I am very obsessed with mosaics right now! I now have three mosaic floors (one in my bathroom, one in my laundry room, and one in my entry). Those all came pre-made, so I thought I’d try my hand at making a mosaic side table from scratch.

This is a fun and affordable IKEA hack — I used the IKEA Gladom table, which is only $19.99! If you don’t have an IKEA nearby, this Walmart option or this Amazon table would work nicely. The shape of the tray table is perfect for mosaics, thanks to the raised edges that create natural borders for the design.

DIY Mosaic Side Table IKEA Hack

SUPPLIES

Tile nippers
Mosaic stones (I used leftover pieces from past mosaics I’ve installed in my house)
Gladom table(or similar from Amazon or Walmart)
Mosaic glue
Grout (un-sanded grout- Bone)
Tile Float
Sponge
Microfiber Cloth
Pencil
Safety goggles
Stone Sealer

If you want to try this, I’d suggest buying tile mosaic pieces. I have a bunch linked here.

How I Made My Mosaic Side Table

To start, I sketched out a few design ideas. I considered tulips, a swan, and a butterfly. To help me visualize them, I even mocked up the designs as mosaics — a super helpful step so I could better picture the possibilities!

In the end, I loved the look of the tulips with a big bow.

👉 Tip: The raised tray edge on the Gladom creates the perfect parameters for your mosaic side table design.

Step 1: Draw Your Design

I removed the tray and used a pencil to lightly draw my tulip and bow design right onto the tray. If you mess up, no worries — it erases easily!

This creates the outline so for the mosaic creating, you know where to put each element.

Step 2: Cut and Place the Pieces

For this project, I’m using leftover mosaic pieces from the mosaics that I’ve installed in my house. They give you extras so I’ll be using those. You can also purchase marble stone pieces here.

I put on my safety goggles (a must!) and used tile nippers to cut my border tiles into smaller rectangles.

Then I glued each piece in place around the tray’s edge.

I’m using mosaic glue– it looks like Elmer’s glue and seems like it won’t hold the stone, but within 30 minutes it’s held on strong.

After the border, I worked on one element at a time.

First the green stems and leaves

Then the bow.

What I found works best is to create an outline of each element, and then fill in with the correct colors.

Next the tulips

Finally the background tiles

For the rounded and angled items in the mosaic, the stone will need to be cut to fit. The tile nippers work nicely for this. Cutting the tile will leave dust and bits of rock behind. I find it nice to have a small broom and dust bin handy to clean up. This part is slow, but satisfying

Be sure to leave a 2–3mm gap between each tile for the grout to settle into — just don’t space them too far apart, or you’ll end up with large areas of grout that can distract from the design.

As you cut a tile, glue it in place. Pick up each piece, apply a bit of glue to the back, and gently pressed it down — being careful not to use too much glue so it wouldn’t squeeze out underneath (it’s nice to have a paper towel close by to clean up any excess).

Once I had finished the outside border, the leaves, bow, and tulips, I did an outline in beige of all of those elements. Then I realized how little beige stone I had. So I used some ruby colored stones and used all I had of that for another ring of a different color. Then I used all the beige stone I had- all the while going around and around the perimeter. Finally, I finished with some pink stone for the center.

Once everything was positioned, I let the tray sit undisturbed for 24 hours to allow the glue to fully set.

👉 Pro tip: Use the factory-cut straight edges of your pieces for the outlines. Then fill in with smaller pieces.

Step 3: Grout + Finish

Once everything was glued down (this took about 10 hours — a true labor of love!), it was time to grout.

First I began by mixing the grout. I poured the grout powder (I’m using the color Bone) into a bowl and slowly added water a little at a time, stirring as I went, until the mixture reached the consistency of pancake batter.

Once the grout mixture was ready, I used a tile float to spread the grout across the mosaic surface, pressing it into all the gaps between the tiles and smoothing it out to ensure full coverage.

After applying the grout, I let it dry for about 10–20 minutes, then used a damp tiling sponge to gently wipe away the excess from the surface of the tiles. Once the grout had fully dried—about an hour later—I went over the mosaic with a microfiber cloth to buff and polish the tiles for a clean, finished look.

Lastly, I sealed the stone. This felt really important since it’ll live outside. Also the sealer makes the true color of the stone come out and each piece is more vibrant!

after

Here’s how the mosaic table turned out! I’ve made a mosaic table before, but never one with a full design like this.

After living with my mosaic floors, I knew I loved the look and wanted to try creating a more detailed piece.

I definitely underestimated how many tiny pieces it would take — it’s tedious work, but also really fun and rewarding.

The tulips and bow turned out so cute, and once I added the grout, it really pulled the whole design together.

It’s not perfect, but it’s full of heart and charm — a truly special piece I’ll treasure.

Price Breakdown

This mosaic side table project cost me around $20 because I had leftover mosaic stones, glue, and grout. The only thing I bought was the Gladom table. Such a budget-friendly DIY for a custom piece!

Final Thoughts

I love how this turned out — it’s the perfect end table for outdoors or even inside! The tulip and bow design makes it extra special. It might take some time and patience, but creating a mosaic side table is incredibly satisfying, and you end up with a piece that’s truly one-of-a-kind.

👉 Would you try this project? Let me know in the comments!

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