Sometimes when you purchase a new home, you want to replace the flooring. Or maybe you are a seasoned homeowner who just wants a new look or a change.
Either way, if you are going from carpet to tile or vice versa, what do you do when you find yourself with excess flooring tiles? Throw them away? Nonsense! That is valuable tile real estate you’d be throwing away!
Return it? Not an option either. You’ve likely already opened the box, or you were using precut linoleum.
Instead of throwing it away, consider this – repurposing it for other projects around the house. I know, what a concept, right?
But tiles have so much more use than being installed on your floors. You can create a vase, make a coaster, or even better – create the flooring of a bowling alley!
Read on to find ten creative ways you can upcycle your old tile flooring!
1. An adorable 80s style planter
The 80s were a colorful time. So what better way to pay tribute than with a planter inspired by that vibrant era?
Simply use ceramic or marble tiles, follow this tutorial, and paint whatever you want with acrylic paints.
2. Bowling Alley Floor
Are you a big bowling fan? Would you put “Jesus” from the classic film The Big Lebowski to shame with your amazing bowling skills?
Well then how about bringing the bowling game home?
Upcycle your old flooring into a sleek bowling alley in your backyard! Not only will this be fun for you and your kids after you finish it, it’s fun to make with your kids too!
All you need is linoleum, wood flooring or sticky tiles to create this. And don’t worry, it’s not as intimidating to make as it looks.
3. DIY Tile Art
Got an artist in the family? Give them a sharpie or some acrylic paints and let them do what they do best. These DIY tile art designs can make for beautiful home artwork or a thoughtful gift to a friend.
You can decorate marble, laminate, or even peel and stick tiles. The possibilities are endless.
4. Glass Tile Terrarium Hurricanes
So this one is not as versatile as the previous DIY tile creations we listed before. For this one, you need – you guessed it – clear glass tiles.
If you do possess spare glass tiles, you can create this cool terrarium inspired hurricane lamp. You’ll need a soldering iron, mirrored tiles and a few other things, but think of the look on your friend or family’s face when you give them the gift of a “terrarium inspired hurricane lamp”.
That just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?
5. Hexagon tile coasters
Who doesn’t love a good coaster? If you would like this neat hexagon design, you can cut the tile accordingly, but if you don’t want to do that extra step, simply use the tiles in the shape they came in.
All you need to do is glue a cork or felt to the bottom of the tile to protect the table, which is what a coaster is for in the first place anyway. Yet another gift that is easy to make but thoughtful too!
6. Easy honeycomb tile vase
I just love a good vase. They can really add that personal touch when gifting flowers. This vase will have all your friends wondering where you got such good taste and revering how talented you are.
The beauty of this gift is that it’s cheap and easy to make. Win-win! Simply take a vase and cover it with hexagon tiles, or use sticky tiles in a hexagon shape.
Even if you go out of your way to buy tiles to make this, it’s still worth it when you see the end result.
7. Tile Covered Patio Table
Want to improve your kitchen flooring and your patio too? In that case, thank goodness you have some left over tiles.
This patio table project is easy and quick. Simply add a plywood top to an old table, then use personalized tiles, patterned tiles, or plain tiles (whatever suits your fancy) to get a chic “new” patio table!
8. Repurposed Jewelry Hanger
Some of us collect jewelry, so we’ll always need another jewelry holder. If you are the crafty type, jewelry holders can also be quite fun to make.
If you have spare hexagon tiles on hand (do you sense a theme?), use them to make this hanger. The tiles can hold your necklaces and bracelets and whatever else you can fit.
9. Marble Tile Magnets
I love a good magnet. They especially come in handy when you have many coupons and want to stick them to your refrigerator so you don’t forget.
Magnets can also be used in your office too. Add a bit of personal flair to your office with customizable marble tiles.
10. DIY Tile Photo Coasters
Are you the kind of parent that likes to capture every moment of your child growing up? Why not memorialize those moments with a DIY tile photo coaster?
With a plain white ceramic tile, you can create gorgeous coaster sets featuring images of your favorite places, people, or animals. Simply use a mod podge to attach the image to the tiles. Yet another ideal gift idea for the upcoming holidays!
And there you have it! Ten creative and innovative ideas for upcycling any left over tile flooring.
I don’t know about you, but these ideas have me wanting to redo my kitchen flooring just to have an excuse of having extra tiles laying around. If you’re feeling the same way too, don’t worry, we won’t judge. Wink wink.
We hope you find these ideas useful in your next tiling project! Happy crafting!
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