Eurosia terracotta tiles (1)

Mini-tile preparation, treatment and application

Material needed:

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PVC glue

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Flat hard bristle brush (glueing)

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Tile cutter

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Sand paper

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Cement for mosaics

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Flatting (synthetic or water based)

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Flat soft bristle brush (flatting)

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Syringe (needle not required)

 

  1. It’s a good idea to spend time choosing and trying out the arrangement of the mini-tiles before glueing.  If the layout you have chosen requires triangles, (e.g. herring bone pattern), split the tiles before you apply the glue.  With a sharp cutter, score a line where you want to split the tile and firmly snap the tile in two by pushing the edges of the tile downwards.  Sand paper the edges where necessary.

  2. Using the hard brush apply a thin layer (approx. 1mm) of undiluted PVC glue.  Following your chosen pattern place the mini-tiles on the glue, leaving 1mm between the tiles to allow for any excess glue.  Glue no more than 20-30 tiles at a time, so that should a mistake be made the tiles can be repositioned.  Leave to dry.

  3. When the glue is completely dry, using a soft flat brush carefully apply a thin layer of slightly diluted PVC glue over the tiles.

  4. Once again wait until the glue is completely dry then apply a flatting or transparent water or solvent based paint.  If you like the Tuscan terracotta effect then glaze or wax should be used.

  5. Wait until everything is dry, then using cement for mosaics which sets in approximately 1 hour, fill any gaps left between the tiles.  Do not use plaster or quick-setting filler which only take 10 minutes to dry!  Prepare a small quantity of cement at a time.  If you want to colour it, add a small quantity of coloured powder or acrylic to the water used to prepare the cement: two parts cement to one part water (if necessary add more water, a little  at a time).  Using a syringe or a brush (I even use my fingers!) apply the cement in the gaps, wipe off excess using a damp (well wrung out) cloth.

N.B. If you are using a fret pattern which has been previously decorated and treated, start at number 2: glue with PVC glue then, as numbers 3 and 4 are not necessary, fill the gaps left between the tiles with cement and remove the excess with a soft cloth so as not to damage the decoration.