Ornaments from recycled copper tiles? Sure!
Mom & Dad’s former back splash tiles got a make over this weekend. I have a huge box of these things, and periodically I pull out a handful and clean them up so I can use them. They’ve got a protective coating on the front, and remnants of some kind of glue on the back. Almost impossible to remove, except to burn it off…which produces some nasty smelling fumes. So I wait for a nicer fall or spring day, and take a bunch outside and torch them until they’re nice and clean.
So here’s one that got the gunk all cleaned up, and I decided to make an ornament out of it. Before I started, I did a really thorough cleaning using a 3m radial brush and made it nice an shiny on the front, but left some of the discoloration on the back.
The tiles are right at 4.25″ square, and I decided to just try cutting along the mid points and diagonals (leaving a center circle for the middle of the flower and also so it didn’t fall apart!) to see what I ended up with.
The metal actually started to curve on it’s own, which was a really interesting shape itself. But the edges were wicked sharp (I have the battle scars to prove it!) and I knew I had to do something with them. Rather than just sand them down to a rounded edge, I used a pliers to curl them into a less dangerous shape.
I also used the pliers to do a slight form-fold on the larger petals, and really liked the way this naturally formed as well. Using a small hammer, I gave the center area some texture. Finally, after the entire piece had been formed exactly as I wanted it, I use my torch to flame paint it and get some awesome color.
The end result is just what I wanted! Add a quick jump ring and a ribbon and it’s ready to hang on a tree or as a decoration on a window, door, or wall.
These were super fun and I think they’ll sell well at upcoming shows. I’ll be making more, and each one will be slightly different from the last!
Keep tuned for more copper tile goodness…I’ve made several other ornaments from these tiles that I’ll show and tell in coming days.