How to Make Mosaic Tiles from a CD or DVD
If you’ve ever wanted to make a mosaic project, but you didn’t have any little mosaic pieces on hand, you’re going to love this easy tutorial. Today I’ll show you how easy it is to make mosaic tiles from a CD or a DVD.
I’m excited to have figured out this simple process because I have a ton of mosaic crafts in mind for my daycare kids, and now that I know how to make the tiles myself, we can get working on them!
See our DVD Mosaic Tile Christmas Ornaments Here!
CDs or DVDs?
Note: Mosaic tiles can be made from either CDs or DVDs. I prefer DVDs because the shiny film inside is more colourful and iridescent than a CD’s.
My A-Ha Moment:
There was a little trial and error figuring out this process.
At first, I just tried just cutting through a regular DVD, but it immediately cracked because it was too thick. I realized I needed to separate the layers of the disc.
But that posed another problem…
The shiny, reflective coating inside a dvd is like super-thin, metallic foil, and when I pried the two layers of the next disc apart, some of the shiny stuff would stick to the top layer, and some to the bottom.
A-HA!
I was doing this in the sunshine on my deck, and lo and behold, my 3rd attempt was with a disc that was quite hot from sitting in the sun. BINGO! The shiny, reflective paper stuck to just one layer of the plastic, and the disc came apart quite easily.
So… heating the dvd is the ticket! Below, you’ll see how easy it is to do.
Supplies:
- CD or DVD
- hair dryer
- sharp scissors
- butter knife
Instructions:
Tip:
- TIP: You can kind of encourage the shiny layer to stick to the correct side by working slowly, and backing up and starting again if you see it starting to stick to the wrong side.
Any Shape, Any Size…
I like that you can make your pieces any shape or size that you want.
I cut my DVD into small, irregular tiles because I have a small project in mind, but you can make yours larger, or more uniform in shape and size if you want.
Aren’t they gorgeous? I love how the colours change depending on how the light hits the pieces!
In case you missed the link at the beginning of the article, you can click here to see the mosaic ornaments we made with some of our tiles.
Now, go and dig out those discs you haven’t watched or listened to in years, !
Tried it? Leave a comment below and tell us what you made!
Feel free to share your finished projects on my facebook page! I’d love to see what you make!
Jackie is a mom, wife, home daycare provider, and the creative spirit behind Happy Hooligans. She specializes in kids’ crafts and activities, easy recipes, and parenting. She began blogging in 2011, and today, Happy Hooligans inspires more than 2 million parents, caregivers and Early Years Professionals all over the globe.
