Look What I Found!

Pretty Not So Whiteboards

Whiteboards (or dry erase boards as they are also commonly called) are pretty cool for diagramming and  story boarding wild ideas, but the ginormous white ones ubiquitous in most office settings are not exactly something I want in my kitchen (where I currently do most of my work.) They also aren’t particularly portable or easy for the kids to use when they want to draw without wasting paper.

Here is a pretty simple tutorial showing how to make personalized, portable dry erase boards. We decorated just a border in the examples pictured, but you could also use a two-toned, light-colored wallpaper or even scrapbook paper to decorate yours using the same basic principles detailed below.
What You’ll Need:
Clear Adhesive Backed Laminate or “Contact” Paper (we used one made by “Duck” available in most stores that sell basic drawer liners.)
A sheet of MDF – Larger, pre-cut sizes are available or you can ask the hardware store to cut a 24 x 48 inch sheet into 8  12 x 12 boards (which is what I have done.)
White Latex Primer ( I used Killz – you don’t need much so the smaller container will do.)
Craft glue
pencils, markers, ink, or paint for decorating (non-washable markers work better here but use what you’ve got!)


A sharp craft blade and a self-healing board

Dry Erase Markers

How to do it:

Prime your MDF board and let it dry. If you are decorating a border, measure 1 1/2 inched in from the edge and draw a line or tape it off so you know where your border ends. You will want to keep the center area light colored or blank white so it is usable as a dry erase board when it is finished.

Making it pretty:

Decorate your border or background. If decorating a border, use pencils, markers, etc. (crayons even work!) to create your design. If you are using a full background, choose a light colored one and decoupage it to the board using a Mod Modge type product. Let your board dry completely.

Our Family all worked together to decorate this Dry Erase Board

From Art Back To “Blank” Slate:

To turn the design you have just created into a dry erase board, you need to apply the contact paper. Put your (fully dry) decorated board face down onto the contact paper to measure about how much you will need. Cut this amount off of the roll. Remove the backing of the contact paper to expose the sticky side. Carefully place it over your design – use a light touch and you will be able to position it to cover the full face of the board. Once the contact paper is in place, apply firm pressure to make sure it adheres well to the board underneath. For extra security, pull up just the very edges of the contact paper and apply a very thin bead all around the very edge of your design. Press the contact paper back down on the craft glue and let it dry.

Applying the laminate paper to the dry erase board

Finishing Your Board:

At this point in the process, your contact paper is still kind of flopping over the edges a little. To give it a clean, professional finish, put your board face down on your self-healing mat, and use your craft knife to cut right along the edge, removing the excess contact paper and probably a little dried paint and glue that is sticking to it.

At this point you have a lovely, usable dry erase board. To give it an even cleaner finish, paint the back and sides or use spray adhesive to attach fabric to the back, fold over the edges and staple, then glue a thin ribbon border around the exposed stapled edge.

When you are finished, your dry erase board will look smooth and shiny like this.

So far we have made two of these…My 8 year old make his own “cool” one and the family worked together decorating each side of the border on the one for our soon-to-be 4 year old. Just the perfect thing to keep the children occupied in the car on the way to the lake this Summer.

This is a great idea as far as I am concerned!! I am gonna be making one for my son!!!  Thank You CRAFTS WEEKLY!!!!!


This was something I just thought I would share!!!