Based on the use of tesseras (small fragments of glass, marble, ceramic or stone) to create pictures or patterns, the mosaic is a most ancient decorative art. The possibilites for varied design are endless. Nevertheless, the art of mosaic-making has remained the same for centuries. The mosaic can be mounted on just about any surface - walls, tabletops, boxes, frames or even lamps - as long as it is strong, dry and sturdy enough to bear the mosaic's weight. And in fact, nowadays you can buy mountings specially designed for mosaic-making, such as picture frames, trays, boxes, pots and all types of furniture.

What you need
The basic material required to make a mosaic is the tesseras, which can be of different kinds and qualities. If you're just getting started, ceramic is your best bet, and can be acquired in specialty shops or in DIY stores. There is a wide range of colours available and they tend to be quite resistant. In addition to the tesseras, any material that can be broken and used to create a pattern with can be featured in your mosaic, from broken plates to buttons, from bottle caps to glass beads, and from mirrors to shells and pebbles.
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You can also buy different types of glue and adhesives to use during the various stages of mosaic-making. White glue is useful both for fastening the tesseras and, by mixing it with four parts water, for waterproofing the surface chosen for the mosaic. The water-glue solution should be directly applied to the surface and left to dry before the tesseras are put in place.

First steps
First, we have to cut the tesseras and arrange them as desired. The most common way of cutting the tesseras is by using a glass cutter. Once you've cut along the plaque, you can use separators or pliers to break off the pieces. You may also choose to cut the tesseras with pincers. Or else, you can just buy them already cut and packaged, in triangular or square shapes and of different sizes, in both small and large bags.

After cutting, the next step is polishing the edges of the tesseras with a proper polisher. You can then go about arranging them on the chosen mounting, sticking them to it with glue. Once they're all in place, smooth over white cement or mosaic paste, making sure it gets into the cracks between the pieces, and taking care to remove any extra paste with a wet sponge. Let it dry and rub it with esparto grass to eliminate any paste remaining on the tesseras.

A craft that goes back in history
The history of the mosaic goes back to ancient China, where simple patterns were made with pebbles. Tesseras were introduced in the fourth century B.C, when cube-shaped stones were placed next to one another to create highly defined images. The� Greeks also used mosaics as floor decoration, but it was the Romans who brought the mosaic into being as a real art form. And today we still have on hand mosaics representing a wide variety of styles and themes, from day-to-day life to birds and animals to abstract patterns. In the third century A.D. the use of tesseras and gold was introduced, a technique that would later be mastered by the early Christians. And, under the Byzantines, mosaics became a highly prized art. Later, during the Renaissance, micro-mosaics became popular, made with tiny tesseras placed very close together.
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Yet the stylized forms and the use of gold brought mosaics closer to realism, making their quality suffer and turning them into mere replicas of paintings. At the beginning of the 20th century, mosaics regained their popularity, and Art Nouveau propagates used them as decoration, leading to their incorporation into the works of artists and architects alike. Just think of Antonio Gaud�, who covered buildings with mosaics.