Ideas needed for leftover subway tiles

Linda Bryant
by Linda Bryant
What ideas do people have for leftover (369 3x6 subway tiles that cannot be used for tiling as they are irregular, some are warped...
  11 answers
  • Michelle Leslie Michelle Leslie on May 31, 2016
    You could break them and use them to make a mosaic. I've seen some mosaics that only use one color with a contrasting grout and it makes a lovely impact (I'm assuming they're all the same color). They also look gorgeous if you use the broken pieces to frame a mirror.
  • Tracy Tracy on May 31, 2016
    You could print out inspirational sayings or pictures onto regular paper and mod podge them onto the tiles. I made coasters that way, albeit with 4x4 tiles. Made a set for father's day for my dad, my step-father and my husband. Then I printed out a bunch of sayings about teachers and made a set for my daughter's teacher at the end of last year.
  • Douglas Dodd Douglas Dodd on May 31, 2016
    I used some on the top of a table I made.
  • MN Mom MN Mom on May 31, 2016
    Any Girl Scout troops or vacation bible schools near you? They make a great craft when kids color or draw a picture or design with permanent markers and add a magnet to the back. I have done this numerous times and it's a great craft. You can donate some to a group who could use them. You can also add cork, rubber bumpers or thick felt furniture sliders to the backside and create custom trivets.
  • Johnchip Johnchip on May 31, 2016
    369 tiles is a lot. I would look to see if a patio, utility area, garage would like a nice ''border trim", or outdoors area might like a pathway, as the irregularity would not make a difference. The gifting to a organization to use for painting decorative tiles is a great idea. Craig's list at 1/2 price paid would sell them asap.
  • Carolyn Carolyn on May 31, 2016
    Use some as a backsplash or border around a potting table. (where doesn't have to be perfect - imperfection here is good... adds character). Break & do Mosaic table tops for patio, on flower planters, etc. Use any flat ones as Borders for mirrors, or paintings, pictures. Donate to church for VBS projects or schools for art projects. Contact local art teachers - often it's hard to get enough supplies for multiple classes of 20 students each. They might love to do a mosaic with them. They could even add other items like the dollar store glass gems for an art project.
  • Beverly Campbell Beverly Campbell on May 31, 2016
    Try breaking them up to small pieces and cover an old table to make a mosaic. You could even go to a recycling place and get some with colors to
  • Linda Bryant Linda Bryant on May 31, 2016
    Good ideas, esp the idea to print sayings and modge podge the tiles, but I would welcome any other ideas.. the idea of donating to youth groups is good too. I have seen too many mosaics that look too crude, so I don't want to anything like that...maybe it was lack of mosaic talent...
    • MN Mom MN Mom on May 31, 2016
      I agree with mosaic things sometimes looking like maybe they shouldn't have been made into mosaic things!
  • Janet Pizaro Janet Pizaro on May 31, 2016
    You could also make your own stepping stones with the proper cement mixture and create a design by breaking up the tiles.
  • Libbie B Libbie B on Nov 26, 2023

    Mosaic table top?

  • You could use them for craft type projects or as others have said, break them and make mosaics. You could embrace their quirks for an artistic wall tile installation or even try to sell them.