Tile 101: How to Install Mosaic Wall Tile (Or any kind, really.)

Swear to god, I went three years of my life without ever picking up a grout float, and then bam bam bam…bam bam…bam… 1677 one-inch mosaic tiles (and five other tiling projects) came into my life like heat-seeking missiles and destroyed the hours I was supposed to use for sleep. And while my fingers are still raw from smearing gallons of grout into teeny-tiny little cracks without gloves– and here I am, already teaching you my bad habits— the good news is I’ve got pictures and explanations for almost any kind of tiling project you could tackle.

1677_tiles_later

Bam! (Really, I don’t know what’s up with the repeated “bamming” but I write these posts well after midnight, so there you go…)

Let’s talk about tiling walls. Slightly more daunting than tiling floors because, like with aging, gravity does not work in your favor.

DSC_1111

But the results are well worth it.

And just FYI, I’ll give you a few hints on these paper-fronted mosaic tiles, but really all of these techniques work for any kind of wall tile.

What I Used:

  • 1677 1″ glass mosaic tiles that were attached with a removable paper “fronting” (not to be confused with backing)
  • Tile adhesive
  • 1/8″ notched trowel
  • 1/8″ spacers
  • Sanded grout
  • Grout float
  • Tile snips (they are actually called “nippers”. seriously. who makes this shit up?)
  • Assorted buckets, sponges, and rags

DSC_0932

What I Did:

Step 1: Surface Prep

Floor tile starts with a good foundation of concrete or fiber-cement backer board, and wall tile is no different. If you’re doing just a small area of tile  you can probably get away with tiling over standard drywall board, or green board. For full length tiling like the  snazzy urinal stall 1/2″ fiber-cement backer board was in order.

Backer board goes in just like drywall: score, snap, and screw in to the studs.

DSC_0719

Like drywall, the seams need to be taped and mudded to provide a smooth surface for tiling. The smaller the tile you’re using, the better you want your surface to be.

DISCLAIMER: Usually I edit my photos before posting them to this site, but I took these in a small dark bathroom with a floodlight for lighting. So you get dramatic and inconsistent pictures and since I have a house to build instead of image-correcting, this is what it is.

DSC_0938

(If you need some more info on installing wallboard, or taping and mudding joints, try Drywall 101)

A round of sanding got everything down to a nice finish.

DSC_0941

And here’s the part where I tell you something I should have done, but definitely didn’t: Take a look at your choice of tile. If you have translucent tiles 1.) you need white tile adhesive (that I DID do), and 2.) it’s probably a good idea to roll a coat of white primer on your wall before you tile. It takes hardly any time and if your adhesive isn’t perfectly spread, it will help hide any “wall” that shows through the tile.

Step 2: Understanding the Tile & Spacing

When the tile first arrived I ripped open the box like a kid on Christmas morning, and then I sat there staring at it with a quizzical expression for the next seventeen minutes.

Uh…
DSC_0916

What the hell am I supposed to do with that? Since I’ve worked more often with larger mosaic tiles that come pre-set with a mesh backing, I found this confusing.

You’ll notice I keep calling it paper “fronted” tile. Not backed. And for good reason. This is the back of the tile (as in, the side you’ll adhere to the wall.)

DSC_0913

The idea is that with translucent tiles, if you use a mesh grid the lines will show through. Also, this way is cheaper to manufacture, and also a pain in the ass to space correctly since most of the tiles will be covered with paper until well after the adhesive is set. Once everything is dry (paper facing) out, you dampen the paper and then peel it off. But right now friends, we are far far away from that happy moment.

Let’s talk about spacing. I say this every time I talk about tile and I mean it every time: Don’t go just slapping your tile up on the wall. In any space your tile should be centered on a wall (or section of a wall, in this case) so that if there are half tiles, they are equal sizes on both ends. With larger tiles, this is true for horizontal and vertical spacing, but with these itty-bitty tiles I felt justified in starting at the “top” and working my way down. Molding will cover the bottom few tiles anyway.

I recommend measuring…

DSC_0944

Laying the whole thing out…

DSC_0946

And measuring some more. You should spend almost as much time laying out the tile as you will sticking it to your wall.

Step 3: Stick It!

Okay, it’s time to take the plunge. This step requires a spackling knife or two, the notched trowel, spacers, adhesive and tile.

Hopefully you’ve measured and marked where your first “full” tiles start, so now it’s time to get messy. For itty-bitty tiles like these you want a very thin layer of adhesive. I put it on with a small spackling knife because when I turned around to look for one it was the first thing I saw.

DSC_0948

A larger knife would work just as well, if not better.

The important part, though, is using a notched trowel with very small notches to run through the adhesive and level it out. For larger tile there are trowels with larger notches.

DSC_0950

The resulting adhesive, ready for tile.

DSC_0951

DSC_0953

After the first piece is in, then you’ve got something to work with. To get the next section of tile up in the right spot, you need these babies…

DSC_0947

Small spacers. Now these were as close as I could get to the existing grout lines between tiles, but even so I did a little eyeballing as well.

DSC_0962

Nothing drives me more nuts than when people use these tile grids and you can see where the 12×12 sheets are because they don’t take enough time making their grout lines consistent.

DSC_0958

The one convenient thing about the paper-fronted tile was being able to make some cuts between tiles to help space everything out a bit more evenly.

DSC_0961

For half tiles or odd shapes– like around the plumbing fixtures for a urinal, for example– get out the trusty nippers. Wow. I hope to never say that on this website again.

This part is easy, just line up the nippers…

DSC_1056

And snap.

DSC_1057

As far as I can tell, it’s not an exact science, but grout will cover quite a few evils on tiles this small so I would recommend not getting too worked up about it.

Step 4: Waiting, Waiting, and More Waiting

Once your tile is in, you’ve got to wait for it to set before removing the paper-fronting.

Wait.

Wait.

Keep waiting.

A couple of hours at least, or overnight if you can stand it.

Step 5: Revealing Inner Beauty (and mistakes)

Ok, your patience has been tested and it’s time for the big reveal. Use a damp sponge on the paper.

DSC_0977

Wait 5 minutes and run the sponge over it again. Another couple of minutes and the paper should peel off easily.

DSC_0977

There may be a couple of tiles that need to be pried off and reapplied to get the spacing correct. A dab of adhesive on the back of the tile goes a long way.

DSC_0982

Once everything is in and dried, a couple of swipes with a damp sponge will help remove any residue from the paper backing.

DSC_1084

Step 6: Mud By Any Other Name… Still Mud

If you’re standing around with glass bits on the floor and tile adhesive in your hair thinking that this tiling business is a mess, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

This is the part where you take that beautiful tile wall and smear mud all over it. Grout, actually. I tend to use the sanded kind because I like it, but there are a number of different types of grout depending on your tile type and application… though I don’t know anything you couldn’t use a sanded grout for.

Mix it by following the directions on the package or by eyeballing it to get it to the consistency of toothpaste.

DSC_1087

Mmmm. Black toothpaste.

It always takes less water than you think at first to get it there, so to start I’d recommend going with the amounts on the package.

Then you basically smear that mess on the wall.

DSC_1092

A grout float is handy for this part. It’s essentially a trowel with a bit of foam or rubber on it to help you get all of that muddy goodness into all the little cracks and crevices.

DSC_1089

Here’s my standard rule about cleaning off grout… Wait 30ish minutes and then wipe down once (or twice) with a wet sponge, rinsing often. Then wait another hour and give it another swipe.

DSC_1095

After it’s all dried then, go over it with a dry towel or sponge to remove any grout haze. Not wet. Dry. Trust me.

DSC_1098

Step 7: Admire

And there you go! It’s pretty easy once you jump in and try it. After your grout has cured for a day or so you can use a spray on sealer (definitely necessary if your tile is in a urinal stall, or on a shower or kitchen backsplash).

In my case, then it was time for final fixtures. And threatening any guy that comes within 10 feet of the house that if he pees on any one of my 1644 tiles I will personally have his ass.

DSC_1111

Go forth and conquer those wall tiling projects now. More tiling how-to (like building and tiling your own counters) coming soon.

78 Responses

  1. Bam! Thanks for the tips. The Dude wants a similar tile in his man bathroom. Your tutorial will definitely help.

  2. Awesome tutorial, the best I’ve read about mosaic tile. I’ve been thinking about using mosaic tile for my kitchen backsplash and this just gave me a LOT of confidence to DIY it if we go that route. The man cave sure is looking good, can’t wait to see more of it!

  3. I love the way you expain it to me, but i will try to do it like just the way you are doing it .
    i pray that god gives me a project on tiles work because right now i am doing nothing
    thanks for explanation.

  4. Hi,

    You may or may not know the answer to my question, but here goes. Our home has carpeting in both bathrooms, which I think is absolutely stupid! I mean, there are the occasional toilet back ups and run overs, afterall. Anyhoo, I would like to remove the carpeting and lay tile. Here is my fear/problem…will the toilet still hook up to the pipe in the floor if there is tile instead of carpet? I hope you know what I mean.
    If you know, could you tell me? Thanks
    Dee

    1. Hi there, I think I can answer your question, in addition to commiserating over the stupidity of carpet in my bathroom at my old house. ANYTHING would be better. The world’s cheapest 50 cent ceramic tiles, the dollar store sticky vinyls, heck, break out one of those black gym foam tiles and I will dance an Irish jig on it. The carpet was AWFUL, who knows what bacteria, grime, and various ickies were lurking in there. I likely should have notified the CDC to study the carpet after I ripped it out, but I was too busy incinerating it on my lawn in triumph and then trying to talk my way out of a ticket and an unwilling trip to the looney-bin.
      However, I digress. The tile you need is not mosaic, but ceramic or other floor tile. You can accent with small mosaics in the pattern you choose, but they are too small (and costly and slippery) for walking on. You will first need to remove carpet and proceed with whatever celebration will suit your mood. Then, if you have a subfloor, look to see if there is ANY water damage. If there is, that has to come up too. That should bring you down to the actual floor installed to frame the house. You will need backerboard, of which there are varying thicknesses and types, depending on use and moisture. You will cut holes for the toilet and any other impediments. Nippers and tile cutters should ease your way.
      Once you have screwed in your backerboard, as you heard the awesome lady above, measure, measure,measure. You generally start from the middle of the room and work your way out. Lay mastic or thinset with notched trowel, set tile, tamp lightly, use spacers, repeat. When done, wipe tiles with a damp sponge (obviously, you will do this in stages on the floor). Let set overnight
      The next day you will come down and stretch muscles that are extremely unhappy with you and your activities. From there, you will spread grout over all the tiles, wiping away the excess. They have great sponges that have a terry and a sponge side. After this, you will apply a sealant specific to your needs. Once done, clean up wait a day and enjoy.
      Please remember, spacers, measure, level, backerboard and no f&^%$#@!@ carpet in bathrooms, for any reason, ever. Have a lovely day 🙂

      1. Well said! You give excellent instructions, easy to follow. Your humor gives courage to those of us who are faint of heart! I’ve tiled before, but never with these tiny mosaics. Thank you for your assistance.

  5. Thanks for all the info!
    One question though. If you wanted to make an original mosaic type design with individual tiles, can you buy this fronting paper loose of tiles? What is it called? If not, could I just use masking tape or some other alternative?

    1. Kelsey, if you were going to do your own mosaic I think you would just tile directly on the wall instead of trying to affix to paper first. I don’t think tape of any kind would work.

      My recommendation would be to lay out the pattern on a spare piece of wood or drywall and then just tile one at a time from there.

      1. gum arabic was most likely the glue on the paper. Just about any paper will do (butcher paper would work). Gum Arabic dissolves completely in water, but is very strong otherwise. Its frequently used to label glass bottles.

      2. To add to Kelsey’s question, I’d like to use the sheets, but just change out a few tiles in the pattern with tiles from other sheets (same size, same shape). Could I unstick the one’s I’m taking out from the paper and stick in the ones I want (having peeled them from their own paper?

        As an example, I saw a blog where someone was using a pre made hexagonal tile design of white with black dots. She mentioned you might like to change out each black tile with a colored tile instead (again, same size, same shape). How does it work to peel and restick these tiles to and from the backing?

        Thanks! 🙂

        1. You probably can’t stick them back on the paper, but you can cut the ones out that you don’t want to use, and then you’d just have to put the new tiles in directly on the wall where there are spaces (and be careful with your spacing!)

    2. I know this post was several years ago, and maybe everyone knows to check you tube, but I found a great way to create your own pattern. Spread your adhesive on a piece of waterproof membrane ( I bet there’s a way you could use redgard, that membrane is pricey) arrange tile on the adhesive that’s on the membrane and let dry. Now your pattern is rigid, can be cut into workable pieces and attached to your wall. There is several videos on you tube-installing pencil tile and accent tile in a shower.

  6. This is the tile i am lloking for!!!!!! lowes carried the diy backsplass kit this summer that was a peel and stick glassmosaic in these very same colors. I djdn’t have the money till now to buy the kit and they have discontinued. Where can i puchase those tiles? Please help!

    1. I am so happy that I stumbled upon this video. I happen to have a stack of the same tiles that I purchased at Lowes. 6 months ago my husband started the project on one side of the kitchen and never finished. He is Up North and I will have it done before he is back. Woo hoo! For the person looking for these specific tiles, the brand that I have is Elida Glass the number is 304876 and is called nocturnal multi grain. A google search brings up multiple ways to purchase it.

  7. Great job on the tile tutoring! Do you know how to tile over laminate countertops successfully? Or at least have a suggestion as to how I can change the “YELLOW” color. I do not look forward to having to baby sensitive ceramic counters, but no not know anything else to use?

    Thank you!

    1. I’ve put all kinds of mosaic tile (glass & ceramic)in three bathrooms directly over laminate after roughing up the surface with sandpaper or slashes with a knife. No problems whatsoever for several years. No need to do extra prep (or use backer board), in my opinion.

  8. I’m considering installing tile that consists of 3/8″ x 1 – 1 1/4″ pieces of stone that are placed very close to one another. (The store sample shows no grouting whereas the other samples are grouted.) The face of the tiles vary in depth…kind of gnarly. Is it conceivable that grouting would not be needed?

  9. Great information. But I’m afraid my main question was not answered. I hope you can advise me. I have a beautiful artificial fireplace. I bought it from a lady who had it custom built so it is very well crafted. It is wood, and I love it, but I’ve never loved the color. It is a natural, slightly beige color. The grain of the wood shows through. I’d like to paint it white. I’ve owned it for about 3 years and every time I mention painting it, someone yells at me like I’m committing a crime. But I just can’t like that color. And I love white fireplaces. Painting isnt the problem. What to do with the surround of the fireplace is the issue. It is also a creamy color that I don’t think it will look good with the rest of the fireplace painted white. I would like to tile around the fp opening. The surround is made of boards covered with a vinyl covering that has slightly raised areas — supposed to look like marble I think. It isn’t too rough. What would you think of getting tile to adhere to such a surface? The backing is very sturdy, but again, it is a vinyl. Do you think it would eventually peel off? Thank you for any help you can offer. I enjoyed your DIY lessons very much. Cecelia

    1. This is for Cecelia-I think you will have to cut a strip off the wall paper from around the fireplace, from our own experience. If wallpaper gets wet it can start to detach. It will get plenty wet when you place tiles. I wonder if anyone else has had a different experience? By the way, I think a white fireplace is striking and gorgeous. Good luck!

  10. Hello,
    Your posts are quite helpful. Is it possible to glue mosaic tile on top of a ceramic tile? The mosaic is 6 x 6 & the ceramic is 16 x 16? I’m trying to create a diamond like design in the center of the larger tile the lazy way.
    Thank you

    1. It might work with the right adhesive, but I personally wouldn’t do that. I think the best idea would be to take the extra time to cut that larger tile!

  11. My wife wants me to tile the entire wall around our fireplace. Ive never tiled anything in my life. Currently the wall is dry wall thats been painted over. Thats it. Do I need to use a special type of grout because of the chimney being behind the drywall? Do I put backerboard over the drywall and tile to that? ANY help would be huge. Thank you

  12. info about grouting great and simple to understand remodeled kitchen and contractors putting up glass backsplash they started wiping with wet sponge as soon as they put the grout in told them to wait 30 minutes for the first wipe then an hour after that they said it wasn’t necessary knew they were wrong as i read the instructions on the package will this hurt the grout

  13. You totally rocked the DYI ~ I love the way you tell it the way it needs to be. I’m getting ready to put up glass tiles on a backsplash for my Dad. I hope it turns out as good as yours!

  14. We just discovered the small white tiles that are right on the outside of our tub are loose. I can “nearly” get my pinky under it.
    Since we have never worked with bath tile what is needed to get them to adhere again????????

    THANKS so MUCH!
    Rich and Sheldon

  15. My understanding is that you don’t use sanded grout with glass tiles because quite often the sand leaves noticeable scratches on the glass. Please explain.

    1. Yes, sand will scratch the glass tiles. If this is a wall installation, you don’t use sanded grout, you use UN-sanded grout. It gets into the grooves better.

    1. Luckily this post was on how to install wall tile, which you can do regardless of whether or not every person on the internet thinks it’s pretty.

  16. Loved your article and photos of the tiling… Its bad enough grouting large tiles never mind small ones, the pattern looks good though…

  17. Love your posting! I’ve never titled before. I want to use 3/4″ mosaic tile to do a antique washstand. Currently there is a marble on the backsplash and counter area. I don’t like the colors on it. I would like to remove the marble and put mosaic on it. Do I use plywood? Do I prime before putting tile on it? If I don’t remove the marble I think the washstand will get too heavy. It’s already heavy as it is now. Thank you for any suggestions!

  18. Chuckled all the way through this but enjoyed it just the same. I am building my house in the eastern townships of Quebec and installing three bathrooms which all require tile. I am always on the web looking for tips and such and thank you for your own experiences that I can apply to my projects. Good work, and good luck in all you do! Gary

  19. It seems to be a problem cutting the slim tiles 12×12 sheet with mesh backing on the wet saw.
    when the mesh gets wet all the tiles fall off
    and they loose their adhesive to the mesh.
    Any solution for this?

    1. I would suggest cutting the mesh with scissors or a knife so you can reach the individual tiles with nippers. A bit of a long winded process but better than having the tiles fall off the wet mesh.

  20. Your website is a major trip. Love your writing style. Gonna try itty-bitty tiling and will refer to each and every step of your tutorial along the way…including the interjections. Thx!

  21. Help. I put vinyl floor tiles on kitchen walls for backsplash. Some wouldn’t stay so I sprayed with 3m rubber & vinyl adhesive, they kept falling off, now 4 months later I’m going to hang real tile-glass and ceramic combination. there is still vinyl on wall. I can’t find any information on what to do. Can I sand this and then tile? I can’t find how to remove the stuff. Or should I sand/prime and hang it? I purchased everything but don’t want to waste my time and money if it won’t work. What do you think? Thanks!

  22. I just couldn’t depart your website before suggesting that I extremely enjoyed the usual info a person supply in your guests?
    Is going to be again continuously in order to inspect new posts

  23. some tips- looks like your thinset was a little too dry, and you put it on way too thick which is why it filled your grout joints most of the way. You really need way more grout than you were able to get in there. Also keep in mind that with translucent tile all of your work behind the tile will be visible. with dark tile like you used it probably doesn’t matter as much, but with lighter colored glass tile your thinset has to be as flawless as possible. With mosaic tiles, especially mesh backed, a grout float is handy for pressing the tiles to make sure they’re all in plane.

  24. Hi,
    I’m in the middle of tiling a shower with 10×20 white ceramics. So far so good however, I’m planning to switch it up & use the same tiny square mosaic tiles (similar to what you used) for both the water taps & shower head as a feature. As the mosaic tiles needed to be thicker to match the depth of the white tiles I was installing (to make the finish flush against the wall), I purchased DTA adhesive mosaic mesh. Finally here is my question…
    I’m using Dunlop wall & floor tile adhesive for my white tiles & after mixing with water it results in being black / grey in colour. I tried to use this same adhesive with the mosaics. Put some onto the back of the mosaics (rather than on the wall first) & applied. The dark adhesive squeezed through from the back to the front. As I want the finished look to have white grout, the dark adhesive is causing a problem.
    Do I need to use a different adhesive / product for the mosaics, or is the method I’m using incorrect (I.e. applying adhesive onto the back of the mosaic first rather than directly onto the wall first)?
    Would appreciate your expertise 🙂

  25. I am redoing my fireplace surround and the mosiac tiles squares I am using are horizontal stone and porcalin smaller in size (think the tile squares are sized for a kitchen backsplash etc…. But my living room is fairly small so I didn’t want to use bulky stones… Hope I made good decision). BUT my question is, do you know if I need fire drywall AND a cement board? When I took down the standard tile surround from the builder, there was only one wall but there was a hearty amount of grey grout behind each tile. Assuming they did that instead of the cement board?

    Happy to see another chic doing all this too:)

  26. Hello!
    I am updating my bathtub and have replaced alot already to get it almost ready for tiling. ( old tub came out in 4pcs, new sub floor, new pipes ran, mold thatvwas forming killed and dried) now comes the fun part. I need advice on how or what I should do to measure the niches, pipes, and other openings I need in the tile board. I also need to know if grout can be used as an adhesive for 12X12 tiles. I was told the grout vould be used as both and that it would not ahow mistakes as easy if I were to not apply enough when actually grouting.

    Please let me know if you suggest something different.

    1. Personally I always use a thinset mortar to adhere shower tile to the wall, and then actual grout (with an additive to prevent cracking) for the grout, but I’m also a little old-school when it comes to building materials. And while it’s not the way I do it, if you were instructed by someone who installs tiles on the use of some kind of grout that can be used as adhesive as well, and you’ve done some research on the product and feel comfortable with it, I don’t know that I can advise you beyond that.

  27. I love you, and this tutorial. My bathroom is a hot mess, but this makes me think I can tackle the tile job without paying out an arm and a leg. Thank you!

  28. Hi there, I’ve been a tile setter for over 40 years so may I offer a couple of tips with working with glass tile.
    Usually when you get your glass tile there will be an information sheet that comes with it,
    The most important thing is the kind of adhesive to use.
    They all say never to use mastic, there are all kinds of thin set that are glass specific.
    Just one other thing when you spread your thin set with your notch trowel it’s good to then to softy hit it with the flat side trowel to smooth it out because with some glass you can see thru it and if you don’t do that you will see the notch trowel lines thru the glass.
    Just a side note I don’t know how many times over the years that I’ve had to take over a tile job because the person who started it when installing paper mounted glass put the paper side onto the wall and an hour later the tiles are falling off the wall like chicklets

  29. Had to remove a rather large portion of my tub wall tile which was put on in the 70s-89s – small ceramic tile in shades of moss green and white. 21 various sizes in each square. It has removed and cleaned and the back wall removed and replaced with hardibac. Is there any product out there that could be used to place the individual pieces on to make it easier to mount on the wall in a square? This tile originally had a paper backing on it but of course that is long gone. Any info you can give me will be greatly appreciated.

  30. Looks like solid work! To reply to your statement about not knowing what unsanded grout is used for, you use unsanded grout on glass tile. The sanded grout can scratch the glass. Looks like yours turned out good though!

    1. I don’t think I’d recommend that, mostly because I don’t think any tile mastic or mortar is meant to stick to that kind of backing (that’s not to say it won’t but I’m not sure how durable it would be.) Sometimes those resin surrounds also have some flex to them, which again will probably cause cracks and missing tiles in the long run. However, if the resin tub surround was already watertight I don’t think it will cause any water problems to have tiled over it… you just may find the tiles don’t stay up over time!

  31. Great tutorial and very funny too! Cute too! I’m wondering about 1/8 marble mosaics I’m stuck doing because I got them for free. Use the same process? Sanded or unsanded for the shower floor? Thanks

    1. 1/8″ grout space? I’d probably use an un-sanded grout for that. The tiling process is the same but you need to have a proper shower pan to tile on top of for this type of thing, to allow for proper drainage and no leaks. (I suggest this site for more info: http://floorelf.com/waterproof-shower)

  32. Yes 1/8 space or less. It’s so inconsistent the space because of the movement of these little things. I’ll do the unsanded thanks so much!!

  33. Hello! Your blog is great. I’d like to ask your advice on just tiling an inner fireplace surround facing with a penny tile or small marble mosaic using just an adhesive, I’d rather not get involved with thinset & grout! Don’t have a tile cutter! What do you recommend I use to just glue this tile on? Don’t make me resort to my hot glue gun by not answering! Lol just kidding. Thanks for your help.

    1. Okay, so, with any penny or marble mosaic tile that you want to look decent you’re going to have to grout between the tiles. Grout is what fills the spaces between tiles! I wrote a decent primer on tiling in general a href=”http://diydiva.net/2010/07/tile-101-the-basics-of-diy-tiling-any-kind-anywhere/” target=”_blank”>here.

      For adhering the tiles you could use a mastic which is more glue-like than thinset (and would likely stick better in this application) but you should put it on with a mortar trowel. Also, invest in a set of tile nippers to cut those small tiles.

      Hope this helps, and good luck with your project.

  34. Love your attitude and commentary!! Well done. Im still not sure how my heavy marble little bitty mosaics are NOT going to slide down the wall unless I hang them with nails working from top down..
    Champion effort for sharing 🙂

  35. We are doing a ceramic shower wall. With Carmen brown stone 15.75 inch x 23.63in sections. We was told because of they weigh of the ceramic sections that we could only do one layer a day. Is this true ? Or can we do whole shower wall in one day.. please help. I feel like the guy I hired is trying to waste my time an money.

  36. I believe this is one of the most significant info for me.
    And i am satisfied reading your article. However want to statement on few normal issues, The site
    taste is perfect, the articles is actually excellent : D.
    Good job, cheers

  37. GREAT step-by-step instructions! I have later a ton of tile of various types & applications with success……but currently I am going to do a glass, ceramic varied mosaic backsplash, my issue is with gravity! What have you found to be the best solution for the tile to adhere to the thin-set mastic pre-mixed? They are collapsing on the wall, Have done showers but as accents. Nails temporarily?

  38. GREAT step-by-step instructions! I have layed a ton of tile of various types & applications with success……but currently I am going to do a glass, ceramic varied mosaic backsplash, my issue is with gravity! What have you found to be the best solution for the tile to adhere to the thin-set mastic pre-mixed? They are collapsing on the wall, Have done showers but as accents. Nails temporarily?

Comments are closed.

I'm not interested in a mediocre life. I'm here to kick ass or die.

(formerly DIYdiva.net)