Craftzilla: Watercolor Coasters

Low-cost, colorful coasters: take a ceramic tile from plain to POW ✨with only a few inexpensive supplies! During the Craftzilla: Watercolor Coasters event (June 13), participants experimented with a variety of blending and wash techniques.

You don't need much to complete your own coaster set!

Supplies ✀

white ceramic tiles (e.g. $0.11/tile at a local hardware store)
91% rubbing alcohol
dropper bottles
color permanent markers
acrylic gloss spray (waterproof sealant - sold at craft/hobby stores)
optional: felt and tacky glue (coaster backing)

📋 Step One: color your tiles! You can create strategic blobs meant to blend--or use the chaotic scribbling method.

📋 Step Two: use a dropper bottle filled with 91% rubbing alcohol to create a watercolor effect. You can let the drops evaporate where they land, or tilt the tile to run the colors into each other (see below).

Don't like how a section looks? Wait for it to dry, reapply color, and then try again with the dropper bottle. 👍 The rubbing alcohol evaporates quickly, so no problem!

📋 Step Three (optional): once your coasters are dry, you can choose to apply a felt backing. Place a tile on the felt to outline and then cut out square shapes. Use tacky glue to apply the felt.

📋 Step Four: take the coasters to a well-ventilated area (outside is best) and spray them with an acrylic gloss sealant. They will take a couple minutes to dry--and wait a couple hours before testing your coasters out with fresh cup of soda/coffee/tea/water.