How to Make Coasters out of Ceramic Tiles and Napkins, Easy DIY Home Decor Craft

Making the wicker chairs and milk can bistro set had me thinking about how to make coasters out of ceramic tiles. I love blue and white for our deck and formal living room, so I decided to try to make some coasters that have the look similar to a blue chinoiserie vase. That way, I could use them both indoors on the end tables and out on the patio. These blue and white napkins look like they would be the perfect thing to decoupage with!

Napkin Modpodge Supplies:

Hard Coat Mod Podge (or regular Gloss Modpodge)
Decorative Napkins
Spray Acrylic Sealer (If using regular gloss modpodge)
cork backing
E6000 glue or similar waterproof glue
small paint brush
4″x4″ceramic tiles (16 cents at Lowes)
plastic wrap

How to Make Coasters out of Ceramic Tiles and Napkins:

I cut the napkin square slightly larger than the tile, and separated the three ply into one ply.

Apply a thin coat of Mod Podge to the tile with the small brush.

Note: I read about various ways of using Mod Podge for coasters and learned I could use my regular Mod Podge and apply an acrylic spray sealer, or use Hard Coat Mod Podge that does not require a sealer to get a non tacky surface. I opted to use regular ol’ mod podge for my coasters since it what I already had in my craft stash. The Hard Coat would save a big step if you don’t already have Mod Podge at home!

I used this awesome tip from plaidonline.com (the makers of Mod Podge) of using plastic wrap to apply and smooth out napkins when decoupaging. Simply lay the napkin face down on the plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to move and position the napkin on the ceramic tile, smoothing out as needed.

This makes it way easier to maneuver the fragile napkin. This plastic wrap method is especially helpful with the vases that I’m working on right now! Gently peel the plastic wrap off when you have the napkin where you want it.

Let the napkin dry on the tile, and apply a coat to the top. Once dry, I gently ripped off the excess napkin downward from the edges and checked the sides for any loose spots.

Apply one more coat of modpodge to the top and edges of the coasters. I found that pushing the napkin down against the edges and sealing it to the sides with Mod Podge turned out prettier than sanding off the sides.

Once dry, cut the cork to a square slightly smaller than the ceramic tiles and glue to the bottom of the coaster tiles with a thin coat of E6000 glue. I put something heavy on top of the cork well the glue set. There are also small cork adhesive squares in the perfect size to eliminate the need for cutting or glue.

Plaid recommends waiting 4 weeks for brush on Mod Podge to fully cure before finishing with acrylic sealer and using as coasters. So, I waited patiently, then finished the coasters with a couple coats of acrylic spray sealer. If you use hard coat Modpodge, Plaid says there is no need for the acrylic sealer step.

For another sealing option, I also read that wood urethane makes a great heat proof sealer for coasters! If I have any issues with my coffee cup sticking to my coasters, I’m going to give that a try. 🙂 But so far, so good!

These little coasters are so pretty, and such an easy DIY home decor craft. I love that you can make them to match any decor by finding the perfect “fancy napkin”. You could even decoupage monogram letters to the top to make custom gifts for a wedding or housewarming.