Mosaic glass is not a very difficult hobby to learn. However, it does take some time to make and there are some things that can be a bit annoying to do. With the right tools and a bit of practice, you can master mosaic-making quickly!

Basic things you need to start:

• A glass scorer
• Glass (of course)
• Glass breakers.. do not take the plastic caps off, they are there to protect your glass.
• Silicon glue
• Clear Silicon caulking
• A picture frame with glass, not plastic
• An image off the internet to mosaic
• Tape
• Nippers
• Tile grout
• Brush

• Gloves, if you would like to not get cut as easily. Cuts do and will happen when you are working with cut glass, so be careful.

  There are other tools to help you as well, such as a Cutter’s Mate and the grid that comes with it. The Cutter’s Mate is a scoring tool that is helpful for mosaic pieces as well as stained glass, because you have more control than you would with a regular scorer. It can also help people with pain in their arms or hands be able to work better on the glass, because it requires less force to score cleanly.

Gluing and securing your background pieces for glass

Before you can even begin to THINK about starting a mosaic piece, you must first secure the glass in the frame. Pull the back cardboard or paper or whatever out of it, all you need is that glass and the frame. You need to use your silicon glue to glue the glass in the frame and then use the caulking to reinforce it and make sure it isn’t going anywhere! Allow the caulking to set for the time it requires on the tube.

Prepare Your Base

Tape the picture to the back of the frame once the caulking is cured. Make sure your glass pieces, your background glass in the frame, and any glass beads are all clean before you use them, so as not to get dirt trapped between the glass after your project is complete. Also… never ever place the photo on top of the back piece of glass. This will mean you have to move every piece off of the paper and move it before you can re- arrange and glue them down, which means the only thing you accomplished is cutting the glass pieces. ALWAYS attach it to the back.

Tips for grouting your piece

If you choose to mix your own from the powdered stuff, you are looking for a thickness similar to mayonnaise or toothpaste.

 If you want glitter grout, this grout you can buy from amazon is so pretty. Mix in a good clump once your consistency is correct in your grout.

Make sure you have an airtight container to put your grout in, along with a putty knife for mixing.

Some extra tips for working with mosaic glass

Cover your glass piece completely with glue on the back when you stick it on. Air bubbles are the enemy!

DON’T USE GLASS NIPPERS ANYWHERE NEAR YOUR EYES. The glass pieces tend to go flying.

When you use the scorer, press down hard and make sure on the starting point and end point of the glass, the glass is very clearly scored, so as to prevent the glass from breaking wrong.

Some tips to make your piece look the best it can!

Cover your glass piece completely with glue on the back when you stick it on. Air bubbles are  the enemy!

DON’T USE GLASS NIPPERS ANYWHERE NEAR YOUR EYES. The glass pieces tend to go flying.

When you use the scorer, press down hard and make sure on the starting point and end point of the glass, the glass is scored all the way. This will help you break it cleanly.

Thanks for reading this! I hope it helps you with future mosaics.