What is a Mixel?
Mixel is a DIY glass mosaic kit, handmade to order in the UK. We translate your favourite photo into 1,156 real coloured glass tiles on a laser-numbered wooden board—combining a relaxing, jigsaw-like build with the magic of optical colour mixing.
Everything You Need to Build
Every Mixel arrives unassembled so you can enjoy putting it together tile by tile. Up close, the hand-placed glass tiles have natural, tactile spacing—step back across the room, and they fuse into a lifelike portrait.
1,156 Tumbled Glass Tiles (+5% Spares)
Smooth 8 mm coloured Ottoman glass tiles sorted into numbered pouches. Tumbled blunt so there are no sharp edges.
Laser-Engraved Numbered Grid (30 × 30 cm)
Think paint-by-numbers in glass, engraved onto a rigid FSC wooden backing board. Every cell is numbered to match your pouches (solid colour blocks have their outer border numbered so you simply fill the interior).
Crystal-Clear Craft Adhesive
Includes non-toxic precision-nozzle craft adhesive (15-minute nudge time, 24-hour permanent clear cure)—no messy grouting required.
4–8 Hours of Relaxed Pace
Complete it over a few cosy evenings or a weekend—just like a favourite jigsaw puzzle.
Screen-Free Tactile Focus
Unplug from phones and laptops and lose yourself in satisfying geometry and colour.
Permanent Indoor Art
Bonds firmly onto a sturdy wooden board with fade-proof glass tiles, ready to display on a shelf or hang indoors.
How 1,156 Glass Tiles Become a Portrait
Instead of printing flat ink onto paper, Mixel uses optical colour mixing—the same perceptual principle behind Impressionist pointillism and the grid portraits of Chuck Close.
The Mixel "Pizzazz" & Distance Fusion
Across our 23 curated glass shades, we deliberately weave sparks of complementary colour—apricots, lake blues, lilacs, and warm yellows—into skin tones and shadows.
Up close, each tile shimmers with abstract, handcrafted texture. Step back two metres, and your eye blends those neighbouring tiles into lifelike warmth and depth that a flat print can never match.
Sculptural Planes & Open Shadows
Human vision recognises the faces and pets we love across a room not from tiny lines, but from broad structural planes: the sweep of a cheekbone, light on the brow, and the clean silhouette of the jaw.
Our studio engine keeps shadows open—grading smoothly through warm coffees, mid-greys, and luminous pearls so contours stay crisp and three-dimensional rather than blocking into heavy black.
Jigsaw Puzzles vs. Mixel Mosaics
The mindful pleasure of a puzzle, with a permanent piece of glass art at the finish.
| Feature | Traditional Jigsaw Puzzle | Mixel Glass Mosaic |
|---|---|---|
| Material | Printed paperboard / thin cardboard | Glossy, light-reflecting coloured glass tiles |
| Lifespan | Prone to fraying, bending, or fading | Fade-proof glass tiles bonded onto a solid indoor display board |
| When Finished | Broken down and boxed away | Displayed on a shelf or hung on a wall |
| Subject | Stock catalogue pictures | Your own family, pet, or memory |
How to Choose a Photo That Sings
Three simple habits that make a 34 × 34 glass mosaic look extraordinary.
Soft, Even Lighting
Daylight near a window or outdoors on a bright day gives smooth highlights and gentle, open shadows that translate beautifully into glass.
One Face Only (No Multiple Faces)
Don't include multiple faces. A single-subject head-and-shoulders portrait or close-up pet filling 70–85% of the frame gives the 1,156 tiles maximum facial definition.
Preview From Across the Room
Use the On Shelf (~2.5m) toggle in the Studio or step back from your screen—what looks abstract up close locks into sharp likeness at room distance.
Ready to See Your Photo in Glass?
Upload any photo in our Interactive Studio to preview your 30 × 30 cm mosaic live—up close and on the shelf.
Launch Interactive Studio