How-To Make a GIANT Inspiration Board

Pinterest is a favorite for many (including me) who want to organize and keep their online inspiration in one place.

As a visual person though, I feel there is nothing like seeing and holding a picture in hand. I still buy and subscribe to magazines. I still tear out pictures and reference them when looking for inspiration.

Until recently, I didnt have a place, a specific go-to spot, for all my collected loves.

I needed something! Thus the creation of my mega, giant, humongous, and amazing inspiration board

I am in heaven. This newly created inspiration board is not only functional, but the pictures that are displayed are gorgeous and make the space colorful and fu n.

Heres how I made it.

I started with these supplies:

1. I started off making sure the MDF board was the right size for the wall. The size was perfect, 3-9 X 4-6, and didnt need to be cut. If youre using this tutorial as inspiration, you can create any size inspiration board that fits your space.

One of the biggest obstacles with making this GIANT Inspiration Board was the difficulty of hanging it.

No doubt, this size board is HEAVY! Drilling through the board was out of the question because it is covered in fabric and hanging it from wire wouldnt make the back flush with the wall, w hich is the look that I desired.

SOoooo Onto a different solution. The basic idea that I came up with was to drill 3 holes into the back of the board that would hang on to 3 screws in the wall.

Lets take a look at the step by step

2. After determining and marking the height at which I wanted the board to hang, I layed the board face down so the back was exposed. I took a piece of painters tape and added it to the back of the board making sure it was completely level with the top of the board. The tape does not have to go from edge-to-edge, but I made sure each end was within 12 of the side.

With a permanent marker, I marked three places on the tape they do not have to be evenly spaced.

3. Using a drill, I carefully drilled about 3/4 of the way through the MDF back (I DID NOT go through to the front).

4. Once the 3 holes were drilled, I removed the piece of tape and put it on the wall at the height I had determined before. Also I made sure to hang the tape so it was placed horizontally correct my board is centered on the wall, but that might not be the case for your creation. Be sure to hang it vertically (up and down) and horizontally (left and right) correct.

Something to watch out for

A laser helps with this part, but if you dont have one, measure down from the ceiling so that all 3 marks are at the same height.

Also, when the board was laying down, the marks went 1,2,3. Now the marks will be 3,2,1 because of how the board will fit onto the wall. It will make more sense once youre in the midst of it.

5. Once the wall was marked with the three locations, I drilled the holes. Then added plastic toggle drywall anchors (which hold mega weight) and then the screws. These are like my all-time favorite anchors and screws!!

6. Once the screws were secure, it was time to put on the board. It takes alittle time figuring where the holes meet the screws, but if you measure right and take your time (which thankfully we did), it should work perfectly and be level!

Unfortunately I dont have a picture of us hanging the board since it was a 2-man job and the kiddos were already asleep (they are my backup photographers), but heres the result (and part of the next step)

Its hanging + straight YES!

Before hanging this bad-boy on the wall, I covered it in fabric. I chose a loose natural linen-like cotton. Because of the width of the board, I needed to piece the fabric together to make one large piece. I ended up cutting and sewing 4 pieces of equal sized fabric. The result was fairly good, but my lines were slightly wavey. Toss it up to DIY, right?!

Anyway, to jazz up the board (and distract the eye from my wavy lines), I decided to use decorative nail head trim and follow the lines of the seams horizontally and vertically.

7. To start off, I used painters tape and made a level line from top to bottom and then from left to right following the seam.

8. On that edge of the tape, I hammered in the nails with a mallet (a hammer will do but sometimes the metal on metal ruins the nailheads), then removed the tape.

And now was the point of happiness!

I could finally fill up my inspiration board with all the things I love

MDF board is not exactly like cork (obviously). Pushpins arent as easy to push in, but with a bit of muscle and oomph, it works fine. As an idea, a layer of cork could have been added to the front surface of the MDF before the fabric was wrapped around, to make it more cushiony and pinnable. For me though, it works fine.

If you know me, I LOVE COLOR, and I have a favorite article pinned on my hand made GIANT inspiration board that I ripped out a recent issue of HGTV Magazine

I adore the glittery gold disco ball.

Now I have lots and lots and lots of room to fill up. Im sure it wont always look this clean. I actually am in love with some of these other GIANT Inspiration Boards!

I hope youre inspired by my new HUMONGOUS Inspiration Board! Im loving my new home office / family room. Not only is it inspiring to work in this new space, but I really e njoy flipping through my favorite magazines and actually pinning them I.R.L.

Via: How-To Make a GIANT Inspiration Board