If you have remains of a similar size from different collections (for example, you managed to collect them from family and friends or bought them for next to nothing) - this will be an interesting design technique. 
Practical application in the country
At the dacha in the house, the remains of the tiles can be laid around the fireplace or stove.
The method of turning tiles into mosaics, which was described above, is also suitable for decoration. outdoor flowerpots, club or porch: ceramics are not afraid of moisture. 
You can use the remains of porcelain stoneware to lay out a path in your dacha. It is better to use matte or textured material for this; gloss will be too slippery.
If after renovation you still have remnants of ceramic tiles, do not rush to get rid of them. Perhaps, inspired by the examples from this article, you will decide to start decorating your home or summer cottage with beautiful and original ceramic crafts. But it’s also practical and profitable!
So, what can be made from broken tiles, or remaining solid tile samples? First of all, these are a variety of decorative crafts and decorations for interior items. Good decision will lay a mosaic floor from broken tiles. For owners country houses there are simply a lot of opportunities for using old or broken tiles in decorating facades, porches, garden paths, and flower beds.
It is important to note that the use of leftover ceramic tiles should not be viewed as purely whims. designer soul. Tile scraps do not lose their performance qualities and have great practical benefit - products decorated with them, be it flower pot or a kitchen apron will serve you much longer than usual, and a garden path properly laid out from leftover tiles will become a comfortable and reliable place for movement and walks. At the same time, you will not spend money on new materials, optimizing your expenses to the maximum.
Mosaic from remnants of tiles
As a rule, after renovation, a lot of broken or cut tiles remain. It is these production wastes that are most often used to create mosaics. Much less often, whole old tiles are used for these purposes. We have already described in detail how to make a mosaic from broken or whole tiles in this article. Therefore, we will not dwell on the technical part of making the mosaic itself here.
Now let's take a closer look at what can be made from leftover tiles, regardless of the form in which they are presented.
Crafts from leftover ceramic tiles
As a rule, at the end of the repair work you are left with an unused amount of tiles, or all sorts of trimmings and fragments accumulate. Some people see this accumulation of broken ceramics as just a mountain of garbage, while others see it as a wonderful opportunity to create a homemade “ hand made”decor.
If you are still in doubt about what beautiful crafts you can create from leftover tiles, check out our selection of the best examples in this area.
Placemats
Let's start from the very beginning simple solution- creating stands for glasses, cups, and other tableware from the remains of ceramic tiles. This solution seems ideal if you have unused tiles of small sizes - 10x10, 15x15.
In this case, you just need to wash them from dust and the wonderful stand is ready.
The remains of the mosaic can also be used in the same direction. Due to the fact that the mosaic chips are glued to the mesh, this solution will be convenient to use and will protect your countertops from scratches that dishes can leave on it.
Decorating flower pots with mosaics from leftover tiles.
Give dull clay or plastic flower pots and vases a pop of color and interest. By decorating a flower pot with broken ceramics, you will also significantly increase its service life.
It should also be recalled that ceramic shards can be excellent drainage.
Ceramic mirror frame.
Using leftover ceramic tiles to decorate a mirror will create a modern and stylish solution. It is not too complicated to implement but will significantly refresh the space of your bathroom.
For this task, both the remains of solid tiles and broken samples that you could not use in the cladding are suitable.
By choosing a glossy multi-colored mosaic for cladding, you can provide spectacular reflections and dispersion of sunlight throughout the room.
Photo on a tile instead of a frame.
Another effortless way to repurpose unwanted tiles is to glue photos of relatives onto them. By hanging the tile in a prominent place, you will remind in such an original way of your love for your loved ones.
Covering the countertop with remnants of tiles
If your kitchen table already quite shabby, covered with scratches and chips, update it with the existing tiles. This way you will significantly extend the life of the table, and also make it a real work of art.
Kitchen apron made from the remains of ceramic tiles.
No less practical option to use broken or simply unnecessary tiles - tile the kitchen apron with it. Usually this small area and you won't need too many tiles.
Broken tile floor.
Of course, you won’t have enough leftover tiles to cover the entire floor. But decorating a small area is fine. Such a decorative inclusion will add zest to the interior. Especially if the floor is plain, and the decorative tile insert is made of multi-colored mosaic pieces.
Specialists from the Keramacenter company note that when choosing material for floor tiling from leftover tiles, you should pay attention to the ends that are too sharp - it is better to sand them down. In all other respects, the technology for laying broken tiles on the floor is no different from the usual one.
How to use old or broken tiles in your garden
According to good tradition, we hide everything unnecessary and superfluous on the balcony or take it to the dacha. Many summer residents accumulate a lot of all sorts of things, without any particular need.
Meanwhile, dacha farming requires regular attention and care, and the issue of cleanliness and order is one of the most pressing. There are a lot of places here where you can effectively use the remains of ceramic tiles in landscaping.
Garden paths made of broken tiles.
The remains of broken tiles will be a good and useful addition to garden path. They can play both an auxiliary role - to strengthen the surface, and a main one, depending on how many broken tiles you have.
But there is one caveat: if the tiles are glossy (left over after tiling the walls), then it is not recommended to make the entire path entirely from it - in the winter season, or after precipitation, it can be slippery. In this case, it is better to limit yourself to individual inserts for decoration purposes.
Flower beds made of broken tiles.
Ceramic tiles will make your artificial flower beds not only more protected from harmful effects nature, but also beautiful.
Benches and garden furniture.
The use of old tiles in the country can and should meet considerations of benefit and practicality. As you have probably already noticed, we try to focus on examples where the remains of tiles are used to decorate household items that have a functional purpose, rather than playing a purely decorative role.
So now we want to offer a few wonderful examples for your inspiration, where the already well-worn garden furniture, and other household items, acquire a second life thanks to the application of broken tiles to their surface.
Cladding of stairs and facades.
From broken tiles you can make partial or complete decoration of walls or stairs in your country house. True, in in this case, the composition will only play a decorative role.
So, we tried to show all the options for what can be made from leftover tiles. Any of the proposed solutions you without special effort you can implement it in your apartment or on summer cottage. And don't forget that ceramic tile- it is durable, environmentally friendly pure material. There will always be a place for her in the household.
Most likely, you are partial to mosaics. Such is the peculiarity of this type of art. Surely you have admired a certain street panel by an unknown artist more than once. Perhaps your home is not even deprived of factory-made mosaics. Thousands of miniature elements collected with a caring hand, invariably please the eye, but sometimes bite your pocket. And they hurt your pride - you have so many wandering, but bright, ideas. Why not try it yourself? Take a chance, a mosaic made by yourself is an irreplaceable thing not only for the interior, but also for the soul.
At home, compositions are made from anything, the most incredible objects are used: mosaics from tiles, broken dishes, pebbles, broken bottles, mirrors and even.
Making mosaics is divided into stages:
- tile preparation;
- surface preparation;
- planning and sketching;
- laying mosaics;
- grouting;
Quick navigation through the article
Preparing tiles
You may already have the raw materials, but if you don't, that's okay. Any store will happily sell broken pieces and leftover ceramics for pennies. It’s good if you know a tiler who is constantly faced with the need to throw away waste. Take over his “trash” and you will find yourself with an inexhaustible supply of tiles. Stock up on multi-colored raw materials; it’s better to have a few different shades than a lot of plain tiles. It’s even better to constantly keep the future drawing in your head, it’s easier to navigate.
Broken tile mosaic requires small pieces different formats. We suggest cutting some of the tiles - compositions often require rectangular pieces. Cut ceramics with a glass cutter or a professional tile cutter. If you plan to create regularly, purchase an inexpensive tool. High cutting precision is of no use here. Simply break the main part of the tile into fragments. It is more convenient to do this with the help of a rag in which you will wrap the fight, and a hammer wrapped in a thick layer of fabric. The latter is necessary so as not to unnecessarily crumble the material.
Fill in the mosaic pieces different sizes, it is not difficult to adhere to a certain format. For the future: do not throw away the remaining tiles, broken dishes And so on. Put it aside for later, failed garbage will one day become part of a masterpiece.
Surface preparation
Suitable base for mosaic - cement-sand screed or plaster, putty and drywall. They provide good adhesion to glue and ceramics. It is important that the surface is clean and smooth. Remove uneven surfaces and seal cracks, if any. After this, treat the coating with a primer; it helps strengthen the base and increases adhesion.
Preparing a sketch
Even a trained eye finds it easier to navigate. For an inexperienced artist when working with complex pattern nowhere without him. In order not to get away from the dimensions, contours and proportions, draw a sketch on the base with a pencil. If you have artistic skills, your hands and eyes will suffice. Without such useful baggage (we are talking about skills), use the scale grid method, or even better, transfer the sketch using a projector.
Plan color scheme and divide the sketch into zones based on tonal ideas. Think about how to make a mosaic according to your design optimally.
Follow certain rules:
- Start from the center, so the composition will turn out better in terms of proportions and compliance with the sketch;
- Do the background last;
- Also leave abstraction for last, first people, animals, plants - anything that has complex geometry.
Mosaic glue
The mixture for laying out the pieces should have high adhesion to the materials you use. It is best to work with white glue; regular gray is not suitable for aesthetic reasons. For typical concrete foundations White cement glue (Kreps Reinforced White) is suitable. For installation on a non-standard base (for example wood), it is better to use reactive tile adhesive on epoxy based(Litokol Litoelastic), liquid nails or epoxy grout.
Mosaic laying
If you plan to use tiles different thicknesses, start with the thickest one. It will serve as a guide for others. It is advisable to spread the glue on both the base and the ceramics, but one of the surfaces requires only a light coating. One that will not increase the thickness of the layer, but will have a positive effect on the strength of the installation.
Apply glue to small areas, which were previously highlighted in the sketch. Coat easy areas with a larger area, difficult ones will require slowing down. After spreading the glue onto the base with a regular spatula, remove the excess mixture with a notched spatula. If the mosaic pieces are uniform in thickness, the work will be easier. Otherwise, the difference must be compensated by adding glue. But even uniformity does not always save. Pieces that are too different in size require different gluing efforts; a smaller tile with the same layer of mixture will always fall a little deeper, so it needs more glue. The comb is just a guide; each element still has to be brought to the desired plane individually. 
A mosaic of broken tiles on a wall does not have to be in the same plane. Based on your own ideas about beauty. In addition to tiles, use other materials that will diversify the composition and allow it to match the idea. Floor mosaics must be flat; unevenness and roughness will create problems when walking on the tiles.
It is difficult to achieve an even coating using only your hands and eyes. Use a flat sheet of wood, plastic or metal to periodically press down the laid areas to level them. It is better to have sheets of different formats. The principle is simple: the more complex the pattern, the smaller the area covered at a time, the smaller the sheet.
Mosaic made from broken tiles involves laying pieces with gaps. Do not place tiles close to each other. Very precise fitting of the parts will not only complicate the work many times over, but may also cause subsequent damage to the canvas. Seams compensate thermal expansions materials arising due to temperature changes. But you shouldn’t make huge gaps either, use common sense. The final drawing should not be damaged. Do not place pieces of the same size next to each other. Too different formats are also not “class”; there should be differences, but within reasonable limits.
Countertop cladding
If the countertop is made of wood, clean it of paint with acetone or special removers. Then walk twice sandpaper, first with a coarse abrasive, then with a fine one. These manipulations are necessary to increase adhesion; do not start mosaic without preparation.
How ? A different installation scheme is required here:
- Start from the edges, gradually moving towards the center;
- Compact the canvas as much as possible;
- Remove the glue immediately high density implies a large number of seams; cleaning at the end will lead to unnecessary waste of time.
Video master class on decorating countertops with mosaics:
Grouting joints
This applies to both floors and walls and countertops. Grouting can be done no earlier than one day after finishing the cladding. The mosaic should dry evenly. If the room temperature is too high, cover the canvas with a damp cloth. Before jointing, remove any remaining adhesive and wipe the mosaic with a damp cloth. To work you will need a rubber spatula.
Transparent grout based on epoxy resin with chameleon effect (). It will adjust to the color of each piece. Cement mixture It is much inferior to epoxy in strength and can literally fall apart.
Apply the fugu rubber grater, driving it tightly into the spaces between the pieces. Remove any residue with a damp foam sponge. Epoxy mixtures must be washed off with copious amounts of water, and plaque must be removed with special detergents(Litonet gel, Sopro ESE 548). 
Well, now you know how to make a mosaic at home. We hope that the master class served as a starting point. Remember that mosaic requires regular maintenance. Do not wipe it with substances containing phosphoric acid. Use products with a low percentage of acidity, but even after using them, wipe the mosaic with a cloth and water.
Don't get hung up on tiles, train your imagination and use unusual and interesting objects.
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