Tufted Bulletin Board

Thistlewood
by Thistlewood
4 Materials
$25
4 Hours
Medium

When I first met this piece of furniture I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be friends.

It was in the back of a junk shop proudly displayed with a knitted afghan a set of World Book Encyclopedias and a collection of vintage silver.

I was headed for the silver, completely ignoring the afghan and shiny, but sadly underused reference books.

And as I stood there holding a set of spoons I looked, really looked at the piece of furniture they were sitting on.

And figured out the perfect project that would transform this piece of furniture.

A tufted bulletin board.

Step 1: Add cork


I started by adding cork to the back of the frame. This provides a foundation for the bulletin board and gives a surface to stick thumbtacks into. The cork came in square pieces that fit perfectly into the frame. It had a self-adhesive backing that stuck onto the wood.

Step 2: Staple batting


Next, I purchased simple quilted batting and stapled it to the cork.

I pulled the batting to the edge of the frame and stapled it in place.

It took about a roll of batting to cover it.

Step 3: Add pillow stuffing


To add additional tufting to the cork board, I stapled pillow stuffing to the top.

Staple the pillow stuffing in place.


Step 4: Staple fabric over pillow stuffing and batting


Next, staple fabric over the two layers of stuffing and batting. This amazing gray fabric worked perfectly with this project.

You want to make sure and pull the fabric tightly across the batting to have a smooth surface to tuft with.

Trim away any excess.

Step 5: Add molding to hide staples


Next, add picture frame molding to the sides of the board to hide the staples.

You could add ribbon or twine if adding molding doesn't fit your decor.

Step 6: Tuft the fabric


The key to tufting the fabric is to nail nails in before you add the upholstery tacks.

That way your tufting firmly stays in place.

Nail your nails in a diamond pattern (as shown) to create a tuft.

I used a pattern with a row of three nails alternating with two nails.

You can adjust the pattern depending on the size of your board. As you nail the nails in place, you can see the tufts start to form.

Step 8: Add Upholstery Tacks


For the finishing touch add upholstery nails to your tufts.

Here’s the finished tufting with the upholstery nails. Nail an upholstery tack over each nail to finish off the bulletin board.

Here's the finished bulletin board.

Seriously.

Isn’t it amazing.

I can’t believe the transformation.

I'm so happy I gave this piece of furniture a second look.

Sometimes all it takes is a new perspective.


Here are a few DIY projects that you might be interested in:

DIY Shutter Wall

DIY Peel and Stick Flooring



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Thistlewood
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Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
  3 questions
  • Beth Beth on Aug 21, 2020

    With all these materials over the corkboard, it seems like it would be pretty thick. And the pushpins are pretty short. Don't you have trouble getting the pushpins to stay in through all that stuff? And it seems to me that if the board is used much, the tufting would be covered up anyway....

  • Sue Sue on Aug 22, 2021

    What was the piece of furniture you started with?

  • Kara Donoghue Kara Donoghue on Aug 08, 2022

    Why are you using both plywood nails and upholstery tacks? Wouldn't you only need the decorative upholstery tacks?

Comments
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2 of 7 comments
  • Creative Moments Creative Moments on Aug 23, 2021

    This is awesome Kari-Anne

  • MKJO MKJO on Aug 07, 2022

    With all the items pinned on the tufted bulletin board the tufting is difficult to see. There are much better ways to make a bulletin board pretty.

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