Design*Sponge » Blog Archive » diy wednesdays: wallpaper wipe off board

we discovered the joys of clear contact paper when we were working on our wallpaper book last year, and used it over and over again to make our paper covered projects waterproof and extra durable. we can’t believe it took us this long to realize that it also makes a great wipe-off surface for dry-erase pens! we used a special custom wallpaper designed by lena corwin to make this simple wipe-off board, which also doubles as a place to clip notes and small pieces of art.

have fun!
derek & lauren

CLICK HERE for the full project instructions!

here’s what you’ll need:
9” x 12” piece of cardboard
9” x 12” piece of wallpaper or other decorative paper
rubber cement
x-acto blade or scissors
clear contact paper
large bulldog clip
dry-erase pen
(card used in the picture above is from something’s hiding in here)

1. apply rubber cement to the back of your wallpaper and to one side of your cardboard. adhere the paper to the cardboard, smoothing out air bubbles as you go.

2. if desired, round the corners or cut your cardboard into a decorative shape using an x-acto blade or scissors.

3. cut a piece of clear contact paper that is slightly larger than your cardboard, and apply over the wallpaper.

4. trim excess contact paper using your x-acto blade or scissors.

5. clip a large bulldog clip to the top of the cardboard and attach to the wall using a small nail. you hang a piece of artwork from the clip and use dry-erase pens to write messages on the surface of your wipe-off board.

What a great idea! How about using one of those old clip boards which already have the clip attached at the top! You can find them at flea markets or thrift shops for just pennies! Keep the fantastic ideas coming. I thoroughly enjoy your blog.

I read back about 20 posts into your achives and logged out without leaving a single comment! Isn’t that crummy of me? So, I came back to leave one and to tell you that you have some amazingly beautiful photos posted. And I love the wallpaper DIY idea :)

Thanks for the fun reads tonight. Now, off to paint some shutters!!

Jacci

I hate to criticize this wonderful blog that gives me so much joy. But I’m not fond of the thumbnail photos at the bottom of each post. Suddenly my leisurely scroll down the page each morning has turned into a flurry of clicks and page loading.

ali

sorry for the inconvenience- but you should only need to click 6 times: if you click “read more” for any post on the main page with images after the jump, you’ll see them all full sized. the thumbnails are mainly for rss readers. you can see everything in one big row of images if you click “read more”. no flurry of clicks needed ;)

grace

I tried this project Friday night. Unfortunately, the contact paper didn’t erase if you left the writing on it for more than a few seconds. I would reccomend using something more glossy- like velum for the top layer. I’m going to try to rubber cement on some on top of my boards today to try to salvadge them.

You also could make pocket-sized dry-erase boards to put in your purse for To-Do lists, or take old college posters with extra background space, clear-contact them, and hang them in teenagers’ rooms. I loved writing on the walls as a teen. (off to the store!!!)

Melissa – for your toddler, another fun idea is to paint a section of wall with chalkboard paint. They don’t just have green and black now, you can do pink, blue, etc. Have fun!

this is such a cute concept and the first project in our crafty (happy) hour that i am starting with friends. we were all disappointed to see the dry erase leave marks behind on the contact paper even after using windex. i may clip a notepad to the board instead so i can at least still use it.

Well these are still pretty darn cute. If it doesn’t work as a wipe board- this makes the best clip board- or holder of grocery lists and to do lists…Why not hang three in row in your office? Thanks for the inspiring example! LOVE IT!

Wow! Thanks for sharing the discovery. I have two rolls of clear contact paper and now they will finally serve a purpose!
(I’m not sure why I have two rolls, and to think I bought them separately…)

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