How to reuse leftover tiles lying around from projects to create something unique for your home.
Whenever a tiling project is undertaken in the home, there are inevitably spare or broken tiles left over. These can often be re-purposed in delightfully creative ways says Richard Nuss, marketing manager at Johnson Tiles. The following are just a few ways in which you can put these tiles to good use around the home.
Small floor areas:
If you have enough spare mixed tiles, consider tilling the floor of a small cupboard, guest bathroom or shower floor. The trick to making this work is to mix and match spare tiles in a way that doesn’t look haphazard, particularly if the surrounding space and fittings are quite contemporary. Plan your design carefully beforehand, include a few extra elements such as a mosaic border if necessary to round it off and you could end up with a really appealing and unique floor space.
Countertops and backsplashes:
You can use spare tiles to add a durable, easy-to-clean surface to old countertops or to create a new backsplash in your bathroom or kitchen. Once the grout is sealed, ceramic tiles make an excellent water resistant covering for tables, countertops and just about anything else in need of freshening up.
Coasters and trivets:
Spare ceramic tiles work wonderfully when repurposed as coasters and trivets because tile material is resistant to both extreme cold and heat. What’s more is that tile coasters and trivets are super-easy to make and can be personalised according to the style of individual family members. For instance, you could add a picture of your child’s favourite cartoon character to a tile. Simply decorate your favourite tile, seal it with a clear sealant and glue tile sized felt or cork pads onto the bottom with a hot glue gun and voila! You have totally unique coasters and trivets.
Splashes of colour:
Bright accent colours are in. Use burnt orange, red and other hot coloured spare tiles to add bursts of colour to focal points such as the area above your stove. Such pops of colour can really add a lot of character to an otherwise dull space.
Mosaic art:
A mixture of colourful leftover tiles can be used to create beautiful mosaic pieces. There are many things you can add mosaic to ranging from small jewellery boxes, picture and mirror frames to furniture and cement surfaces in your yard. If you haven’t worked with mosaic before, first learn the basics and start small. You can also use leftover tiles to create unique pieces of flat mosaic artworks.
Tile photography:
Leftover tiles can be used to create affordable backing for photos. Choose your picture and match it to an appropriate tile. You can fit the picture to the tile or leave a border around the picture. Affix an eyehook to the back of the tile and hang it up for friends and family to appreciate.