When your kid reaches the stage where they beg you to hang up nearly every painting, drawing, and stickered creation that comes out of her school bag, you may find yourself needing some more display space. Here’s how we hooked up our daughter with a giant cork board wall with a nice framed-in look and lots of room for art galore.
The “bell-etin board” that she used to be referring to was this smaller fabric-covered cork board that hung in our office for the last eight months or so (it was originally made by Sherry for our old closet) – but it had been getting pretty crowded. Sherry had the idea to turn things up a notch and take that cork board wall from window-to-window so that we’d have more room to display stuff – and so that it would more clearly define that little section of the room as Clara’s (and eventually Teddy’s) workspace.
Creating A Base For The Cork Tiles
We started by hanging a thin wood base for the cork tile squares to be adhered to. Not only would this make the squares hang more securely than individually tacking them up, it would solve a slight problem of the existing board: some of the pushpins poke all the way through the cork and into the wall, which would mean a plethora of wall holes over time from window to window if we skipped the backing.
Now we’ll only have a few screws to remove if we ever want to take this down, and a few small holes to fill – as opposed to a swiss-cheese-like wall full of divots.
The wood backing was made of three 2 x 4′ sheets of 5mm underlayment from Home Depot. All of them needed a little trim to fit the 43″ wide gap between the windows. I clamped them together tightly and cut them all with one slice of my circular saw.
Starting from the windowsill, I attached each board with a few 2″ wood screws each, using my stud finder to be sure they were going securely into studs.
We wanted the third board to stop just slightly below the window for a stepped-down inset effect, so Sherry stepped back and eyed things so I could mark where it needed to be cut with a pencil. I also sliced two thin strips of wood to act as a basic molding for the top and the bottom, just to give it a more polished look so the cork didn’t just end.
Gluing The Cork Tiles To The Wall
With the boards all cut and attached to the wall, we could start attaching the cork squares. We used this Loctite Spray Adhesive, since the back specifically said it worked for bonding cork to wood. It suggested spraying both surfaces, but since I didn’t want to spray indoors – I just spayed the back of the cork outside and Sherry carried each square in and stuck it up. Seems to have worked just fine so far.
Tiling the wall was pretty straightforward (read: it went really fast), especially since we could use full squares for most of it and we were tag teaming things. We did all of those first before doing any partial pieces.
Sherry marked the partial squares with a pen and a ruler and then we just used regular old scissors to cut them. We discovered that making small cuts (rather than using the entire length of the scissor blade) helped keep the cork from cracking, which made for a cleaner edge.
Here’s the finished cork board wall. Ideally, the seams would be less visible (we even considered covering it in fabric or painting it a pattern, or just the plain wall color) but ultimately decided that once art went up the lines would be a lot less noticeable. So since we both liked the natural color and texture it added to the room, we opted to leave it as is for now.
Arranging Art On The Cork Wall
Sherry literally sprinted to arrange Clara’s current body of work on the board the second we finished hanging it (picture her rubbing her hands together and whispering “faaaavorite part starts… now!” Clara helped with choosing what to put where, and after a few minutes of shuffling things around, we ended up here. The artist herself was also quick to assume the role of producing more stuff to hang, although we’ve explained that even with a bigger board, we’ll still need to switch things out to make room for new stuff. So far she’s cool with it. She even seems to like the challenge of choosing what to remove to make room for her newest creation.
As for the rest of her art, we have a box full of other paintings/drawings/crafts that we save, and Sherry has a new app on her phone called Artkive, which she uses to take/store photos of it, with the intention of making a photo book full of her creations someday. We think it’ll be really fun to look back on (both for us, and for Clara).
We’re really happy with how our new cork board wall is adding some personality and color to the office, and Clara couldn’t be more proud. We’ve realized it will get in the way of any curtains we might have hung, but we’ve been thinking about doing some inside-mount roman shades for the room anyway.
Oh, and those felt name banners are a little homemade surprise that a sweet reader sent us (thanks so much Jes!) as a welcome/big sister gift for Teddy and Clara. I like that it sets the stage for Clara that she’ll eventually be sharing her gallery space. Although I’m sure we’ll have a tough time bumping some of her stuff up there. We’re especially enamored with Grumpy Snowman.
A clear family favorite is this drawing that came home from school last winter, where Clara had drawn a portrait of her soon-to-be-bigger family. She did it shortly after we told her that Sherry was having a boy, so it was a huge relief to see her embracing the idea of having a brother so quickly. Especially since she almost immediately started calling him “my baby.”
We’re also pretty big fans of this bear-on-a-stick that she made at school. It shows the evolution of her people drawing skills, since they went from just having heads to suddenly having bodies. Although some people still don’t get a torso, so this bear was pretty lucky.
You may have also noticed that our repurposed Campbell’s soup cans (the limited edition Warhol ones from this old project from two years ago) are still going strong.
The rest of the office still hasn’t made much progress, but with Teddy keeping one of us occupied pretty much at all times, there isn’t really a rush on getting the double-desk thing going just yet. For now, Clara will just have to be our most productive office-mate.
Update: We love to share an update when something didn’t work out the way we thought it would – and explain how we fixed it! – so here’s how we dealt with the cork board curveball that this wall sent our way.
Note: This project was originally published in May 2014
Melissa van Herksen says
wow, what a great idea. i have those same squares. will do it in the playroom this weekend. my boys also beam when their art goes up in the house. by the way clara’s family portrait totally reminded me of the picture my oldest drew when I was in the hospital having Sam. Look at it here…
http://diaryofanexpatfamily.blogspot.com/2010/05/our-first-family-portrait.html
I was amazed that a three year old could get the proportions right. Now we also have an almost 4 year old and are expecting our 3rd. Lets see if Sam draws us a family portrait. as always, thanks for sharing.
YoungHouseLove says
Thats so sweet!
xo
s
Chanelle says
Hello! What a fantastic display for your kids art. I have a similar one for my kiddos but it is magnetic. I wanted to ask you about Clara’s little chairs at her desk. We salvaged four from an antique ship that are similar but are missing the rubber stoppers on the bottoms of the legs. Any suggestions on where or how to find or make some? My wood floors will be sooooo thankful! I have been trying for months to figure out a way….
YoungHouseLove says
Hmm, maybe check a local hardware store for rubber ones that slip over? I think I’ve seen some at old school hardware places or maybe even Home Depot. Might want to just google “rubber chair feet” too? Good luck!
xo
s
Samantha says
Thanks for telling us about the app “artkive”, I just downloaded it and can’t wait to use it! I have to go to work everyday and when I come home my babysitter usually has a fun craft Knox has done for the day just waiting on me. I love it and want to display it. Love what you guys are doing, dont ever stop! :)
Ruth says
Looks great – awesome solution, and I’m going to check out that digital method as well.
I assume y’all know this already but you’re listed in the Top 5 DIY Instagrammers to Follow Now:
http://www.hlntv.com/article/2014/05/05/diy-instagram-accounts-follow?hpt=hp_bn17
YoungHouseLove says
No way! Thanks for the tip!
xo
s
SherryB says
Clara and Teddy’s corkboard turned out awesome! I wanted to do a similar thing for my daughter who is 15, but a little less permanent. I had a white metal poster frame sitting around, which I painted a bright tangerine orange (one of her bedroom accent colors) and just attached the cork squares to the cardboard backing with double-sided tape. It turned out great, and she is using it to showcase photos of her with friends, ticket stubs from movies and concerts she’s been to, and of course, her artwork.
Thanks for the great ideas! :o) Keep ’em coming!
YoungHouseLove says
Love that!
xo
s
Lynn says
Hi S&J! I just thought I’d mention that you could still add curtains (drapes?) to those windows if you desire that look. We have the same situation in our family room (except we have a TV where your cork board is) and we put up two curtains on the outside of both windows. It’s a nice “framing” look, if you will. Roman shades will look great too, but I thought I’d share just in case you weren’t ready to rule out curtains just yet! :) Good luck.
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Lynn!
xo
s
Lindsay says
I actually think seeing the seams is cool. It gives it even more texture, and with all the art up, you hardly notice them. The drawing of the family makes me laugh, I teach 3-4 year olds and mentally and emotionally when your daughter draws “daddy” out and BIG it actually has been researched to say that she definitely considers you the alpha dog of the pack;)
Stephanie @ Whole Health Dork says
What a fantastic idea! Seriously–you guys always impress me with your creativity to simple dilemas. Of course, that’s why you’re so good at what you do and has us all coming back for more. But seriously–impressive.
Jackie says
What a fantastic idea! Love this DIY.
Dani says
Haha, love the bear on a stick!
I took to scanning my daughters creations and saving a copy of them to our computer. Its good because those things can get ruined sometimes or bits starts falling off, and then you’ve always got a copy. The big ones I did in two parts and merged in photoshop (so didnt have to worry about storing huge posters). At the end of her kinder year we were given a disc of photos the teachers had taken through the year, so I made a photobook of them and scattered the scanned creations throughout. Its an awesome momento!
Rachel says
The huge plant in your office. . . What kind is it? I want to invest in a large indoor plant but have no clue where to start!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s a fiddle leaf fig, grabbed on sale at Home Depot about a month ago. Hope it helps!
xo
s
Jim says
That’s amazing and probably very affordable. The light coming from both windows will make her art look great. This would even work for an office. Thank you for the inspiration.
Sky says
I love this project, thank you for the great tutorial!
Shane says
What brand or where did you get those great looking colored pencils in the Cambell’s can? I love that they look like carpenter pencils.
YoungHouseLove says
Ikea!
xo
s
Kristin says
Oh my gosh, I just love this! I must have one.
Katy says
Do you worry about tacks falling down and being eaten by little mouths?
I made an art board using magnetized stainless steel and over-sized magnets.
YoungHouseLove says
Since we had the other cork board up for months and they stayed put, I don’t worry too much but I’ll definitely keep an eye out for the next few months (while Teddy is immobile) to be sure though!
xo
s
Meghan says
Ingenius!
Lily says
I love it when parents display their kids’ art and REAL art! This is so sweet and I bet Clara adores it.
x Lily
http://whilemyboyfriendsaway.blogspot.com/
Casey says
Hello!
DYING over those banners! Will you share the shop name/link so I can purchase some?
Congrats on the precious boy! And this creative little space is so delightful and inspiring!
XO,
Casey
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Casey! Her name’s Jes Mosey, and I think she might have an Etsy shop.
xo
s
Shavonda says
I love this guys!! Such a great idea:)
James Wright says
I like the idea of providing special spots for kids that match their personality in the home outside their bedroom. They see mom and dad work at home, and they should have their own space as well. Have you ever tried using that chalkboard covering on a wall before?
I am considering doing a half wall section of cork and the other of that material, just wondering if it is a pain to apply and if it works well.
YoungHouseLove says
Never tried the sheets of it, but we have painted with chalkboard paint and it’s pretty simple to work with (you can put it over magnetic paint so the wall holds magnets too).
xo
s
Stefanie says
I absolutely love this idea and know my daughter would go gaga over this – I just wish we had room for something like this in our smaller colonial home!