My daughter loves crafting, and has recently been studying the Romans at school, which has led to a bit of an interest in mosaics. Whilst I'm keen to encourage her interests, I wasn't too happy with the idea of filling my house with plaster and bits of broken tile, so a sticky mosaic set seemed lke a good option . Having a look on Amazon, I was greeted by lots of different sets, opting finally for this 'Jewel' set by Orb.

There were a couple of things that made me choose this set . One thing I liked was that the foam squares already had an adhesive backing, so there would be no need for messy glue . I also liked that this was a moscaic-by-numbers kit, with clearly labelled pictures . Whilst my daughter does love to create alone, I have seen how wasteful she can be in the process, throwing away half finished pictures if there is a tiny bit she isn't happy with . With a mosaic by numbers kit, she could follow simple instructions and end up with a lovely result at the end .

Included in the kit are five pictures . Each is 10 inches by 12, on sturdy thick card with a slightly shiny smooth surface , and the numbered squares are clearly printed and easy to read . Each picture also comes with it's own cord for hanging - a nice touch, as I have had some kits before that provided no way of mounting an image once completed , or only provided the fittings to mount one . The designs included were quite nice - two girls playing in a field of flowers, a unicorn, a mermaid, a princess and a castle . They are definitely very girl-oriented . Also included are many sheets of sticky foam squares, and sheets of plastic shiny 'jewel' stickers . The box everything comes in is very sturdy - certainly sturdy enough to work well for storing everything in when not in use. There is also a key, clearly indicating which number or shaped jewel is represented by each number, although in the case of the plastic jewels themselves this is pretty obvious from the images themselves. The key is also printed on the front of the box, in case the sheet gets lost.

My daughter had great fun doing these mosaics - and I think part of the fun for her was that, as no scissors or glue were required, she was allowed to do this by herself without me watching over her , fearful of any mess she might make. The foam squares peeled easily away from the backing, and the stickiness on the back was very good - certainly enough to adhere them to the pictures, but also it was possible to adjust the position of the squares slightly if they did happen to be applied lopsided .

The colours were lovely - a mix of greens, purples, pinks, and other bright girly colours - but it was the shiny jewels that really added something that little bit special to the finished pictures . It took my daughter around 3 hours to complete one picture - though she did stop for breaks - and the end result was lovely - really colourful,and easy to see what the picture was meant to be . We hung it in our hallway, where it provides a welcome bit of brightness as you enter the house, and where my daughter can proudly point out her handiwork to visitors .

She has now completed all five images, four of which now grace the walls of her bedroom - and so they should, they really are something to be proud off . There were also a few sticky squares left over, enough for her to create a few of her own designs, and the leftover jewels in particular have been utilised to make princess crowns .

I think this is a fantastic kit, and have already purchased some other mosaic kits from the same manufacturer, as my daughter really enjoyed making these, and I enjoyed the peace and quiet while she did so . With kits varying between £10 and £20, I think these are good value and provide a good few hours of peace and quiet, as well as some lovely art at the end . 5 stars .