Create your own DIY Art Display

My kitchen walls and cupboard doors have been covered in my children’s Art for years. There is a heavy rotation of new makes that come home from school in their school bags weekly and in particular at the end of every season. Dare I say it but some end up in the bin (I know!! Bad mom alert!!) but I can’t fit them all up there on the cupboard doors and quiet frankly I have started to forget what my kitchen looked like before it was covered in my children’s Art Work. I wanted to create a fun way to display their art that would make them feel just as proud as if I had hung them on the cupboard doors as before.

This project is very straightforward and can be customized to suit your decor choices. I love all things rainbow so, my DIY Art Display was always going to feature rainbow theme colors. 

Materials needed:

1. A “Cork” Board (I purchased mine in Woodies)
2. Masking tape
3. Paint brush(es) (use the ones that suit you best)
4. Tester Paint Pots (I purchased two Balmy Blue Fleetwood paint pots and one Johnstones “White” paint pot for this project from Woodies)
5. Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
6. Rainbow colored card/plastic cut into triangles (alternatively you can choose your own type of embellishment)

 How to create your art work masterpiece

Step 1

Attach masking tape to the top of the timber frame that surrounds the cork memo board. You do not need to worry about the underside where both cork board and timber frame meet as you will be painting along this edge. The priority here is to ensure paint will not seep onto the top side of the timber frame. 

Step 2

Start in the corners and ensure you have paint at the inside of the wooden frame where it meets the cork board. Do this all the way around the memo board working into wards the center of the memo board as you go. 

Step 3 

Once you have one full coat applied of the emulsion paint, leave to dry for about 40 minutes. Come back and touch test for dryness. If no paint transfers onto your finger tips it is ready for its second coat. I purchased my Memo Cork Board in Woodies so I am estimating the drying time based on their product, your own memo board may take more or less time than my estimated time. The easiest way to know if it is dried enough, is the touch test.

Step 4

Once you have two coats applied and you have touch tested it for dryness you can removed the masking tape that was protecting the outer frame surface. If at this point you note some paint seepage, you can use a damp cloth to lightly scrub away the paint that has seeped through. 

Step 5 

Once all the masking tape and any paint that has seeped on to the outer frame of the memo board has been cleared away, you can add paint to your frame. I used white paint from the Johnstone’s paint pot I purchased for the outer frame. It took two coats to give it an even finish. 

Next I used the same paint to create the clouds on the cork board. To create them I just made “C” shapes in different patterns and filled them in using the same white paint.

Step 6

I then left the cork board to dry out for over an hour. I touch tested it when I came back and then added a third and final coat of the Balmy Blue Fleetwood paint to the main cork board. I avoided the clouds I had previously painted and instead painted around them with the blue paint. 

I left the painted cork board to dry then for another 40 minutes and touch tested it before preceding to Step 7

Step 7

Finally I gathered my Rainbow triangle shapes and my glue gun. I applied a light amount of glue to the back of each triangle and arranged them in a nice pattern (like bunting) along the top of the cork board. 

I then hung my new Children’s Art Display on my kitchen wall. Now to decide which Art pieces will make it on the wall! 

I would love to see how you got on making your own DIY Art Display or if you have any comments or recommendations on how to do it better, comment below.