Travel Souvenirs -What to do with those things we bring home!

"Fall in love or fall in hate.  Get inspired or flunk a class.  Make babies or make art.  Speak the truth or lie and cheat.  Dance on tables or sit in the corner.  Life is divine chaos, embrace it.  Forgive yourself.  Breathe, and enjoy the ride." 

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In my last post, I wrote about all the great things I have brought home over the years.  Sometimes you buy something on a trip, and it becomes a favorite souvenir of your trip.  You look at it, and it brings back memories of that wonderful vacation you had.

Close up of tile in center of my new tables

Sometime you purchase something, and you wonder - "now what am I going to do with that?"  It seemed like a good idea at the time.

When I was in Istanbul a few years ago, I saw all these wonderful round tiles.  They were colorful, and inexpensive.  I needed something to give all the women in my bunco group for Christmas, and I thought - "these will work, they're useful, and they are cheap", 2 important things when buying 9 of something for 9 different people.  I thought the useful part would be that they could be used as a hotplate or as something to sit a plant on.  I bargained on the price, and got them down to less than $2 a tile.  I ended up buying 11 of them, because I worried that a couple of them could get broke packed in my suitcase on the trip home, even though they were wrapped in bubble wrap.

The tables before I re-did them

They did make nice gifts for my friends.  I gave each person in the group the tile, plus I gave them a clay pot that I had painted red and I put a blooming Christmas cactus in each one, so that they knew they could use them as a pot stand.  They seemed to go over well.  We never spend a lot on our presents, but we do have an annual party and gift exchange.

But now I had 2 left over.  I ended up giving one to my daughter, so now there was one.  What to do with it. Yes, I could have put it under a plant, but that really didn't show it off, and I did think it was pretty.  Then it occurred to me.  I have these stacking tables in the corner of my room.  They have a wood base, but because I've had plants on them for years, and have sometimes spilled water on them, the wood has warped.  I could cover those tables with my round tile as a base and put broken tile around them.  It was a project that I had fun planning, and it incorportated a travel souvenir.

Looking down on the big table after I finished it,
 tile in the middle is the souvenir

So I headed off for Lowe's where I talked to a helpful clerk, who helped me purchase a grout, a can of sealer, and some tiles.  I decided on dark blue to put around the middle tile, to accent it, and then white tiles for the rest of the table.  I went home and started breaking tiles - with a hammer.  Then I took my largest of the tables and I spread it with grout and went from there.  When it was finished, I sealed the grout.  I was so pleased with the finished product I decided to do the second table as an accent.  I didn't have a round tile to put in it, so I just went with the white and blue.

The 2 tables

I was happy with my results, and now that souvenir that I didn't know what to do with has a place of honor in my family room and is a favorite travel souvenir.  I will always remember hunting through those piles of tile to find the perfect ones to bring home, and I will remember Istanbul.