Do It Yourself Easy Stamped Rustic Tile Coasters in Minutes

Halloo dearies! This past weekend I set myself to making stamped tiles for my co-workers this holiday season. It's quick, pretty, and inexpensive if you already have some rubber stamps. The tumbled marble and quarry tiles I used, from Home Depot, were about 44 cents each (but they come in a pack of 9).

I don't like to join in the "Secret Santa" or "White Elephant" events at work. They go so over the top that it's unaffordable, and there's always anger and greed in play by the time it's over. So I just make some little things and give them out by placing on the kitchen counters with a "free for you" sign.

The key to these tiles is using "Stazon Ink." I have seen other tutorials that use latex paint, commonly called "housepaint" and also sold at places like Michael's as paint for terra cotta pots, but I didn't use that myself so I can't vouch for it. It seems it WOULD work, though.

If you have a little set of alphabet stampers, this is the time to bring them out!

I used beeswax to seal the tops of the tiles. I have a huge beeswax lump for polishing furniture and my cabinets, but you could probably get a natural candle or the small lump sold at many sewing shops for thread waxing, and use either of those. And I think the paraffin blocks sold at a lot of groceries for sealing jellies and jams would also work well.

NOTE: MANY without latex paint or Stazon Ink USE A SPRAY-ON gloss or matte sealer and have good results with regular inkpad ink images staying on but darkening quite a bit. I am just into beeswax lately.

Here are the supplies needed:

• Rough Tiles (NOT SEALED OR GLAZED TILES). I used ~3.5 x 3.5 inch "tumbled marble" and "quarry" type tiles.
• Ink or Paint
• Rubber stamps
• Beeswax or paraffin
• Felt stick-on "feet"
• Old white cotton rag or really good paper towel

Here are the steps:

• Wipe the top of the tile
• Choose a stamp or several stamps and stamp a design you like
• Let the design dry (takes only moments with the ink - go on to the next tile while the first tile dries)
• Stick on (or glue on) felt or cork feet on the bottom of the tile
• Take beeswax lump and rub over the top of the tile. I push little bits of the wax into any nooks and crannies.
• Take the rag and buff the wax into the tile; turn rag to clean area and buff excess off of the tile

 

• Set aside for the wax to "dry" - I let them sit overnight before giving away or using.

I use my coasters as spoon rests, too. The beeswax keeps liquids from soaking into the tile. Special note: The wax darkens the tile somewhat. Not dramatically, but a bit. I wanted my tiles darker, to sort of "blend in" the brown ink into the background of the tile, so I was happy at the effect.

I tried pigment inks and archival inks, and neither stayed on the tile. Stazon was the only ink I had that really stuck to the tile, as sticking was important since I wasn't sealing it with a spray. I bought my inkpad off Ebay.

As always, thank'ee for stopping by.