How To Make Mosaic House Numbers (The Easy Way)

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Learn to make DIY mosaic house numbers with this easy tutorial and video! We’ll show the easy way to mosaic without grout!

Hi Kenarry Readers! We’re Jennifer and Kitty from RunningWithSisters.com, and we have a mosaic project that is so pretty and so easy — Mosaic House Numbers! We discovered a fast way to make beautiful mosaics, and we can’t wait to share it with you. Even if you’ve never done a mosaic before, you can do this! The trick is no grout!

How to make mosaic house numbers

We will show you everything you need to get to make your own gorgeous mosaic house numbers. We’ll show you how to adhere your mosaic (again––no grout!) and how to arrange your tiles and things for best results. We’ve even included a video. Follow along as with the video, then use the instructions below to make your own!



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Materials To Make One Of The Mosaic House Numbers

Steps To Make One Of The Mosaic House Numbers

1. Spray paint the number black. Be sure to do both the front and the back, plus the sides.

2. Cover the front of the number with a 1/8-inch layer of black silicone. Squeeze the silicone out onto the number.

Learn to make DIY mosaic house numbers with this easy tutorial and video! We'll show the easy way to mosaic without grout!

Use the putty knife to spread the silicone over the surface. It’s like frosting a cake!

Learn to make DIY mosaic house numbers with this easy tutorial and video! We'll show the easy way to mosaic without grout!

3. To make the mosaic, press the keys into the silicone first. Next arrange the charms and buttons. Make sure each item is pressed down into the silicone.

Learn to make DIY mosaic house numbers with this easy tutorial and video! We'll show the easy way to mosaic without grout!

4. Make a border with mini tiles using all tiles of the same color. If the keys or other items interfere with the border, just leave off the tile there. You can use a smaller tile or cube bead in the next step. The border doesn’t have to be 100% complete.

Learn to make DIY mosaic house numbers with this easy tutorial and video! We'll show the easy way to mosaic without grout!

5. Fill in the spaces between the keys and tile border with the different mini tiles. Continue filling in spaces with smaller tiles. Then finally fill in the smallest spaces with the cube beads until almost all of the black silicone is covered.

Learn to make DIY mosaic house numbers with this easy tutorial and video! We'll show the easy way to mosaic without grout!

Let the mosaic house numbers set up over night. You can use the silicone to adhere picture hangers to the backs of your numbers, too. We made three mosaic house numbers and chose to do each one in a different color, but we chose colors that go together. If you prefer you could do all your numbers in the same color story. Whatever you’d like!

If you have any questions while you’re working on your mosaic house numbers, just leave us a comment and we’ll reply. We want to help!
Happy Crafting,
Jennifer & Kitty

Here are a few more mosaic projects from The O’Neil Sisters:

Mosaic stepping stones are a perfect summer craft. Gather flea market finds like keys and coins, then embed them in concrete. Great craft with kids!

Steampunk Stepping Stones

Make a Steampunk Birdhouse with old skeleton keys, clock parts, chains, and gears. We'll show you how to emboss the metal wings.

Steampunk Birdhouse

Mosaic Cocktail Coasters from The O'Neil Sisters - RunningWithSisters.com

Mosaic Cocktail Coasters

DIY Mosaic house numbers questions

What kind of spray paint should I use?

Gloss or matte doesn’t matter since you will be covering it up with the mosaic materials. You want to pick out a multi-purpose spray paint like Rust-Oleum or Krylon.

What can you use instead of silicone?

If you don’t have silicone, you can also use an industrial-strength adhesive. Weldbond is known for being long-lasting and strong.

What other materials can you use to make an outdoor mosaic?

You can use scrap glass, pieces from a mirror, broken plates, seashells, and even beads. Have fun and be creative.

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What’s Next?

While you’re here, be sure to check out these other craft projects on Ideas for the Home by Kenarry® –

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23 Comments

    1. Hi Lydia,
      Thanks for reaching out to us! That’s a great question! I haven’t personally tried making these to hang outside during a cold snowy winter, but if I were to try it, I would add a layer of clear sealer after the black primer spray paint to protect the wooden or MDF board from the elements. I think something like this spray is what I’d try. I would also spray the clear sealer on any of the keys and metal pieces that you’re planning to use to help minimize or prevent rust. I’d also recommend you make sure the black silicone you use is waterproof and weatherproof. If you give it a try, please let us know how it works out for you!

      Best wishes – and happy crafting!
      Carrie from Ideas for the Home by Kenarry®

      1. I just made my house numbers and coated with a resin that is for outdoor protection. So happy to have made this and gave received so many compliments.
        Joann S.

        1. Hi Joann,
          That’s AWESOME! Thanks for taking the time to let us know. We would love to see photos of how your project turned out. If you share the pics on social media can you please tag us @kenarryideas so we can see or you can e-mail them to us as well.

          Hope you’re having a great week!

          Best wishes,
          Carrie

  1. Thanks for the tips on house numbers. I have been wanting to this type of project but did not know how to start. You have made it so easy with clear directions that I am going to my hobby store today..thanks for all of your ideas.keep up the good work I will be checking in to see new ideas!

    1. Hi Valerie, hope you were able to find everything you need at your local hobby store. Tag us on social media @kenarryideas if you post a picture of your new house numbers – we’d love to see how they turned out!

      Best wishes,
      Carrie from Ideas for the Home by Kenarry®

  2. I have just started on this ‘journey’ to learn how to ‘mosaic’. Have not found a local class so I have watched many videos on you tube to try to learn as much as I can. I had a bit of trouble ‘grouting’ my first project and was discouraged. In my search, I landed on your house numbers video and was excited to see that ‘grouting’ is not always necessary. Can you recommend some other projects that don’t require ‘grouting’? I also would like to discover some mosaic projects that I can ‘gift’ . I am nearing retirement and wanted to find some sort of craft that I could enjoy learning. Also, I was happy to see ‘sisters’ working together, as I have five sisters and there really is a ‘special bond’. Thanks for taking the time out of your busy days to respond to my questions. Have a great weekend!

    1. Hi Frances,
      Thank you for reaching out to us! The O’Neil Sisters will be delighted to hear how much you enjoyed this tutorial. They’ve shared several different mosaic craft ideas here on Ideas for the Home by Kenarry®. All of them would make great gift ideas for your sisters or other friends. Of those, three of their other mosaic tutorials actually don’t use grout:
      1. How to Make a Beachy Mosaic Arrow Sign
      2. Steampunk Mosaic Coasters: How To Mosaic With Resin
      3. Seashell Heart Door Hanger: How To Craft With Shells

      If you want an easy beginner mosaic craft to try with grout again though, I’d highly encourage you to check out their tutorial for mosaic hearts.

      You’ll also find these and many more mosaic ideas on the O’Neil Sister’s own blog, Running With Sisters. Their mosaic picture frame tutorial does use grout, but would be a gorgeous DIY gift to make for your own sisters.

      Good luck with your mosaics and happy crafting!

      Best wishes,
      Carrie
      Ideas for the Home by Kenarry®

      1. Hi Frances,
        So glad you found us ! We love to mosaic , sometimes with grout and sometimes without! If you have any questions as you work on any of these projects, just leave us a comment. We’d love to help!
        Cheers,
        Jennifer & Kitty

  3. Hello I was wondering if you got any feed back with regards to anyone trying to make the address numbers who live in the cold snowy icy winters.
    I have been making mosaic for years and I have been thinking about this for a while. I was wondering
    if I bought plastic numbers and then applied the mosaic pieces with mortar, and finished it off with
    grout with sand. Would that work? Alternatively can a hole be drilled into a floor tile? well two holes actually) so as to make a address sign. Problem though is how to do it and who to do it. I need post our address on a main road to indicate that
    cottage is in the vicinity. Another idea was I take two floor tiles sandwich them together with a very
    Good glue, and include a chain in between it. Then proceed to created an address sign. Will that work in a Quebec cold climate. Sorry for all the question, I do not want to invest in the cost or the time if I know it will not work at all. Thank you for your time.

    1. Hi Marsha,
      Wow! So many good questions! We live in Northern California and don’t have any experience with extreme temperatures. So sorry! We’d hate for you to invest your time and materials only to have your sign not able to stand the weather! We think your brilliant idea of sandwiching chain between two ceramic floor tiles to make a sign could work well. We recommend asking at your local hardware store which adhesive would work best for a project like this and withstand Quebec’s cold winter. Best of luck with your project!
      Cheers,
      Jennifer & Kitty

    1. Hi Lisa,
      We’re glad to hear you’re interested in making mosaic house numbers for your home. I would recommend applying a layer of clear sealer after the black primer spray paint to protect the wooden or MDF board from wet weather. Look for one that is weatherproof and meant for outdoor use. I would also spray the clear sealer on any of the keys and metal pieces to help minimize or prevent rust. If you can find it, I also recommend using a black silicone that is waterproof and weatherproof. Please let us know how it works out for you!

      Best wishes – and happy crafting!
      Carrie from Ideas for the Home by Kenarry

  4. I sent my daughter to Home Depot to get black silicone and she came back with a large container and a ?Caulking? gun. All they had. You don’t use that in your video so I’m confused.

    1. Hi Cheryl,
      Silicone comes in smaller tubes like the one we used or in cartridges that require a caulking gun. As long as the “caulk” your daughter bought is 100% Silicone, you can use it just fine. Here’s a video we found showing how to load and use the caulking gun.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwyuQBoyMn0

      We recommend squeezing out just a small amount of the silicone, enough to spread a 1/8th inch layer over about a 5 inch by 5 inch area. That way you’ll have time to arrange your embedments without feeling rushed as the silicone dries. You probably have about 15 minutes to do your mosaic in that section before it starts setting up. Once you have a section covered with the silicone and decorated with embedments, you can squeeze out some more silicone and do another section. Hope that helps!
      Jennifer & Kitty

  5. Hi!
    I really love your mosaic house numbers and the colors you chose. Do you know where I can purchase the tiles here in central California? I’ve found a blue I like on Amazon and a friend gave me a bag of really pretty sm square yellow tiles but I can’t find a bright green (like a lime green?) in a small package. Thanks for any help and please keep on creating such wonderful pieces!!

    1. Hi Kat,
      Great question! You might have some luck finding small square tiles at Michaels or Hobby Lobby. Have you tried looking there? You may need to buy a bag of assorted tile on Amazon and then just grab out the colors you want and save the rest for another project. Here are some green tiles on Amazon that you might like. That company also sells light green tiles and deep green tiles. If you don’t care about the tiles being square then these might work too. When you search on Amazon, try searching for “lime green mosaic tiles” or “green craft tiles”.

      Hope that helps. We’d love to see photos of how your project turns out. Happy crafting!

      Best wishes,
      Carrie
      Ideas for the Home by Kenarry

  6. I love the house numbers idea! I’m new to mosaics and have been reading on the materials to use if you’re going to be doing a project that will have to withstand the weather. Everything I’ve read says DO NOT USE WOODFOR OUTDOOR PROJECTS. the reason is that over time the wet weather will cause the wood to warp and therefore will cause your mosaic work to crack and fall apart.
    Do you know for sure that just putting a sealer on your finished work is enough? I wouldn’t want to do all of that work only to have it eventually fall apart!

  7. Hi from Australia! New to all this, but excited to start. House numbers will be my first project using your guide. Could I use precut store ones in stainless steel?

    1. Hi Leah!

      Yes, the stainless steel numbers should work, so long as you’re working with a smooth surface so that the mosaic tiles can stick on evenly!

      We hope you enjoy this DIY!

      – Lisa, Ideas for the Home by Kenarry Customer Care

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