How To Make Heat Resistant Tile Trivets

How to Brand Coasters the Right Way

Alert: There is a tragic flaw with most of the "how to make coasters from ceramic tiles" instructions on the web. Can you guess what it is?

They're not waterproof! Seems silly, right? But it'due south true. I know, because I tried them. The ceramic tile coasters that I crafted looked great initially, but very rapidly got tea and coffee stains on them that wouldn't wipe off. Not existence waterproof is a pretty serious problem for a coaster!

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I tried all sorts of things to brand the coasters waterproof. On my third or quaternary try I finally figured out how to make coasters that were immune to tea and coffee drips. I'll share the hush-hush with you on this page so y'all can learn how to make coasters that are cute, durable, and fully waterproof. It's actually pretty unproblematic in one case you know how.

Here's a close-up. You tin see the glossy, waterproof stop.

I'll show yous how to make coasters in batches of four, though plainly yous tin can make as many or few as you like.

I think they make really lovely gifts. I gave this set to my mom for Christmas which I fabricated using some beautiful Japanese paper.

And hither'due south a gratuitous photo of my DIY ceramic tile craft coaster with one of my favorite Denby teacups.

If you lot're wondering how to make coasters with photos, you can apply the exact same method. Here's one made past reader Shelbie (thanks for sending in the pic Shelbie!).

Hither's a beautiful tile by artist Judy Blasdell. She printed her design on a h2o slide decal and then varnished using the method I'll show you lot on this page.

Here's an awesome set up coasters featuring Star Wars bounty hunters, by Jason from Drexninestudios. The artwork was hand-painted, scanned, given a digital background in post-production, then printed and glued onto the tiles using the method on this page.

Sometimes I get asked how to make coasters past direct hand-painting on them, and then here's how: Y'all tin can paint on your tiles using special oven-bake ceramic paint like the Pebeo Vitrea paints, bake them (using the instructions that come up with the pigment), and then coat the tiles with envirotex like I describe on the rest of page. Check out these adorable mitt-print tiles made by reader Felicity and her two-year-old daughter. Thanks Felicity for sharing your photograph and the manner you made your coasters!

You can as well hang your coasters on the wall as wall art. Here are some brilliant motivational wall coasters made by reader Joann. Thanks for sharing your photos Joann!

Reader Staci fabricated coasters as an anniversary gift for her boyfriend with photos of their favorite places in Kansas City. What a cool idea! Thanks for sharing your photo Staci!

Reader Sarah made these gorgeous coasters with a fairytale castle pattern. Thanks for sharing your photo Sarah!

This is a long page, just don't allow that frighten you. Learning how to make tile coasters is actually really easy. The only reason the page is long is considering I've divided the tutorial upward into modest steps and included lots of photos.

How to Brand Coasters: Materials

The first step in learning how to make coasters is to gather upwardly your materials. Here'due south what you'll need...

Materials for tiles and decorating them

• 4 tiles each iv" (x cm) foursquare
• Mod Podge or other white craft glue
• Paint castor for spreading glue
• Scrapbook newspaper*
• Pencil
• Craft knife
• Ruler

You lot tin observe tiles at DIY stores like Dwelling Depot - you can even buy tiles online . (Thanks to reader Lisa for the Home Depot link!)

For the glue, I recommend using Mod Podge or another reputable make. I've tried using cheap white glues in the past, and some of them turn brown over fourth dimension, which is heartbreaking later y'all put a lot of work into a projection.

*Instead of using scrapbooking paper, you could apply photos (print them 4x4") to make your own custom photograph coasters. Or, you could utilize sheet music from a favorite piece, pages of a archetype novel, botanical illustrations or other illustrations from books/novels, you own sketches or drawings (or children'south), stamp stamps, tickets from events you've attended, postcards, sections of maps, candy wrappers, etc...

Special materials for making Photo Tile Coasters

Tile coasters look awesome using photos instead of craft paper, simply there are some special tips to make them plow out right.

If yous print your photos at home using an inkjet printer, then you demand to use a different mucilage instead of Mod Podge. The Mod Podge is h2o based and makes inkjet-printed photos run. Then, instead of using Mod Podge, I'd recommend using a special glue designed specifically for inkjet prints. I glue that works well is "Annie Howes Glamour Seal", or else you can use a clear spray acrylic sealer that you can buy from a craft store or hardware store.

If you get your photos printed at a photo print shop (e.chiliad. Kinkos) then the instructions on this page work only fine without any modifications. Some impress shops volition let you impress 4x4" prints, which fit perfectly on a tile (give thanks you Theresa for this tip!)

Materials for varnishing and waterproofing the tiles

Achieving a waterproof and non-tacky stop is the most disquisitional office of how to brand coasters in my opinion. Here's what you'll demand:

• Envirotex Lite Pour-On Loftier Gloss Resin
• 2 disposable plastic cups
• Wooden stirring stick (e.g. popsicle stick)

The Envirotex is the hush-hush of how to make coasters with a beautiful, glass-like, non-tacky*, stain-proof finish. It's a two-office epoxy that comes in two bottles which you lot mix together then pour on your coasters. People apply it to coat bar-tops in bars and restaurants so it's designed to be durable. One coat of Envirotex is equivalent to 50 coats of regular varnish. If you desire to make a souvenir that will final for years, then it'south worth using.

The cured envirotex feels completely smooth and non-tacky to your fingers, and is 100% waterproof. The merely affair that'south non perfect near it is that it does stick a little bit to a hot coffee cup. Having said that, it's however much less tacky than any other finish I've tried in my experiments of how to make coasters.

Before I discovered Envirotex I tried practically every other type of varnish (including acrylic varnish, decoupage varnish, spray-on polyurethane varnish, araldite, egg whites, and modernistic-podge), and nothing gave equally good a stop. The other types of varnish looked OK, merely they were tacky, or brittle, or got stained by coffee or tea.

I haven't seen Envirotex in many craft stores, but you can get information technology at Amazon (link above) or on eBay. Some readers have said they've also spotted information technology in their local Michaels and Hobby Lobby craft stores. An 8-oz kit (enough for 16 tiles) usually costs around $15, and then information technology comes out at less than $ane / coaster. And apparently it'south cheaper per tile if you buy it in bulk.

OK, now you've got your materials, let's get onto the fun bit of how to make coasters :-)

How to Brand Coasters: Video Instructions

I found this video (not my own) that does a neat job of explaining how to brand coasters and coat them with Envirotex. Really it describes how to brand placemats, but the procedure for coasters is nigh identical.

If you have a boring internet connection you may prefer to follow my written instructions beneath instead.

How to Make Coasters: Decorating

Step 1

Cut out squares of scrapbooking paper (or photos) to decorate your coasters. My tiles are 4" across, so I cut out pieces of scrapbooking paper 3.5" across, to leave a pocket-size border around the edge.

Pace ii

Make sure your tiles are clean and dry out. If they're greasy, then give them a wipe with methylated spirits or rubbing alcohol to make clean them.

Completely paint the blank side of a decorative paper square with Modern Podge or white glue. Make sure you lot get right upwards to the edges. It'south best to work on a piece of chip paper that y'all don't mind getting mucilage on.

Place the glued piece of decorative paper onto a tile. Press on it firmly to remove any air bubbles. I recommend using a glass tumbler as a rolling pin and using a rolling motion from the eye to the edge of the paper to work out whatsoever bubbles. The showtime time I did this I just used my fingers and even though I thought I was thorough I still left some bubbles under the newspaper which I only noticed once the glue was dry out.

Repeat the process for the residual of the tiles. Take a loving cup of tea and a biscuit and wait 15 minutes for the glue to dry earlier going on to the next footstep.

Step three

Check for any bubbles under the paper. If you see whatsoever, pop them with a pin and flatten them out.

Brush a layer of Mod Podge or white glue over the superlative of the decorative newspaper. I like to brush all in the same direction.

Wait until the glue dries articulate (about 15 minutes), then pigment on another layer, this time at right-angles to the first layer. It's really important that yous completely seal over the paper with glue, then that later the varnish doesn't soak into the newspaper and discolor it.

Leave glue to dry overnight, then that it's completely dry before you apply the varnish in the adjacent stride.

Don't worry if the stale glue has a ridged surface texture from the brush strokes. When you varnish the coasters information technology will create a beautifully smooth surface and you lot won't come across the ridges any more.

How to Make Coasters: Waterproofing

I strongly recommend varnishing your tiles to make them waterproof. If you leave them unvarnished then they'll look OK, but they'll e'er have a slightly tacky (sticky) feel to them, and volition stick to a hot cup placed on them. As well they'll stain if tea or coffee gets on them. Varnishing your tiles with Envirotex volition requite them a glass-like waterproof stop which I call up is actually worth it.

Mind you, the Envirotex epoxy varnish is going to baste everywhere when you lot pour it on your coasters, so before you start it'southward a good thought to:

• work on a disposable surface like a big slice of cardboard or several layers of newspaper
• identify each of your coasters on top of a disposable cup, to prevent them getting stuck to your work surface
• put on some rubber gloves, because it'due south unhealthy to get epoxy on your skin

The Envirotex smells a flake so you lot might want to piece of work in a room with an open window. It non anywhere about every bit stinky as spray-on varnish though, which was something else I tried (but wasn't happy with the results of) along the fashion in my quest for how to make coasters waterproof.

Pace 1

Marking lines at 1oz and 2oz (30 mL and 60 mL) on 1 of your disposable plastic cups. That's assuming you lot're making iv coasters, each 4" square. If you're making more or less, yous'll need to follow the instructions on the Envirotex package for how much you'll need.

The way I marked the lines was to put verbal amounts of h2o into the cup (using digital scales) and mark the level with a Sharpie mark. You could also utilize measuring spoons to measure out out the water. Make sure you completely dry the cup later.

Another selection is to buy disposable measuring cups that already take measuring lines marked on them, simply I figured I could but as hands brand my own for cheaper.

Step 2

Put the Envirotex bottles in a bathroom of warm (not hot) water to heat up.

While the bottles are warming upwards, cover the edges of the base of your tiles with adhesive tape, and trim any excess. This will arrive easy to remove any drips of Envirotex subsequently.

Pace three

Pour 1oz (thirty mL) from each Envirotex bottle into your measuring cup. Stir for 1 minute using a wooden paddle. Afterward 1 minute, pour the mix into your 2nd cup, and stir for some other minute. Information technology's important to use 2 cups like this, because information technology leaves behind the unmixed epoxy on the sides of the first cup.

When stirring, you want to stir fast enough to mix the resin, merely don't stir so vigorously that you make bubbles .

Step 4

As shortly as you've finished mixing the Envirotex, cascade it onto the center of your coasters. Try to split it evenly between all 4. Notice how each coaster is balanced on top of a disposable cup to foreclose it getting glued to the work surface.

The Envirotex will class spreading puddles on each tile and start dripping over the sides. Don't worry about the drips, they're a normal part of the process.

You lot want the Envirotex to completely cover each tile, so if it doesn't quite reach into the corners then utilize a scrap of cardboard to help spread information technology.

Also use a scrap of cardboard to make sure that the Envirotex completely covers the sides of each tile.

Footstep 5

About 15 minutes after you poured the Envirotex, you will notice tiny bubbles rising to the surface. Breathe gently over the surface of each tile to pop the bubbles. If y'all're nervous virtually putting your face up too close to the tiles then you can exhale on them through a straw. Alternatively, y'all can use a accident torch or estrus gun (just don't put them as well close to the coaster or you'll burn down the Envirotex!).

Step six

About 30 minutes after you lot poured the Envirotex, apply a scrap of cardboard to wipe any drips from the bottom of the tiles. Expect another xxx minutes, and wipe away the drips again. By this stage you volition take drips of Envirotex epoxy all over your work surface. I hope you protected it with paper or cardboard!

Cover your project with something (due east.g. big cardboard box) to prevent dust landing on the coasters, and allow the Envirotex cure for 24 hours.

Update: I've been told that after the initial 24 hr ready you tin can bake the epoxy in the oven at 175 °F (80 °C) for 2-3 hrs to help it actually set up stone solid, but I haven't tried this myself. Some other reader told me that they tried it only it made their tiles lose their gloss. If y'all attempt it, please let me know how it works for you lot (in the comments )

Step vii

In one case the Envirotex has set, skin the adhesive tape (which will be covered in drips of Envirotex) off the bottom of the coasters.

If information technology'south hard to remove the record, yous might demand to first file the bottom edges of the tile with a smash file or sandpaper.

If there are imperfections on the surface of the Envirotex (east.1000. areas that somehow got missed), then you can "rescue" the projection by pouring on a second coating of Envirotex.

Footstep 8

As a final touch, adhere felt squares to the bottom of your coasters with glue or double sided tape. Some craft stores fifty-fifty sell adhesive-backed felt which makes information technology super easy. Yous could also use cork-lath instead of felt.

Finished!

Here are the finished coasters, ready to be given every bit a gift! The Envirotex coating cures to full strength and toughness most 72 hours (iii days) subsequently pouring, at 70 degrees F (21 °C). Later on this time the coasters are set up to use. The cure fourth dimension is slower at lower temperatures.

I hope you enjoyed learning how to make coasters and that you establish my instructions articulate. If you have whatever questions or comments, or but want to say hullo, and so please contact me with this handy course .

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions

Many people learning how to make coasters accept asked me these questions...

Q: Is the Envirotex waterproof?
A: Yes, information technology'southward completely waterproof. It sets like a clear hard plastic.

Q: Is the Envirotex heatproof?
A: Information technology's fine to put a hot loving cup of tea of java on it, only not a pot from the stove.

Q:Is the Envirotex scratch-proof?
A: Sort of. It'southward like a clear, hard plastic, so it will get tiny scratches over time.

Q: Volition a hot cup of tea stick to the Envirotex?
A: Unfortunately yeah, it will, just a little bit. But much less than any other varnish, coating, modern-podge etc that I've tried. If anyone figures out a improve pick and then let me know !

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