Today is the debut of my inked blue bulletin board. Just in time to create collages for holiday inspiration.
For the past year, dark inked blue and gold have become a favorite color combination for my home. Navy blue has always been a favorite paired with white or red or both, but recently I started plans to update an old wood-framed bulletin board with a blue cork board and gold wood frame.
Read about why and how I transformed an old inexpensive bulletin board into a freshly painted blue cork board with gold wood frame and get ideas for your own bulletin board.
I n k e d B l u e
B u l l e t i n B o a r d D e b u t
Why a bulletin board in this day and age? Why not use Pinterest to collect and display collages of ideas?
I am a fan of Pinterest ~ a big fan.
In the last thirty days, my Pinterest account had 1.2M impressions with 881K total audience viewing 12,340 pins on 82 public boards. My Blue and White Pinterest board was my 8th most viewed board in the last thirty days. Head over to Botanic Bleu on Pinterest to see what I collect on my electronic bulletin boards ... after you read about the debut of my freshly painted blue and gold cork bulletin board.
A makeover debut needs a BEFORE photo to illustrate where one started with the makeover.
Before
Twenty years old and in fairly good shape, the old cork board began as a board to post schedules, calendars, flyers, reminders, etc... in my office when I was an assistant principal at a large high school in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. I bought it from a local office supply store. Nothing very inspiring, just necessary to help keep me organized.
For the past few years the bulletin board has moved around my house and been used for more beautiful images than in its early days. One Christmas I listed the schedule of activities and meal menus for a large, extended family Christmas gathering we hosted that lasted several days. The decorated Christmas board was in the upstairs hall where the overnight guests stayed.
But, this year it was time for a makeover with new inked blue paint and a gold wood frame.
The makeover began with a thorough cleaning. You can see water streaks on the cork before the cork dried.
Why
 |
| Beautiful Botanical Photos in the Garden Shed |
Let me extoll the virtues of an old-fashioned bulletin board to explain WHY I display a bulletin board in my home.
Paper Texture
First, I have a love affair with paper, always have. The texture of paper fascinates me. Handmade paper with deckled edges, stiff card stock, glossy magazine photos, glassine translucence, ribbed wrapping paper, whisper thin tissue paper, ... offer tactile experiences one cannot feel from an image on an electronic screen.
3-D Objects
Secondly, bulletin boards allow 3-dimensional objects. True, almost all items tacked to a bulletin board are flat paper images. But, tacks themselves are 3-dimensional objects and come in a wide array of beautiful little works of art. Sure, you could use mundane thumbtacks, but you can also use tacks with pizzazz that remind you of places, events, seasons, hobbies, ... Eiffel towers, fleur de lis, bees, holly sprigs, leaves, and presents are a few of the special tacks I have acquired over the years.
You can also tack bits and pieces of fabric to create a design board for a project, a room, or an entire house. There is an advantage to touching fabrics considered for upholstery, drapes, bedding, ... We will touch those fabrics everyday and should feel them before choosing them.
Let's not forget tacking up mementos of special occasions. Tickets, playbills, faded flowers, Mardi Gras beads, packets of seeds, ...
Then, there are the items of whimsy. Birds, Christmas ornaments, and dancing fairies add joy to our days.
Save Photos Not Found On The Internet
Bulletin boards are wonderful places to organize photos that speak to us. As we pass by the board each day, the images offer inspiration. Bulletin boards are sort of a rotating gallery of inexpensive ephemera.
How
HOW the board was redesigned was easy.
There was nothing wrong with the bulletin board's looks, but a blue cork board with a gold frame would update the old board with a fresh, unexpected look that coordinates with the colors in my home.
Paint Cork
I used a Behr sample paint pot in the color Inked. The small sample was more than enough to paint the cork multiple times. Since cork is fairly porous, the cork soaks up the paint and more than one coat was needed for good coverage. Paint streaks visible from this angle do not concern me. At a different angle and in different lighting the streaks are not as pronounced. Plus, most of the board will be covered with photos that conceal paint flaws.
I think the cork will need touching up from time to time since the tacks may chip away small bits of the cork. I used a sponge brush designed for craft projects to paint both the cork and the wood frame.
If you are beginning to like the idea of a traditional bulletin board, but an updated colorful version for your home, think about painting the cork in your favorite color. Green, red, peach, lavender, ... the options are bountiful, only limited by the paint colors available at your local home improvement stores.
And, the color is easy to change if you want to use red for Christmas, but another color the rest of the year.
Choose a matte or satin finish since glossy finishes will accentuate any flaws or pin holes caused by tacks.
Paint Wood Frame
I painted the wood frame with the color Inked also. After the wood dried, I applied Rub 'n Buff on top of the blue paint. Rub 'n Buff is a wax metallic finish that goes on easily on several different materials. Use a soft cloth to polish the wax.
Should the gold Rub 'n Buff allow the frame to show through, the visible color will be Inked, not the original wood tone color of the frame.
The frame needs more Rub 'n Buff along the inside edges of the frame. Now that the Inked blue paint is thoroughly dried, I can tape off the cork with painter's masking tape and apply more Rub 'n Buff along the narrow inside frame without getting the gold on the blue-painted cork.
~~~~❦~~~~
Along with the debut of my newly painted bulletin board is the debut of a new monthly series of blog posts ~
Bulletin Board Inspiration
November will be the first month in the new series. Watch for the first monthly bulletin board inspiration with Fall and Thanksgiving images later this month.
And, get your own updated colorful bulletin board ready to try out ideas from my monthly bulletin boards!
Stay safe,
and add a little inspiration to your everyday.
S O U R C E S
Related posts
Materials
Blue Paint - Inked by Behr at Home Depot
Rub 'n Buff - Gold Leaf at Hobby Lobby
