I made this mosaic mirror during one of my classes at She Is…..Women’s Weekend Retreat and had such a nice time both making this mirror and my entire time at the retreat. I took pictures and asked a lot of questions so I could share with the readers of Northern Cheapskate how I made this mirror. We were provided with the supplies, but all design choices were our own.

With the exception of the grout, here is all of my supplies laid out which include:

• Plastic Charger Plate
• Mirror
• Tile Pieces
• Glass Pebbles
• Loctite Power Grip Adhesive

I took a close up picture of the Loctite Power Grip Adhesive that we used so you know exactly what kind it was. For the purpose of a 3 hour class, we used it to help it adhere a little bit, but due to time constraints we could not allow it to set and dry completely before applying grout. When I make another one, I will make this a 2-day project and allow it to cure before applying grout. I think if the pieces were stuck in place nicely I could go much more quickly through the grout phase. I had to be more gentle  and move slower during the class because the pieces would move a bit.

I want to point out that the plastic chargers were pre-drilled with holes for us, which we thread a thin wire through and twisted in to place so use as a hanger.

I first laid our all my pieces on the plate before adhering them. I applied a small bit of adhesive to all of the pieces and placed them back in to place. You don’t want to put too much so that it pushes out from underneath.

Once all your pieces are adhered, allow it to dry for 24 hours (if possible) then using basic tile grout fill in the spaces between your pieces. You want to mix the grout mix with water to a peanut butter consistency. Allow your grout to set for 10 minutes after you finish applying. Next using a damp sponge, wipe away grout from your pieces and smooth it out by starting with the grout you first applied and working around to the grout you last applied.

Finally, I used the adhesive to glue the mirror into place and adhere glass pebbles around the mirror. This was all my design choice, others in the class filled in with grout all the way up to the mirror. Also, others in the class used broken plates instead of tiles and glass pebbles. The dried grout wipes away easily from the pieces afterward. In this picture the grout is not fully dry and is darker because it still contains water in the grout. The picture at the top of the post shows the dried piece. Allow to dry for at least 48 hours before hanging to ensure nothing shifts.

What else do you think you could decorate with this mosaic technique? I was thinking I might like to do a bird house or a serving tray. I think they would make beautiful gifts or perhaps a welcome sign for my friend’s new house.