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September 30, 2011

Make It : Lace Tiles

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We've been meaning to post about the tiles shown in the header above, which were a featured project in our September issue. I was doing some experimenting with lace (which I have to admit I am pretty obsessed with for many reasons!) and I was so excited when I figured out this technique. It's kind of magical how fast it is and how beautifully it works. Once made, these tiles are permanently enameled and can be used for all sorts of projects.

Here's how it works: first spray one side of a piece of lace with spray adhesive (such as Super 77), then smooth it onto the surface of a ceramic tile. The glue will hold it firmly in place. Then spray quickly, (just enough to get an even color) with any spray paint or spray enamel—I like Montana colors and Krylon best. You don't even need to wait for the paint to dry, just carefully pull off the lace (even though the spray adhesive is "permanent,"it will come off easily.)

See below!

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1

An overview of the process.

2 An overview of the process.

A detail showing how fine the lace

3 A detail showing how fine the lace "stencil" is.

From our how-to, a tile spray-painted with metallic copper, before the lace is removed.

4 From our how-to, a tile spray-painted with metallic copper, before the lace is removed.

Ta-da!

5 Ta-da!

I shot this in our studio—experimenting with lining up a continuous pattern...

6 I shot this in our studio—experimenting with lining up a continuous pattern...

This shot ran in the September issue. We made them into pretty trivets. With lace cookies, no less!

7 This shot ran in the September issue. We made them into pretty trivets. With lace cookies, no less!

From a story I worked on years ago about printing with lace, sort of the opposite idea. Equally fine results, but I must admit—so much trickier than spray paint!

8 From a story I worked on years ago about printing with lace, sort of the opposite idea. Equally fine results, but I must admit—so much trickier than spray paint!

A printed lace box. I'm going to try something similar with our new technique.

9 A printed lace box. I'm going to try something similar with our new technique.

Posted by on September 30, 2011 in Make It

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