DIY Bulletin Board

Slowly but surely, Audrey’s room is coming along.

The gallery wall really stepped things up a notch and it got me motivated to add some cuteness to the other walls. When you have one side of the room filled with art, it makes knowing what to do with the other walls a little tricky. Add more art? Leave them blank? I’ll do a full room tour soon so you can see the walls in context to each other, but I decided that more art would feel too busy and I just wanted one large piece to fill in the area opposite the gallery wall.

I had an extra frame that didn’t get used in the gallery – a vintage painting that I covered with music pages and wrote ‘twirl’ on a few years ago (you can see it in my old office here). It wasn’t anything special and so I decided to reconfigure it and turn it into a bulletin board for my girl.

Here’s how I did it:

SUPPLIES

frame with backing / roll of cork / hot glue gun / scissors / fabric for covering (optional)

You could use any frame – brand new, from your storage closet or from a thrift store. The one I used was just a few dollars at the thrift store and was a painting that I wasn’t sad to cover up. I lucked out and the frame I used was just slightly smaller than the dimensions of the cork – you may want to measure the cork before purchasing the frame just to make sure it fits.

STEP ONE

Remove the backer from the frame. It was easy to just bend the nails back to pop out the art (the back is pictured).

STEP TWO

Lay your backing on the cork and trace. Then cut to fit.

STEP THREE

Starting from one side, add a bead of hot glue and press to hold. Continue for the rest of the cork.

You can stop at this point – pop it back in the frame and use as is. Or continue on to cover the cork with fabric.

STEP FOUR

Lay the cork covered backing front-side down on fabric of choice (you’ll want the front of the fabric face down, too). I adore this sheet set from Target (it’s what I have on my bed) and found a set on clearance not too long ago. I debated … cut it up? Or keep it for a second set for my bed? I opted to cut it up.

Just cut it a few inches larger than your cork board on all four sides.

STEP FIVE

Pull taught and secure with a bead of hot glue. It helps to glue down one side in the center, then the opposite side to keep things lined up and smooth.

Fold in corners (I cut out part of the fabric to keep things less bulky) and hold with hot glue. It was super helpful to have a geometric print to follow so the lines stayed straight.

STEP SIX

Pop the backing into the frame. Mine ended up tight enough to not need nails to hold it in place, but you could tap little nails into the sides if you need to.

Flip it over and admire the cuteness!

I added a few special things – artwork, photos, a flower garland (no longer available from Target) and a few of Audrey’s pretty necklaces – but my guess is that she’ll cover it with art and notes and little pieces of randomness that girls seem to collect. It will be a great place for her to display her special things.

This diy bulletin board was just the right touch for the big empty wall.

I have a few more projects to finish in her room and then it will be complete! Stay tuned for a simple window treatment diy and an unconventional pillow tutorial coming soon.