Instructions

Materials:

o   Newspaper or some materials to cover and protect workspace

o   Water

o   Disposable gloves (nitrile or vinyl work fine)

o   Old rags

o   Sponge

o   Bucket of water

o   White distilled vinegar or rubbing alcohol

1.      Cover your workspace with newspaper. We will be mixing the grout within the bag that is provided.  Put on those gloves!  Add small amounts of water to the grout bag.  Usually, I do a teaspoon at a time and mix the grout each time water is added.  Mix it in the bag by kneading it like bread dough or by hand.  You will want the consistency to be like creamy peanut butter.  If it seems a bit dry, add very very small amounts of water at a time.  If it seems soupy, let the grout sit for about 15 minutes before applying it to your mosaic.

2.     Take a glob of the grout and start to spread it all over your mosaic except the bottom.  The grout will need to get into all the nooks and crannies of your mosaic and those edges.  Be careful to not cut your hand!  Glass is sharp and your glove will more than likely rip, but don’t sweat, wet grout will wash off your hands easily with soap and water.   Wipe off any excess grout and let your mosaic sit for about 15 minutes

3.     After 15 minutes, using a dry sponge, we are going to rub the excess grout off of our mosaic.  The grout should be crumbly and kind of sandy when you rub it off.  Ooh La La, can you see how cool your mosaic is with the grout?  There will be additional cleaning, so wait again for about an hour before the next step.

4.    Clean out your sponge in a bucket of water.  NEVER EVER WASH YOUR SPONGE OR DUMP GROUT WATER IN YOUR SINKS!!  Grout is a cement hygroscopic substance.  If this goes down your drain, it could clog up your septic and lead to some serious plumbing problems.  Wring out as much water as possible and start to wipe your mosaic clean.  For every wipe of the sponge, rinse the sponge in your bucket of water.  When cleaning your mosaic, try not to use a very wet sponge, we don’t want to add too much water to the grout that is trying to cure.  Too much water=weakened grout that will crack when dried.

5.    Wash hands, tools, and containers either using an outdoor hose or by using a separate water container, like an ice cream bucket.  Once you have all of the tools and containers rinsed of any excess grout, it will be safe for you to wash it all in your sink.  Let your contaminated water bucket sit overnight.  The grout will settle to the bottom and water will be on top.  Dump the water from the bucket outside.  Any remnants of the grout will dry up in a few days.  Chop it up and throw it in the garbage and rinse out your bucket.

6.    After 12-24 hours and your grout has dried, there will be a film of grout on all your glass piece.  You can polish all of the pieces up by applying white vinegar or rubbing alcohol to an old rag or sock and clean the pieces of glass. 

7.     Viola!  You finished your mosaic, I’m proud of you!  

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Need Help?  Questions?  Did you have fun?

Email me:  laura@lauralizmosaicbiz.com