How We Make Photo Memorial Cameos, Plaques and Tiles

Our kiln full of tile. Each rack holds up to 90 tiles and
the kiln holds 6 racks - That up to 540 tiles per load!

The tiles are then loaded into our specially built racks
and put into the kiln where they are fired to 1550
degrees. This melts the flux and toners and
permanently bonds them to the tile. After firing and
cooling, about 14 hours, we remove the tiles and
quality check each one. They are then carefully
packed and shipped to our customers for a lifetime of
enjoyment.

Production begins when we receive ether a digital photo or a
print from our customer. After either scanning the print or
checking the photo file for quality, our team begins to process
the photo. Depending on what the customer has ordered,
processing may include restoring, cropping, resizing,
removing or changing backgrounds, changing shapes, etc.
We spend time on this step because the better the quality of
the photo, the better the quality of the finished product. For
murals, the photos are divided into sections depending on the
size of the tiles ordered.

After processing, the photo is ready to print. We use a special
laser printer with ceramic mineral toners to print onto decal
paper. The decal paper allows us to transfer the print onto the
tile.

Once we have printed the days photos, we apply a coating
of flux (basically pulverized glass in a liquid base). the flux
melts during firing and leaves a thin coating over the image
giving it additional protection from the elements. We then let
the covercoat dry until the next day. The next step is to cut
the finished decals from sheets into single pieces. This is
either done by hand or for larger projects we have templates
setup for our laser engraver which cuts perfect decals in
seconds.

Next we apply the decals to the tile. After soaking them in
water for a few minutes, the image slides right off of the paper
and onto the tile. The excess water is squeeged off and the
image rolled down onto the tile.