ItzKathyP Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 I've FINALLY gotten to the 2nd floor of my 1st house, the Pierce. I pretty successfully Mod Podge'd a nice paper for the floor to look like linoleum and now I need help with wall tile. I've seen the clear dimensional tile at HBS but wonder if there's a way I can learn to make realistic looking tile myself. I'm trying to develop some skills as I go along. Can wall tile be done with paperclay/Fimo? Any help you can give with this would be very much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherry Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 I have no ideas, but will watch this thread. I really would like to tile my bathroom wall as well-about halfway up, anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TinyJudi Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 Lately I have been experimenting with spackle and making stone floors. I just love the look of them. So when I wanted a tiled countertop, I basically did them the same way. I smooth my spackle on in thin layer. After it dries, I sand it as smooth as I can get it. Then I top it with another coat of spackle. Depending on how thick my layers are I will usually put two or three coats of spackle. After it dries completely (I use pink spackle that dries white so it is easy to tell when it's dry) I paint it the color I want. Let the first coat dry and apply a second. After letting it dry (sometimes I place the piece under my work lamp, not sure if this helps it dry faster or not) I carefully measure out the lines for the tiles. Using a straight metal edge and a pointed tool like an awl gently carve your lines. Do this until you have your tiles done. Then put a couple coats of clear varnish on it and ta-da! Tiled countertop! These pieces were going into a scene an older building so the small areas that are kind of chipped worked well. I didn't let the paint dry completely and I believe this is what caused the chipping. The smaller flat pieces I let dry longer and didn't have as many problems with it. I think the process would work well on walls also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeninky Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 Judi looks great!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justmesue Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 I haven't ventured to making wall tiles yet. I have been succesful with counter tops, by just using paint. I ruffed up the surface with wood filler, and sanded it out roughly, when dried I painted it black. Then I streaked it with gold mettallic and a small brush. After which I used a coat of clear gloss varnish, restreaked with silver mettallic craft paint, and let that dry. With a metal ruler and a large sharp nail, I made my tile lines, then clear coated again, and it looked like a marble tile counter top. Good luck, I'm sure whatever you try will look very nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 The tile work in La Casita is paper, all the bathroom tile is paint chips: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sommerstern7 Posted December 10, 2008 Share Posted December 10, 2008 You can use the paint chip/swatches that come from the paint store to make a really neat mosaic tile floor; I'm just not sure about whether it would work on walls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 It worked on the aforementioned bathroom walls of La Casita. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbytsdy Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 Hi Kathy, I experimented with paperclay tile for my Pierce, on the kitchen and bathroom floors: It would work just as well on the walls, I suspect. One thing that I would do differently next time is to make sure that I have plenty of paperclay before starting, instead of skimping on the edges to cover the whole floor... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 You could also make your tiles from polymer clay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ItzKathyP Posted December 11, 2008 Author Share Posted December 11, 2008 The results of your "experiments" are all wonderful! I experimented with paperclay tile for my Pierce, on the kitchen and bathroom floors. I love your Pierce - I've always loved your Pierce! The paperclay looks great and working with it just frightens the daylights out of me. You could also make your tiles from polymer clay. If you think the previous one scares me..... You can use the paint chip/swatches The tile work in La Casita is paper, all the bathroom tile is paint chips This is a super idea, and it obviously was a huge success in La Casita! I have been succesful with counter tops, by just using paint This is really interesting. I'll be it would work really well on the top of my kitchen work table, too. Lately I have been experimenting with spackle and making stone floors That turned out fabulous! Well, now it's time for me to dive right in & try these out. Maybe I'll just try a sample of each and see what I'm able to do without hurting myself. Thanks, everybody! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 Paint chips cut with scissors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherry Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 Invest in one of the scrapbooking paper cutters-they are worth their weight. Precise cuts and I did 300 tiles in about an hour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfire Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 I wish you folks were not so afraid of using paper clay. If you have ever rolled out dough for a pie or cookies you can do paper clay and I suspect the polimer clay. If you have played with clay with your kids, you can use paper clay. Get one small pack on sale at Michaels and play with it. Break a small piece off and store the rest in a sealable storage bag. if it starts to dry out, a piece of very wet paper towel wrung out and added to the bag will keep the remainder moist. Experiment! and above all enjoy it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starfire Posted December 11, 2008 Share Posted December 11, 2008 I wish you folks were not so afraid of using paper clay. If you have ever rolled out dough for a pie or cookies you can do paper clay and I suspect the polimer clay. If you have played with clay with your kids, you can use paper clay. Get one small pack on sale at Michaels and play with it. Break a small piece off and store the rest in a sealable storage bag. if it starts to dry out, a piece of very wet paper towel wrung out and added to the bag will keep the remainder moist. Experiment! and above all enjoy it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pdlnpeabody Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 If you have a steady hand, you can use the technique I used to make tiles for my fireplace mantles. Take a 1/16" thick sheet of bass wood, sand it until its glassy smooth and draw a grid with the squares at the desired size. Then carefully cut out the grid lines with an exacto knife, holding the blade at a 45 degree angle on each side of the lines. A thin strip of wood will curl up and fall off, leaving the recessed grout lines. I usually use a wash of thinned out black paint to weather the grout lines and then paint the tiles. Finish off with glosscoat and you have tiles for the walls, floors, whatever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted December 12, 2008 Share Posted December 12, 2008 Paint chips cut in 1/2" squares make great tiles! Spackle lightly the floor and then "set" the tiles in place. Paint chips are wonderful! I always grab a handful whenever I can......especially the rougher paint ones. Great for many things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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