DIY Forever: Stone Photo Tiles

We wanted to do a great gift craft for December.  With all of the gift giving holidays in winter, we thought it would be a great to be able to make something you could give to a friend or family member.  It can be difficult to find a craft that is both easy and not so chincy as to end up in someone's trash bin the moment you aren't looking.  After doing some digging, I stumbled upon photo transfers to stone tiles using pictures produced with a copy machine.  The result is a beautifully weathered picture on a stone tile that can be sealed and used as a coaster or decorative tile.  The craft was easy, fun, and turned out to be a huge hit!  Click "read more" to find out how we did it!


     This was such a fun craft!  I have to admit, I have become addicted to it.  So much so that many of my friends and family ended up with sets of coasters as gifts, this year.  Not to mention the countless ones I made for myself.  The materials needed for the craft are relatively easy to source (although, the correct copier/printer to use may take some trial and error) and the craft is an absolute joy, not to mention it seems almost magical.  Here is the material list:

1. 4'' X 4'' Stone tiles - we used "Field Tile" found at the local hardware store.  You might find these under the name travertine, marble, stone, or any other name, really.  Basically, you want unglazed tile.
2. Nail polish remover (with acetone) - we found that 100% acetone did not work as well as the more common mixture of acetone and water
3. Transparency paper or acetate sheets
4. A digital image printed out using a laser toner copier.  You can print these off at Kinko's, from what I understand.  You could try using an ink jet printer, but I can't guarantee it will work as well.
5. Image manipulation program (GIMP, Picasa, Irfanview, or any number of free programs will do great . . . even a word processor could get the job done!)
6. Foam brush
7. Spoon or folding bone
8. Toothbrush or nail scrubber
9. Tile sealant, Mod Podge, or epoxy resin

 Here is the ever handy dandy visual guide:

The visual guide should pretty much work as a guide, but I'll elaborate on the steps to hopefully make things a bit more clear.

1. Scaling the image down to 4'X4' dimension is pretty straight forward; but, step by step instructions will be dependent on the type of program used.  The commands you will want to look for will be called "Scale" or "Sizing" and make sure the measurement guides are reading in inches instead of pixels or centimeters.  You will need to consult your program's help guide if you need some assistance here.  Flipping an image is not strictly necessary; but, if you have an image with words, the resulting transfer will be the reverse of the image you use.  That means if you do not flip an image with words the resulting transfer will have those words backwards.  The command you want for flip will, again, vary depending on the program you use.  Look for "Flip," "Mirror," or "Reverse" and make sure you have "horizontal" selected as the flip orientation. Once your image is set up how you'd like, print it off on regular printing/copying paper.
2. Every stone tile will have some imperfections - places that are rougher than others, small divots and pitting, even small holes, or a combination of the three.  Try to pick a tile that has a minimum of these imperfections.  You should be able to detect these imperfections by sight and gently running your fingers across the surface.  No tile will be perfect, though.  Looking at the DIY Forever tile I made as an example (in the picture and guide) you can see where the transfer didn't take as well.  This is where the imperfections are.  However, using those imperfections to your advantage results in a pretty cool weathered look.  So, you will need to play with your image to find where you think the image will be most appealing. 
3. This step is pretty straight forward.  Make sure your image is face down and gently hold it in place while you do the first couple swipes with the nail-polish soaked brush.  Once the paper is damp, it should cling to the tile with no problem.
4. This is also a straight forward step.  Just lay the film over the paper.  The film provides a kind of buffer between the soaked paper and the item you use to apply pressure.  Without it, you'd likely rip and tear the paper which would be bad.
5. The mention of 5 minutes was really just a safety zone for when we did the craft.  It could take as little as 30 seconds of even pressure applied across the image to result in a good transfer.  Speaking of pressure, you don't need to press too hard.  The nail polish remover is what is really doing the job, you just need to apply a bit of pressure across the whole image to insure good contact with the tile.
6. Again, a straight forward step.  Just gently peel up a corner and see how it has transferred.  If it looks good, take the paper off.  If it looks patchy, put the corner back down, brush a bit more nail polish remover on, and continue to rub it with your spoon or folding bone.
7. You will have some paper that sticks to the tile.  Most of this is easily removed by rubbing your fingers across the surface with some water.  The more stubborn bits can be gently scrubbed off with a toothbrush or a bristly nail scrubber.
8. Sealing the tile isn't strictly necessary; but, doing so will extend the life of your transfer.  Tile sealant can be purchased from the hardware store in the same section you found your tiles.  One bottle of sealant will go a CRAZY long way, so don't use too much and simply follow the instructions.  Tile sealant will work great for use as a coaster or decorative tile.  If you are just going to put it on your desk, shelf, or table as a decorative accent, Mod Podge will work just fine and is super easy to apply.  If you want a shiny and nigh impervious finish, you could use an epoxy resin; but, I would suggest patience and practice on a different item before applying a resin to your tile.

 If the elaboration of the instructions seems intimidating, don't worry about it.  It really is a simple craft and once you start working on it, any worries you may have will disappear.  That said, if you have any questions, please post a comment and I'll be happy to help.  If you did this craft please post some pictures and let us know what you think!