Craftfoxes

Upcycle an Old Painting into a Mosaic

Posted on Feb 03, 2015

Upcycle an Old Painting into a Mosaic

Don't like an oil painting but can't stomach throwing it away? Why not make a new masterpiece by trimming it down into tiny mosaics and creating a new piece all together.

Step 1

Sketch a thumbnail of the image you want to make in your mosaic. Shade it using large blocks of color.

Step 2

Choose an old painting with similar colors to those you selected in the thumbnail drawing.

Step 3

Use a ruler and cutting mat to measure and cut out mosaic tiles from the painting. A craft knife will give you a nice, straight cut but a pair of scissors works as well.

Step 4

Arrange the cut-out squares on to a table top or large piece of white paper. Try to arrange them by color.

Step 5

Sketch your thumbnail drawing onto a full-sized piece of paper. Map out each color section to keep the color blocks organized.

Step 6

Start laying down mosaic tiles beginning with the main subject of the mosaic. Once your happy with each block's placement glue them down.

Step 7

Continue laying down blocks until your mosaic is complete.

Step 8

This tutorial is excerpted with permission from <a href="http://amzn.to/1pH0ztJ">"Paint It: The Art of Acrylics, Oils, Pastels, and Watercolors"</a> by Mari Bolte (Author), D.C. Ice (Illustrator), Robert A Williams (Consultant Editor) and published by Craft It Yourself.