Love where you live. Sign up for our newsletter

Make It! Clay Terrazzo-Inspired Coasters

by on Apr 11, 2018

Terrazzo has recently come back in style and I’m here for it! Because it’s a very old flooring material, the newer versions of terrazzo appear more colorful and versatile. To recreate the speckled look of terrazzo for my home, I made a set of simple clay terrazzo-inspired coasters with a variety of colors that fit with the decor of my home. They’re easy to make, and you can customize them with your favorite colors!

Traditionally, terrazzo is made with marble chips set in a resin or concrete and polished. When done well, it can look really beautiful! You’ve probably seen it before with more neutral colors and didn’t realize what it was, but now it’s coming back with more colors and new uses (as opposed to just flooring). These simple clay coasters are my take on terrazzo, but you can use any color combination you’d like to create a custom version for yourself. 

Colorful items and wooden stick ready for doing some art work.

Materials:

A grey towel with a large hole in it

Step

Lay a piece of wax paper on a flat surface. Roll the white clay flat until it is about 1/4-inch thick. Set aside.

Five vertical ovals of colored clay, one white, one blue, one green, one orange and one yellow above a wooden craft cutter.

Step

On a separate piece of wax paper, roll out the colored clays separately until they are about 1/4-inch thick. 

Small pieces of clay sitting on the ground next to each other next to a wooden stick.

Step

Use a craft knife or clay tool to chop small pieces off of the colored clays. The pieces or shards should all be random and slightly different sizes. 

A woman's hand with blue nailpolish is pulling a piece of wax paper over a white rolled out piece of dough with multi colored pieces spread over it.

Step

Once you have a lot of pieces of clay, sprinkle them evenly over the top of the rolled white clay. Cut more pieces if needed to fill in the gaps. Place another piece of wax paper on top of the clay.

A wooden rolling pin laying on a multi colored rolled out dough on a grey marble surface.

Step

Roll out the clay a little more until the pieces have flattened into the white clay, giving it the appearance of terrazzo. Carefully peel back the top piece of wax paper. 

Step

Preheat the oven according to clay packaging instructions. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Colourful coaster ,fun for kids.

Step

Use the round cutter (or something like a cup) to cut 4-inch wide circles out of the terrazzo patterned clay. Place on the prepared baking sheet.

A clear glass is sitting on a white coaster with colorful dots.

Then bake the clay according to its instructions (usually 15-20 minutes for this thickness) and let cool before using as coasters throughout your home. If desired, you can also paint around the edges in a color that matches the pieces of “terrazzo.” Wrap them up for a cute housewarming gift or save them for yourself!

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *