When my boyfriend and I were looking at apartments (almost a year ago – time flies!), both a beach side location and a spare bedroom/office were at the top of our list.  Being that we were on an entrepreneur’s/student’s budget, the first prevailed when we found a rare bright and airy loft in the South Bay without an extra room to call an office.  As a person currently juggling several projects, I think it’s imperative to be organized.  And as a designer, I’m always looking at aesthetically pleasing, inspirational and functional organization materials.  I’ve been eying this bulletin board for a while now to serve as an inspiration board next to my desk, but the two size options didn’t quite work with the wall space that I have (and I’m not paying that kind of  price for a bulletin board).  I decided to take a shot at making my own instead (using this economical alternative) and to my surprise, it turned out just lovely.  I can’t wait to hang it on our wall!

Being that I didn’t want the existing wood frame, I removed it using a hammer and screw driver to separate it at the corners.  I ironed the fabric (oatmeal denim from JoAnn’s) pulled it tight and used a staple gun to hold it in place.

It was important to me that the visible grain of the fabric be perfectly horizontal and vertical on the front so while the fabric looks unevenly applied on the back, it looks great from the front.

Front of the bulletin board once the fabric has been applied.

Next I applied antique gold upholstery nail head detailing around the border to give it a finished and decorative look.  I spaced them 2″ apart and they were $1.99/24 pack at JoAnn’s.

Voila!

And all for under $20!