DIY Coasters with Photo Transfers

I’ve got a fun project tutorial for you guys today, we’re going to make DIY Coasters! Not just any coasters but Gorgeous Travertine Marble Tile Coasters with photo transfers. These are inexpensive to make and look very high end, and they make fantastic Homemade Gifts! I first created this tutorial back in 2016 but I think it still holds up, so I’ve updated it with some larger photos.

I used some fun Vintage numbers for my coasters and I’ve included a free printable down below so that you can make some too, if you like. But really you can use any image that you like, beautiful flowers, pretty Birds, Mushrooms, Architecture and of course Photos too! You can customize with photos of your own family, ancestors, pets or friends or even with pictures of your house. Feel free to customize the process to your liking!

Supply List for DIY Coasters:

1)Light colored 4″ square tumbled Travertine marble Tiles (you can often buy them by the box at Lowes or Home Depot too)

2)Omni Gel Transfer Medium 

3)A roll of adhesive backed cork sheet

4)Paintbrush

Free Printable Numbers

Click HERE for the Full Size Printable PDF of the Vintage Numbers

Tutorial for DIY Tile Coasters

Step 1: Grab the Free PDF sheet of the numbers above for this project, and print it out on your computer (or use your own images or photos). Next, you will need to have a Photocopy made of this ( inkjet printers do not work with this process.) So take your printed images or photos on over to a copy place, like Staples or Office Max etc and have them make a Laser Copy for you.

Step 2: You will need to brush on 3 coats of the Omni gel Transfer Medium. Brush the first coat in a horizontal direction, let dry completely. Brush the second coat in a vertical direction, let dry completely. Brush the 3rd coat in a diagonal direction, and again let dry completely.

Step 3:  Cut image to the size of the coaster and then soak in a bowl of water for 10-20 minutes.

Step 4: While paper is still wet, rub the paper backing with your fingers in a circular motion to remove all of the paper leaving just the gel transfer behind. It can take a bit of rubbing to get it all off but it’s worth it!

Step 5: This is what your left with. The ink is trapped inside of this vinyl looking piece. Pretty cool!! At this point you can trim this up with scissors if you have ragged edges like I did here.

Step 6: Use more of the Omni Gel as a glue to adhere the transfer to the tile. I coated both the top of the marble and the back of the transfer.

Step 7: Press the transfer down and smooth out to get rid of any air bubbles. If you have a brayer this would probably work even better. I have one but um… couldn’t find it. Oh well!
(Note: The image will look a little cloudy at first but it will dry clear after a day or 2.)

Step 8: Next roll out the adhesive backed cork and lay the tile on top. Then cut around it to fit. I used a utility knife for this one, but scissors work just as well. This cork is made by “Contact” (the same people that make Contact Paper that you line your shelves with) and it has a nice grid on the back, which makes it easy to get it just right!

Step 9: Smooth down the cork with your fingers until it’s nicely adhered to the tiles. I think this gives them such a great finished look and it will protect your tables too.

Now you are done! So easy right? And they really do look like a very high quality item. I’m storing mine in a small antique Ironstone tureen for now. I hope you like this easy project. These would make a great gift for the holidays, I think they would also be a good item to sell at craft shows, or Barn Sales etc. I would sell them in sets of 4, you could tie them up with some nice rustic string or pretty ribbons. You might also like our Transfer Methods Page HERE and these beautiful Wooden Bee Coasters that Diana made HERE.