Decorating A Cork Board At Home: Ideas, Tips, Best Supplies
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Decorating a cork board at home and hanging it on a wall is a unique and creative way to spruce up your home environment. Whether you are looking for something to make your home office cozy, to make your bedroom an inspiring place, or to personalize a boring dorm room wall, an aesthetic cork board might be perfect for you!
Whether you only have a small area on the wall to decorate or the whole cork board wall to play with, you can use it as an inspiration board and put all kinds of things on it.
In this guide, we’ll look at different aesthetic bulletin board ideas and lots of unique and classic ways to decorate your own pin board at home. After reading it, you’ll know exactly what to do with a cork board, will have a list of essential supplies, and hopefully will get inspired to start decorating.
Why use a cork board
If you have a plain white wall, you may just use that surface to put everything on it without even hanging a board. However, it may be damaging to the paint and also limiting in terms of what you can place on it!
Using a cork board is a more flexible approach, and you can circulate its content however often you want without hurting your room’s walls every time.
With cork wall boards, your imagination is your only limit!
From creating an inspiring mood board to making a brainstorming corner out of it, there are tons of ideas on what you can do with a cork board taking into account your personal taste and interests.
What to put on a cork board
Decorating a bulletin board at home is a cool process for making the space around you more “yours” and inspiring. Open up your creative flow and think about everything that gets you going!
It’s different for everyone as we all get inspired by our own things.
If you aren’t sure what you want to do with your cork board yet, look through my ideas below and find out which of them may work for you!
In case you aren’t sure whether you want a cork board or something else, I’ve listed some interesting alternatives at the end of this post.
So let’s get started! Here are a few cork board decor ideas to get you inspired for your own project:
1. Make a mood board in your favorite color
If you have a favorite color or just a color you like at the moment, why not decorate your cork board in that color scheme? This way, it will look curated and elegant and will please your aesthetic eye whenever you look at it.
It’s also very common to decorate a wall with the “winter vibes” or “sweater weather” look. Or maybe do the opposite and add a beach vibe to the room with warm summer colors and pictures of the ocean.
You can totally redecorate it next season or whenever you get inspired by another color!
If you don’t want to change your cork board too often, choose a neutral color combination that is timeless and nice to look at.
2. Create a postcard gallery
If you happen to be a postcrosser like me, you can hang your favorite postcards from all over the world on your cork board at home. Unique stamps can complement the project too!
Here is an amazing wall of a passionate postcrosser:
This one is not cork but you get the idea!
There is no right or wrong approach to decorating a cork board on your wall. Do it in a way that inspires you and makes you happy and comfortable being around that place!
3. Make a vision board from your cork wall
Whether you believe in the law of attraction or not, your cork board is a good place to keep track of your dreams and goals. You can create a dedicated vision board for the next month, quarter, or year, or just have an ongoing one with long-term ideas for your dream life. (Personally, I have both!)
Putting some images down when your dreams come true and making space for new ones is an inspiring activity by itself.
Here is a pretty example of an aesthetic pin board for a travel lover:
Notice how it’s decorated with cute stickers to make it even more personalized and inspiring.
Bulk print and put your wishlist items on your cork board, for example, a dream house or a perfect vacation you have in mind. It doesn’t have to be about material things: it’s up to you to make it all about desired emotions and whatever happiness means to you!
When decorating a cork board for your professional home office, you can add something about your desired work or business achievements that would motivate you to be more productive.
4. Put all your project ideas on your board
This one also works well for your home office, but not exclusively.
Make it all work-related or add some personal projects and plans if you wish: it’s your wall! Your daily habit trackers and work goals may also go up there if it’s convenient for you to track the progress on the wall.
Personally, I prefer to use digital habit-tracking apps, but I know people who get really motivated when they see their progress in front of them all day.
Here is a real-life example of a project-decorated board:
5. Feature your photography on a cork wall
If you like photography, print some of the photos you are most proud of and make your own gallery. Alternatively, buy a few amazing photography prints from Minted and make your wall an aesthetic piece of art in itself!
Just look at this cozy real-life example of a home office with a cork wall of photos!
6. Organize your reminders in a home office
Among all the things to put on a cork board, notes are the most practical.
Find all your post-it notes that clutter your workspace and pin them onto your cork board so they are always in front of your eyes. This way you won’t forget anything important anymore and your desk also stays clean!
Even if you usually use online planning apps to manage your projects, having important notes accessible without the need to launch apps or click anything might come in handy sometimes.
Some of the notes may contain cheerful words and kind mental things you sometimes need to be reminded of. Phrase it in your own way or write down a few of your favorite inspirational quotes, however you like it. As long as you see it every day and it makes you feel good, it works!
7. Fill your wall with warm memories
Print your favorite photos with friends and family, find a few greeting cards with the best messages you received for previous birthdays, and maybe choose some little valuable gifts you got from your loved ones that can be pinned.
For decorating an office wall, why not add some photos of you having a good time with your coworkers? If you don’t have any, maybe it’s time to become more social and create new wonderful memories?..
If you keep tickets from memorable trips or shows, they are perfect for your memory lane wall as well. Decorate it with warm string lights, and you are done!
You’ll get a dose of warm feelings and good vibes every time this cork board catches your eye.
8. Make it a motivational board
Print some inspirational images and/or your favorite quotes, and maybe add some photos of the role models you are looking up to. They may be successful people in your industry or just someone whose lifestyle inspires you.
Whatever (or whoever) sparks your motivation and helps you get to work when you feel lazy, put some pictures of them on your wall!
Here is a lovely minimalist inspiration board made with hexagon cork boards:
9. Mix all of the above on your cork board
This is the most flexible approach and basically what I usually have on my home office wall.
A bunch of photos, postcards, and inspirational quotes, combined with a habit tracker and your vision board, will work like a charm for your daily motivation!
Here is a good example of what I mean:
10. Use patterns and graphic elements to elevate your cork board
If your work or hobbies depend on your creativity, surround yourself with a few items that may trigger that creative process. Anything from your favorite patterns, color schemes, interesting materials, design elements, and pieces of fabric, to unique ideas and styles you love. If it inspires you, keep it close!
Where to buy a cork board
Many big stores sell different types of cork bulletin boards, for example:
- Home Depot
- Michaels
- Walmart
- Hobby Lobby
- Amazon
These are the best cork boards on Amazon, according to customer reviews:
Make sure to check the size before purchasing to avoid bad surprises. I often see bad reviews for things on Amazon from people disappointed with the size of something – whereas it’s clearly specified in the description.
Just make sure it fits your wall!
Useful supplies for decorating a cork board
Here are some useful supplies to help you implement cork board ideas described above:
- Pin set for a cork board: wooden, transparent, or colorful
- Motivational cards
- Fairy string lights with remote adapter
- Vision board clip art book (a huge source of images to cut out!)
- Additional cork board strips (can be used standalone if you have very little wall space at your disposal)
DIY cork board ideas
If you are a craft person or just looking for cheaper alternative, consider making a DIY cork board. Not only it will be more unique and personalized but you can make it exactly the size you need!
This is a very useful approach for example for a tiny home office space where the usual 24 x 36 inch ready-made corkboard won’t fit.
Another reason for a DIY bulletin board is that from one list of cork material you can make a few cork boards for different rooms or even a whole wall of cork for pinning!
You may decide that you want one normal-sized board for your bedroom and a smaller one for your recipes in the kitchen. Or make your home office door all-cork from the inside. Or make a special uniquely decorated board for each of your children.
The opportunities are limitless when it comes to bulletin board ideas for home!
At this point, after looking through all the ideas for cork boards listed above, you probably know what you want to do with your cork board and where it’s gonna be hanging, right?
If you decided that you want a homemade bulletin board or a few, all you need now is to measure your space(s) and find the right-sized cork roll you can cut.
Other than that, make sure to check that your cork material (whether it’s true cork, cork foam board, or felt) is thick enough for push pins to avoid damaging the wall.
Sometimes you’ll need to use two layers of cork together to protect your wall.
Supplies for a DIY cork board
If you want to make a cork board yourself, here are some things you’ll need:
- a pretty cork board
- or a pack of cork board tiles
- spray adhesive
- or self-adhesive cork roll
- nails and screws to hang your board to the wall (always handy for home improvements!)
- spray paint if you don’t like the natural cork color
- cute fabric if you want to make it more special
How to make a DIY cork wall
Watch this quick video to see a full process for making a cork wall at home:
Not so difficult, is it?
I like how cork looks but some people don’t, and that’s okay. Maybe it doesn’t fit your interior, or you want it to be less boring and more personalized. And you know what? You totally can!
Make DIY cork board with fabric
Here is a good example of how you can decorate a cork board with fabric and ribbon:
Needless to say, there is no lack of good fabric out there. Although if you choose this approach, I’d recommend sticking to plain pastel colors so the content of your bulletin board is more prominent.
Besides, if you ever get bored with your fabric, you can do a total cork board makeover with another material, which can completely change the look and feel of your room!
Paint your cork board
Another way to decorate your cork board is to paint it.
The best way to do this is by using a spray paint that keeps the beautiful cork structure visible. Metallic gold paint is the most popular choice for DIY painting a cork board for home walls as it is close to the natural cork color but looks fresh and shiny.
As you can see, DIY cork board is fairly easy to make and decorate and it looks nice and festive when finished!
Best cork board alternatives
These days there are so many ways to decorate your walls that you don’t have to go with the cork board if you don’t like it for some reason.
One nice perk of a cork bulletin board, though, is that it does a great job hiding a terrible wall color or a damaged wall behind it. A wire grid panel won’t help you with that but other options probably will.
In any case, choose whichever board feels more aesthetically pleasing to you, and have some fun decorating it!
Let’s see a few equivalents of cork board for making an inspiration wall at home!
Mesh wire board panel
This is what I have in my home office! I use a black wire mesh grid board as I personally find it more modern and stylish than an old-school cork board.
You can also put it on your desk against the wall instead of hanging it if you don’t want to make holes in your wall. This, of course, only works if you sit face-to-wall and not otherwise, which is often the case for small home offices and dorm rooms.
Here are some good wire boards from Amazon:
With a mesh wire board, you can choose the color you want that works well with your interior. For example, I like the look and feel of a white panel but I wouldn’t use it against my white wall.
Another benefit is that in this case you’ll use clips instead of push pins so there is no holes. It looks like new after years of using it!
Lastly, it’s easier to decorate than a cork board because the surface is not flat. You can tie ribbons to it and hang your decor on strings. There is also a lot of ways to put string lights on it for that perfect cozy atmosphere!
Here are some things you may find useful for decorating your wire board:
- Assorted clips for wire board
- or Fun clothespins
- Basket for a wire grid wall panel
- Hanging shelf for wire board
- Photo clips string lights
- Cute succulents
Magnetic dry erase board
Another way to avoid pin holes is by using a magnet board.
It basically works exactly as your fridge on the outside but you can also write and draw on it.
I’m sure you’ve seen it either at school or at work so the concept should be familiar. Great for teaching, brainstorming, and playing Pictionary!
You can absolutely implement all the cork board decoration ideas with a magnetic board if you want, just use magnets instead of pins. To make it look prettier, just use some fun magnets like these cat ones!
Mixed bulletin and magnet board
Can’t decide between a bulletin cork board and a magnet board? Don’t worry, you don’t have to!
Just look at these creative mixed options that can satisfy all your creative needs at once!
Felt board
Compared to cork boards, felt boards are usually cheaper and offer some color variety. However, felt is thinner, so make sure there is another layer of material under it so pins won’t damage the wall.
Letter board
Tired of pin board ideas and want something completely different for your inspiration board? Look at letter boards!
Some people like words on their walls more than images. If you are someone who prefers this minimalist approach, then a letter board may be a better choice for you.
With the letter set that is usually included with such board, you can write a motivational message for yourself and change it once in a while to keep the inspiration going. Whatever works for avoiding procrastination and being your most productive self!
Other ideas for using a letter board include writing nice messages for your loved ones on special days, or hang it saying something warm in your guest room to make it feel more welcoming.
Creative board ideas for wall
If none of the above was creative enough for you, look at these!
Who said that a cork board has to be rectangular? With tiles you can make any shape you want! Or find a ready-made wire board of some interesting shape like the heart above. As unique as it can get!
Final thoughts on decorating a cork board at home
That was my full cork board decoration guide, hope it was useful!
Now you should not only know how to decorate a cork board and what to put on a bulletin board in your room, but also be able to make a fun DIY project out of the boring basic cork board!
