Life hack: how to make chic decorative tiles from egg trays

In most cases, cardboard egg trays go either to the trash can or to light the barbecue. But they can be used to make an excellent decorative tile - imitation of brick or stone. Moreover, its cost will be practically zero. See below for how to give the wall an original pattern for a penny!

Necessary materials

For home production, you will need: plaster of paris, cardboard egg trays, a bucket, a table, a spatula, a brush, acrylic paint, cellophane, a construction mixer (you can do without it). For molds, a cardboard milk box is suitable, but you can also make a cut for a wild stone.

How to do

• The trays need to be turned into small pieces, placed in a bucket, filled with water and mixed. The water should cover the cardboard slightly.

• Use a construction mixer or a drill with a mixing attachment to turn the cardboard into a homogeneous mass.
• Cut out a form from a milk carton - cut off one side to make a 2 cm box. Spread cellophane on the table.

• Add gypsum to the finished green mass and mix. Proportions: 6 tablespoons of gypsum per 8-liter bucket.

• Form: fill the mold with the mass; tamp a little so that there are no voids left; turn the shape over and squeeze the formed brick onto the table. We leave to dry.

• You can give the tiles a different shape. To do this, put the mass on the table, roll it out to a thickness of 2 cm; cut the tiles with a spatula with a free pattern imitating a wild stone.
• When the tile is dry, you need to cover it with a finishing layer of plaster. To do this, it is necessary to dilute the gypsum with water to a pasty state and apply it with a brush to the front surface.

After complete drying, the tiles should be painted with acrylic paint and you're done - you can glue. Such a tile is mounted on the wall using PVA or tile glue.

The advantages of such a tile over the factory

Cardboard tiles are used only for interior decoration.

Benefits:

1. It is lightweight - does not load the wall and can be glued to thin partitions.
2. Paint perfectly fits on it - it is possible to give the surface any shade.
3. Such tiles are environmentally friendly, as there are no harmful impurities in them.
4. Excellent sound insulation - the material reflects sound waves.
5. Tray tiles can take any flat shape - imitate brick, natural stone.

Small test

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