The Art of Mosaics - Tips and Techniques

Cleaning Grout

2008-05-18T07:25:00.002-05:00

As many of you know, grout can ruin a project or make it beautiful. I have had a lot of clients asking me how to get the grout off of the tiles or how to get grout out of the tiny pores or indentations of the tiles.

First off, many people love the grout being stuck in the pores. So don't think you are weird if you like how it looks. When this happens you get a wonderful natural, earthy overtone to your finished product. This is especially true if you are doing a backsplash with our Art Tile Collection.

If you don't like this look then you will need to act quickly. Quickly means within 24 hours.

There is a wonderful product at Lowe's call Grout Haze Remover. This is a chemical that works very well in cutting into the haze that can stay on the top of your tiles. You must mix it as half chemical and half water. If not then you will leave another weird sticky residue on top of your tiles. Take an old sock or rag and dip it into your mixture. Squeeze it out well and wipe off the haze. It is really that simple.

If you have grout in the pores or striations and want it out then you will need a stiff bristle brush. Often a toothbrush with hard bristles will work fine but sometimes you will need the grout brush from your hardware store (this is if you left the grout on for too long). Dip your brush into the Grout Haze Remover/water mixture and brush off every tile that has the grout stuck in the pores. It really won't take as long as it sounds. After you brush the tile then wipe it off with a clean rag.

These two methods should take care of all of your grout residue issues. If you leave the grout on for longer than 48 hours, you are pretty much stuck with what you have.

Places to Get Ideas

2008-05-11T08:12:00.007-05:00

If you are "not creative" or just in a funk about what project to do next, the fix it easy. My very

favorite place to get a design idea is from looking at rugs. Not carpet but rugs. Rugs are made with cool designs and patterns that range from very simple to very elegant and difficult. I don't copy these but instead use them as a muse.

A great website with thousands of rugs is http://www.homedecorators.com/Rugs/. Here you can choose to see designs with different styles, colors, etc. The designs are beautiful.

When I opened my showroom in Shawnee, I did a mosaic rug in the showroom floor. I based it off of this rug from this website. Anyone that was able to come to my showroom then knows that my final creation was pretty cool. Here is what I ended up with. It is a lot different but then again similar.

So next time you are in a slump and need an idea boost check out the website http://www.homedecorators.com/Rugs/ and see what will inspire you!

Teaching Young Children the Art of Mosaics

2008-05-04T07:56:00.003-05:00

I have been in one of our local schools for two weeks teaching the entire school how to create mosaics. These students are from Kindergarten to 5th graders. They were so much fun!

This was my first attempt at teaching elementary kids. I have taught middle school students and knew what to expect but the elementary students were so different. I took in 4" ceramic tiles as the base and the Art Tile Minis for the tesserae. We used Weldbond for the glue.

I went in with the plan to show them examples of a mosaic and discuss what makes something a mosaic. I was then going to talk to them about the history of mosaic art and finally show them how math is so closely related. I did this with the first class and quickly ran out of time. I never realized that the 4th graders would take so long to glue on all of their tiles. Instead of the planned hour, it took 1 1/2 hours and that is with all of the adults pushing these kids along.

I learned to leave out all talk of history and math and just focus on how to make the mosaic. The students all had a design drawn beforehand onto a grid paper. The paper had 10 squares going across and down and the kids were supposed to replicate the design using the tiny tiles. This worked pretty well after they got the first row and column set up. They didn't understand the concept of grout joints either but didn't get too frustrated when I made them move their tiles to give that little space.

I had one fifth grade class come in to grout and that was a huge mistake. They were a little rough and kept popping off the tiles. It was a nightmare. So I am going in every morning this week to work on the grouting. The projects are turning out beautiful and should be ready by Mother's Day!

Price Increase

2008-04-24T06:51:00.003-05:00

It is happening all over...prices are going up on everything. With our latest shipment of Art Tile, we are forced to raise some of our prices on the Art Tile Collection and the Art Tile Minis. I hate to have to do this but with the price of everything going up and the value of our dollar going down, our overseas factory has to charge us more.

The new pricing will go into effect on May 1. It won't be much. The Art Tile Collection A and B colors will increase to $4 a sheet and the D colors will increase to $10 a sheet. In the Art Tile Minis, the A and B colors will go up to $5.50 a sheet and the D colors will go up to $11 per sheet.

To help offset the price increase I am giving you a blog coupon. This will be on the Art Tile Collection only. Save 25% using Discount Code: blogger0424 and it will expire May 24, 2008. Anyone can use this coupon including our Artist clients!

Choosing Tile Colors Online

2008-04-18T07:23:00.002-05:00

The hardest part about selling mosaic tiles online is color matching. Everyone's monitors are set differently so everyone's monitors will show the tile colors differently.

Recently I sent out an order that had a sheet of Marmelade and a sheet of Islands. The customer stated that the Marmelade was different on her monitor but the Islands matched perfectly. She couldn't understand how this happens.

Think of it like this...Marmelade is orange and Islands is blue. The color settings on your monitor that produce orange are different than the ones that produce blue. So it is possible to have one that is close and another that is totally off.

So what is the best answer to this never ending problem? Samples, samples, samples! If color is extremely important to you then order a sample. On www.tileshack.com you can order a sample board, full sheet of tile, or just a small 25 tiles swatch. Yes, dyelots are going to change but it isn't by much so your tiles will still be very close later on down the road. This will also save you time and frustration.

Photographing Your Finished Mosaic

2008-04-11T06:58:00.006-05:00

Taking a picture of your finished mosaic is harder than it sounds. When you do a piece that includes all sorts of glass you are going to have a reflective problem. Some glass photographs better than others. Vitreous glass tile is not a high gloss so it is not too bad but the crystal glass can be horrible.

If you stand in front of your piece and snap the picture you will most likely see yourself and all the glaring light around you. The colors will not turn out correct and you will probably end up with a very dark picture. Iridescent glass causes the same problem as the crystal glass.

To get a decent picture without a professional photographer, you will need a good camera. Those cheap digitals don't do much for glass tile. You will need some sort of light diffusing system. I found a great set up at Wal-Mart that was cheap back in the camera department.

After having the proper tools, you need to plan to take a picture of the finished mosaic from an angle. This will keep the reflections low. You don't have to go at such a stark angle as the picture to the right but get a little tilt on your angle.

Here are two of our product pictures taken at different angles so you can see the difference. The one on the bottom is exactly like the actual blend. The one on top threw the colors terribly. (Yes we are working on better pictures ourselves!)

Adhesives for Outdoors

2008-04-06T08:26:00.002-05:00

As spring approaches, I am getting the most common question...what adhesive do I use for my outdoor projects??? You really have to know the answer to this or your project will get ruined.

First of all, it doesn't matter what glue you use if you use the wrong base. Remember that when wood gets wet, it can warp. Once it warps, your tiles will pop right off. Your best surfaces for outdoors include cement board (hardibacker), glass, and concrete. I have used wood outdoors with good results though. You have to make sure to completely seal it (that includes the bottom) and don't put it directly in the weather.

Now for adhesives...
Thin set mortar is by far the best adhesive for outdoors. It is basically concrete. You don't have to worry about water getting to your glue and causing it to loosen. Once thin set is dry it is hard as a rock. The bad thing is that thin set won't adhere to glass. It has to be applied to a porous material such as concrete. This is by far the best adhesive for your stepping stones!

If you want to do a glass vase (or even a terra cotta pot), then I recommend Liquid Nails. This stuff can stick to almost anything but works especially well on glass. I do not recommend the clear Liquid Nails. The only kind that I have good experience with is Liquid Nails for Small Household Projects. It is a putty color so you don't want to use it with clear tiles. The great thing about this stuff is that it sets up quickly so you don't have to deal with your tiles sliding down the side of your vase.

If your heart is set on using transparent tiles then you will have to try silicone. Just look for the kind that is good for use in a shower or bath. I don't like using silicone since it is so stringy but it might work well for you.

Discount Codes and Offers

2008-04-01T06:34:00.002-05:00

Mosaic supplies can be very expensive if you are not careful. We completely understand this and I try to keep our prices down as low as I can without making us go broke. We do try to offer discount codes or special offers on a regular basis to help offset the cost of your tile. Believe it or not, we have actually had people think that our tile is cheap, poor quality tile because we have the price so much lower than some of our competitors. It is easy to change their minds once they see the tile in person. We keep the pricing low because we import many of our products ourselves. After all of this our clients are very pleased with the transaction and the money they have saved.

So check back on our site often to see what we have on sale, on clearance, or for free. Check this blog often too. Sometimes we stick coupons in here for even more savings. For example, you can use discount code blogger0308 to get free 1 1/2 pound container of grout. Next time you order from us just add the color of grout you want to your cart and type in the code. It will take off $4 for the cost of the grout. This code is good for anyone including Artist and Trade accounts.

Affordable Vinyl Graphics

2008-03-28T07:09:00.002-05:00

There is a new business in Owasso and online. Affordable Vinyl Graphics has a very cool website and an awesome project. It is not directly tied into mosaics but the owner of this company, Heather Rodden, is a very nice person that will go out of her way to get you exactly what you need.

In case you don't know, these vinyl graphics can be installed anywhere including painted walls, metal, plastics, etc. They won't damage the surface that you put them on. So you can hang your mosaic art on your living room wall and then have Heather do a cool graphic that includes the name of your piece. She can do it in any font and tons of colors! You then stick the vinyl under or around your finished art while it is on the wall.

Imagine creating a round piece then having Heather do the name of the piece so that it archs around your art. Cool effects! So hop over to Affordable Vinyl Graphics when you get a chance and make sure to look at their Photo Gallery.

Your Grout Color

2008-03-24T06:27:00.002-05:00

This is the most common question for me...what color grout should I use? This is a very tough question since this can ruin your project if the wrong color is chosen.

Remember the rule of thumb:

Mostly warm colors...use brown grout
Mostly cool colors...use gray grout
Mostly vivid colors (all very bright)...black is a possibility
All white...use white grout

I have people that do a piece where the focal point is all in blue and the back ground is all in brown. Since blue is a cool color they think gray but imagine gray grout with brown tiles...Yuck! You want to choose a color that will make the entire work flow. Brown would be best in this case. What if your focal is all blue and the background is all orange. In this case you will want to use gray to keep your focal from being fractured. Gray would look fine with the orange tiles too.

Don't forget the correct intensity. If your piece is mostly dark then use a darker tone. If it is mostly light use a lighter.

So the rule of thumb is just a guideline. Always do the grout test to make sure of what color to use. Simply don a mask and sprinkle a little of each grout possibility into the grout joints of your piece. See what looks best then vacuum the dry grout out before mixing the real batch.

Tulsa Home & Garden Show

2008-03-10T07:27:00.013-05:00

Hello everyone! The Tulsa Home & Garden show is now over and life can start getting back to normal for the Tile Shack crew. It was a huge success and I wanted to share some of the pics of our booth.

We put together some great displays that show our tiles installed.

We also had some great artwork. Carriera and Artemesia were created by Tish Busking. The shoes and aquarium were done by Sean Busking.

We also got in some rest and play time with some our builder friends.

Tulsa Granite and Middleton Construction of Tulsa also featured our tiles in their booths.

Finishing Edges on an Art Project

2008-03-01T07:03:00.003-06:00

Finishing edges on a work of art has always been an issue. There are several ways that will complete your piece and make it gorgeous.

Try:

Build a frame out of wood. This works especially well when thin backerboard or Wedi board has been used as the substrate.
Do a grout rub on the edges. The grout won't stay in bulk but will leave a fine layer of grit and color that will blend well with the rest of your piece. Just rub down the edges while grouting the rest of the piece. Make sure to pick up your piece and wipe off the excess build up before it sets up. This works well with wood and Wedi board.
Use stained glass copper foil. This stuff has an adhesive backing so it sticks well on the edges. For this to really work you will need to make sure your edge is clean of all grout. The adhesive doesn't stick well to dried grout. I use this when I do a piece on backerboard but it can be used on all surfaces. For a silver edge, use the tape that is used on duct work that you can buy at your local hardware store.
Paint those edges. This is really only a good technique if your work is done on wood. Be sure to tape off the edges before grouting. Pull off tape before grout has set and paint in a couple of days.
Brass foil is a great edging for wood. This is a metal band that is nailed onto the sides of your piece before you grout. Here is a link to a company where we buy our's. We buy brass foil that is .02 mm. Be sure to buy the width that you will need for your surfaces. Go the extra penny and buy brass nails to use on this stuff. It will give a nice finish.

Although you can lay tiles on your edge, I never recommend it. If your piece gets bumped or falls those edge pieces have a good chance of falling off.

Shipping Costs

2008-02-25T08:34:00.002-06:00

With gas prices constantly going up, our freight costs go up too. Many clients don't understand why shipping is so high. Rest assured that we only charge the actual shipping plus our $1 for handling. When you are checking out on our site, your cart will return the real time shipping rates for UPS or USPS.

Now let's see how many people read this blog. I am offering you a free shipping coupon on your order of $50 or more. This is a one time coupon and can be used by anyone within the Continental US. If you live in Alaska or Hawaii, I will split the shipping with you but you will have to type the code into the Comment box to get the offer. The Discount Code is freeship2252008 and is valid until March 25, 2008.

Finishing Edges on a Commercial/Residential Installation

2008-02-23T07:32:00.010-06:00

The big question this week has been how to finish your edges of your installation. If you are used to working with ceramic tiles then you have to realize there is a difference with the glass tiles. Most glass tiles are colored throughout so even the edges are colored. This just means that you don't need a bull nose tile to cover the edge to keep color.

My favorite way to complete the edge is to just rub grout into the small gap along the edge. I will tape it off first so I don't get grout on the wall or surface that the tiles are adhered. Then I will grout as usual making sure to rub the grout down the edge of the tiles. As soon as I clean off the excess grout, I will remove the tape to give a nice finished area.

You can also leave the gap of the tile edges alone. After grouting and cleanup, take a caulk that is your grout color and caulk down the edge. You may be caulking other areas too so do it all at the same time.

Framing it out is another way. It looks good but is a little more work. This is especially nice if you are doing wainscoting with tile on your wall or just running a border of tiles around your bathroom. Take a piece of molding and stain/paint it first. Then nail it in to frame your tiles after installation. It would be best to grout before doing this part.

Some people don't want the tiles to just stop at the end of their cabinets and counters. Try stair stepping the tiles down to give it a more flowing look. You have to have the right size top and bottom of your area to do this though. Refer to the picture at the left.

As you can see, there are several ways to finish the edges of your installation. You can make it as simple or elegant as your space needs.

Why on Earth have I not posted lately????????

2008-02-16T07:59:00.003-06:00

I have been so busy that I completely forgot about my blog for 2 weeks. This is crazy!

Business has been incredible but getting ready for our latest shipment was the main reason. We received over 22,000 pounds of glass in last week and we had to find a place to put it all. Our warehouse is packed now! We, at least, created a path to get from the front to the back so that we can move easily.

I promise to be better about posting. Of course now I am getting ready for the Tulsa Home and Garden Show. UGH! Too much to do and too little time!

Grout Joints

2008-01-30T06:56:00.001-06:00

A grout joint is that space between the tiles where the grout will fill. There are some mosaics that are so well done that you don't even see the grout joints. Then there are mosaics that are so well done that you do see all of the grout joints. Wait...does that make sense???

A typical mosaic art piece is created so that the grout will only smooth over the entire piece but has only a small part in the final look of the piece. For instance, a landscape done is gorgeous greens and blues sweeping across the substrate will have minimal grout joints so that your eyes only focus on the overall picture not the individual tiles.

So why not let your grout joints work for your piece? In the mosaic shown, you can see there are some deliberate grout joints and it adds an essential style to the mosaic. When looking at this rainbow piece, you see all of the circles are emphasized with the black grout.

This was originally drawn out as many circles and lines. I filled in the spaces but made sure to keep with the flow of the circles. I filled the outer small circles with a solid color of vitreous tile to add an added accent but it is still the grout joints that bring the focus of the piece.

You will have to draw out your design ahead of time. That is the only way to make this technique work. Try experimenting with different drawings. I saw a mosaic once that had words done in the grout joints. Close up you couldn't tell but when you backed away you saw the name of the mosaic piece in the grout. It was very cool!

Art Tile Collection/MatrixColor

2008-01-24T19:34:00.000-06:00

Well you may have noticed that the names have changed for the MatrixColor tiles. We have a new shipment coming in with new colors. We thought it would be appropriate to change the name at the same time.

Our new Art Tile Collection will consist of 53 colors that includes a gorgeous crimson, olive green, and a rich dark brown. The MatrixColor Q Tiles have also changed. We are adding 4 new colors to this line as well. We will get photos posted as soon as the shipment arrives in our warehouse.

You will also see that we are adding a new line of metallic glass that we are importing ourselves called Brushstrokes. This will have 10 popular colors for you to choose. The best thing is that we can keep the price down.

The shipment is due into the US Monday so we should have the new goodies about a week later if customs is nice to us. We will send out an email notice letting you know.

As many of you have seen, we are still clearing out some items. Keep looking in our Limited Lots section for new items being added.

Installed Mosaic Logo

2008-01-20T07:48:00.001-06:00

I just realized that I never posted about the installation of the mosaic logo that I had worked on for a few weeks back in October. After finishing the tiling onto mesh, I delivered it in pieces. It looked great uninstalled. Here is a picture of it before it was cut up and installed.

The company was having carpet put all around the mosaic so they had their carpet guy install the logo. He did a great job installing but chose to grout it in white grout. It ruined the piece! Here is the picture of it installed.

This shows how white grout can completely fracture the piece. Since the background was made using a dark cobalt blue tile the white grout really stands out. It doesn't look as bad on the center where a pale blue was used.

I would have recommended a medium gray to be used but was not consulted unfortunately. So I instead sent the owner a link to a grout stain product that I don't think he ever used.

Project Idea #5 - Mosaic Windows

2008-01-17T07:03:00.000-06:00

If you have ever gone to a flea market then you probably have seen old windows for sale. These are the ones that are rectangle shaped with the four sections of glass, paint peeling on the wood but very sturdy. If you can get it cheap, I suggest buying one or two. Just make sure the glass is still in one piece.

You can clean up the paint by scraping it off and repainting. I have seen many clients that leave the peeling paint the way it is to add character to the piece.

After you get the wood cleaned up, you can just mosaic directly onto the glass. Use a mixture of opaques and translucents to give a wonderful overall effect when the light shines through. You can use stained glass or glass tiles or both. Weldbond is a great adhesive to use since it dries clear. Once you get all of your glass on then grout it the next day. Be sure to tape off your wood before grouting though.

Once you have it completely finished you will need to add a hanger to it. I suggest screwing in round hooks on the top corners and attaching a chain. The window can now just hang from the chain. Screw in a hook in your existing window and hang your new window so the light can illuminate your piece.

Grout Study

2008-01-07T06:58:00.000-06:00

Even though we have this formula that we use for choosing your grout color, sometimes it isn't that easy. I have a piece that I am getting ready to grout today. I have contemplated the grout color for 3 days. It consists of metallic glass tiles of Henna and Painted Desert. Henna is a very dark brown with varying colors of black to medium brown. Painted Desert is an orangy rust color.

My first thought was black. Black grout doesn't actually dry black (more of a dark charcoal gray) so that really won't work with my brown based tiles. Then I thought a dark brown. Dark brown is a very difficult color to achieve though. My last thought is a mixture of black and mocha grout. Any one of these three might look good.

Now that I have basically three options for grout, I am going to perform a grout study. I glued sets of tiles onto a board. I used more Henna than Painted Desert so I laid them out as Henna.Painted Desert.Henna. I will mix the black, then brown, then the combo grouts and put one between each set of glued tiles. After the grout dries I should be able to see which grout color will look the best with my tile colors.

You can do this with any project that you make. Save some of those scrap tiles and glue one of each color used to a board. Do this several times so you can test several colors at once. By doing a grout study, you may save your mosaic from ruin by using the wrong color of grout.

Mosaic a Different Shape

2007-12-30T08:16:00.000-06:00

Now that Wedi board is readily available, take a leap and mosaic something wild. If your normal substrate is a square, cut out a circle instead. If you normally use a circle then cut out a wavy rectangle. The shape of your substrate can completely change the look of your finished piece. The piece shown is done on Wedi.

Once I found Wedi I realized that I could cut out circles very easily. To get a large circle, tie a string that is the length of your radius (distance from the center of the circle to the outer edge) to a thumbtack and then tie the other end to a pen, marker, or pencil. Stick the tack in the center of your board and drag the pen around to form a circle. This is the same process as using a compass but allows you to draw a large circle.

After you get your circle drawn on the Wedi then take your utility knife and cut it out. There will be rough edges unless you are perfect at cutting. If so, just scrape them off to even out the edge.

If you want to do a wavy rectangle just draw your pattern before cutting it out. You have the freedom to make it look like whatever your fancy is at the time. As I always say...try something different whether it be a new tesserae or a new substrate or even just a new shape!

Wedi Board

2007-12-23T07:35:00.000-06:00

As you probably know, we are carrying Wedi board again. This is my all time favorite substrate to use. It is the easiest to use. If you have never used it before then read my Wedi review below.

Wediboard is a lightweight substrate that you can literally cut with a utility knife. It has a styrofoam center covered in a layer of mesh and then a layer of cement. Even though it is so lightweight, it will hold a lot of weight. This includes the weight of glass mosaic tiles! My favorite thing to mosaic is a round shape. This is very difficult to achieve with a wood base. But with Wedi, I can cut whatever size circle I want with my utility knife. I don't have to ask my hubby to cut my surfaces anymore!

Wedi board comes in two thicknesses, 1/2" and 1/4". While the 1/4" is perfect for some projects, I think hanging 1/2" is so much easier. This is because I found this cool hanging nail thingy at Lowe's that makes it a snap. All you do is hammer the sharp end into the wall where you want your finished piece to hang. Then take your mosaic and press it onto the blunt end of the nail thingy. That is it! I have a piece in my showroom that is about 2 1/2 feet in diameter that is hanging this way with no problems. As long as you get the right size, it won't poke through to your surface and pop your tiles off. Please remember that you can't do this with 1/4". It is too thin.

The other issue people have is with how to finish the edges of Wedi. When you cut it there will be exposed edges that show the blue styrofoam. I have done several things to cover it. The best way for me is to simply rub my grout along the edge. It covers the edges and keeps consistency with the grout color of the mosaic itself. I have also used the copper foil from stained glass stores and the aluminum tape from Lowes for duct work. It all works well for me I just prefer the look of the grouted edge.

I have heard people say that Wedi cannot be used outdoors. However on the Wedi website it shows that they use this stuff to create showers and such. I imagine it would be fine as long as you prep it well by covering all of your exposed edges with thinset.

There will be more to come on the subject of Wedi...

Is a latex additive necessary?

2007-12-20T07:26:00.000-06:00

Yes and No

Latex additive is a liquid that you would add to your thinset mortar instead of water when mixing. It makes the thinset more flexible once it dries and makes it very sticky. So why would you need this stuff?

Glass tiles are nonporous. This is what makes them great for use outdoors. You don't have to worry about water absorption and then freezing issues. However since they are nonporous it is a little bit harder for the thinset to grab and hold these tiles. The latex creates an amazing bond between the glass and the thinset that will make you feel safe that your tiles are going to stay on.

Obviously if you are using any other adhesive the latex additive is not necessary. Or if you are using ceramic or porcelain there is really no need for it. But it doesn't hurt to use it since it does add the flexibility of the thinset.

New Stuff

2007-12-16T08:23:00.000-06:00

It is that time of year when we say out with the old and in with the new! This means that we are discontinuing some items while getting some new things in stock. New stuff is always a lot of fun around Tile Shack. It is like Christmas everytime a new shipment comes into the warehouse!

So what is new for 2008? We have 15 new colors of AfterGlow Series. The pics on the website are actually pretty horrible right now. This tile is difficult to photograph. The shipment is due in this week so we will get better pics then. Basically there are a lot of the softer colors needed to round out this tile line. There is a soft yellow, bright white, mauves, and many pastel shades.

We also are now carrying Wediboard in the form of Wedi Packs. Wedi gets destroyed when shipped by the full sheet so we found a company that will be drop shipping this for us in precut sizes. We will have a few packs in stock at our showroom too. Those are due to arrive this week too.

If you love iridescent tile then you are going to love the Luster Series. It is everything that the Fantastix is not. These colors are pastels with a smooth iridescence to them. They are also 3/4" so they can be incorporated with all of the other 3/4" tiles that we have.

We are now selling our Mapei grout and thin set in 5 pound resealable buckets. This keeps you from having to buy it in 25 pound bags only to have it go bad on you. I have had so many people tell me that they want to use the latex additive in their thinset but don't want to buy that huge jug at the home stores. So along with the grout and thinset we are also selling grout sealer and latex additive in smaller sizes.

We have several other new items that will be on their way from overseas soon. We will announce those when they get a little closer.

Now what are we getting rid of??? It is not by choice but the Sq Palette is being discontinued by our supplier :(. We love this tile and still have a bunch in stock. Just remember to buy all that you need for your project at once. As we run out of colors we will just remove them from our site.

The glass shapes and electric gems are not going to be restocked. If you need a large amount of the glass shapes let me know. I can make you a deal on these.

If there is anything we don't have that you would like us to carry, let me know. We are always looking for new and exciting products.

Electricity is back on!

2007-12-11T18:58:00.000-06:00

We froze for most of the day but we now have power at the store. Orders flew out the door today and more will go tomorrow. We really appreciate your patience with this situation.