Make mosaic ceramic hearts :: simple craft projects

Ceramic recycled mosaic hearts, a simple craft project from allaboutyou.com

It is not unusual to hear the sound of smashing china in our house, whether it’s a child’s plate or a casualty of our over-stacked crockery rack. With these mosaics, it is at least possible to reclaim a little pleasure from the fragments.

You will need

● goggles or protective glasses and gloves
● broken china
● tile cutters
● wooden heart or other shape (available from shops such as Hobbycraft)
● paper and pencil
● small mixing bowls
● tile cement, stirrers and grout
● palette knife and disposable cloth

1 Wear goggles and gloves to protect your eyes and hands. Start by snipping square or triangular shapes from your china with the tile cutters, looking for particular designs and pretty details – using just the edge of the blades produces the best pieces.

2 Draw around the wooden heart on paper, then arrange the fragments on this, building up a ‘crazy paving’ pattern and leaving small gaps in between each tile. Choose pieces from the edge of the ceramics for the borders to give a cleaner finish. Play around with the design until you are happy with it.

3 Put your gloves on and, in a small bowl, mix the cement according to the instructions, stirring in water until it is smooth. Spread a layer 2-3mm deep over the wooden heart, depending on the thickness of your china.

4 Transfer the arrangement of china pieces from your paper pattern to the heart, then push them into the cement, so the surfaces are level. Leave to dry for at least two hours. In the meantime, scrape and wipe out the bowl before washing it, putting the leftover cement in a bin (do not pour down the sink).

5 Again wearing gloves, mix up the grout. Smooth this in between the china pieces, applying more than you need. With a palette knife, remove any excess, then wipe the tiles clean. Once dry, buff to get rid of any marks. As with the cement, do not pour any remaining grout down your sink.