Magical Mosaic

We've all seen those beautiful mosaic pots at garden centers, craft shows and art shows.  But did you know that they're relatively easy to make.  And surprise, they don't have to be super intricate to add incredible beauty to your landscape.

With a few simple instructions and materials, you're ready to create your own masterpiece.

What you'll need:

A terra cotta pot.  Start out small. 8 to 10 inches in diameter is perfect.  Once your skills have improved, you can branch out to a larger pot and create a more elaborate design. 

Tile.  If you don't have any leftover tiles from a previous project, go to your home store and purchas few tiles in colors that appeal to you. 

A hammer or tile nippers to help break the tile down into smaller pieces.

Tile glue, tile adhesvie or tile mortar.  Liquid Nail works well.


Grout.

A sponge

A bucket.

Gloves.

Now that you've got all your materials, you're ready to go.

For your first project, you may want to just glue random pieces to your pot. If you want to try a pattern, then place it on the table until you get the desired design.  It can then be transferred to your pot. 

Next start gluing your pieces to your pot.  You can do this by spreading the entire pot with adhesive or you apply the Liquid Nail on each piece of tile.  With either method, you need to keep the tiles about 1/8 to 1/4 inch apart.

Let the tiles set for a minimum of 24 hours.  Once you've done this, you can grout your pot.  Mix up the grout, and put on your gloves.  Now apply the grout to the pot by pushing the grout into the spaces.  Rub it all over making sure you fill all the areas. 

Let the grout set for 10 to 15 minutes and then wip off the excess with a damp sponge.  Continue until all the grout is removed from the top of the tiles.

Once all the tiles are clean and everything is dry, polish the tiles with a soft cloth. 

To preserve your pot, use a grout sealer over your grout lines.  Wait about a week before applying the sealer.

Now you're ready to plant.