Easy Concrete tiles project, creating from sand moulds.

I wish you all a Happy New Year and hope that 2024 is a good one.

I need to make some more of these concrete tiles and thought I would film this demo, it would be interesting to those who have thought about experimenting with concrete.

0:00 Making the templates 20cm × 20cm

materials: Hardboard (use the back of old photo frames) Strong duct tape 50mm, sharp knife.

5:49 Adding the sand and creating the moulds.

Builders sand (sharp sand) add a little water.

At this stage try to keep the moulds simple, I find these kind of designs look best when displayed as a group. I work with various items, some collected from the beach, use a variety of textures and shapes. Remember that you are working in negative, sand removed will be replaced by concrete.

18:13 Mixing the concrete.

Begin by mixing equal parts sand and cement, mix together dry and then add water, you can add more sand until the mix reaches the desired consistency. In order for the concrete to fill the sand moulds you need to aim for a mix that will pour easily and not disturb the sand too much.

21:18 Filling the sand moulds

Carefully begin to pour the concrete mix into the moulds taking care not to disturb the sand. Using a spoon fill the details of the design a little at a time making sure the concrete flows into the mould, top up to the edge of the square templates and as the concrete dries score the surface with cross hatching which will allow the tiles to grip when fixing to a wall.

28:30 Removing the tiles from the moulds.
ALLOW AT LEAST 24 HOURS TO SET
Take care when lifting the tiles and removing the sand as they can still be quite fragile. Despite this you may break a few but this is to be expected, you can always allow another 24hours drying time.

I will film a follow up video in a couple of weeks showing how to fix the tiles in place.




I decided to show the project in real time instead of a timelapse as I think it would be easier to follow.

I will update this description with more details including a materials list.

Hope you enjoy it, and are inspired to give it a try.