Mosaic Tile Starter Kit

They cut the tiles (the tesserae) to the shapes the design needs — a curved leaf, a triangle, a custom fit. Nippers squeeze and snap the tile; the cut edge is the shape. A good pair of nippers (the wheeled glass nippers for glass, the side-biter nippers for ceramic) is the mosaic-maker's primary tool.

A single piece of the mosaic — a tile, a shard of glass, a piece of broken plate. The mosaic is built tessera by tessera. The Latin name persists in the craft; the tesserae are the unit. Mixing materials (ceramic, glass, found objects) gives the mosaic its texture and its story.

The base the mosaic is built on — a coaster, a trivet, a stepping stone, a board. It must be rigid and compatible with the adhesive (wood, MDF, cement board, or mesh for indirect). The substrate's shape defines the project; coasters and trivets are the beginner's small, satisfying start.

Yes — the adhesive (a thin-set mortar or mosaic glue) holds the tesserae to the substrate; the grout (applied after the adhesive sets, pressed into the gaps, and wiped off the tesserae faces) locks them in and finishes the surface. The grout color (contrasting or blending) is a design choice; the sanded grout fills the wider mosaic gaps.