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Saturday, April 14, 2012

DIY Menu Board

Making a menu board has been on my to-do list for a long time now.  It is a cute and easy way to make menus every week.  Once the initial work is done, it is so easy to map out what your family is having for the week and know what items you will need from the grocery store.  I have seen this idea done a lot of different ways, and really that is why it is so appealing to me.  I love that you can customize it to any space. 


Another great thing is that these make amazing gifts!  I just made this one for my sister to give her on her birthday and she really seemed to like it a lot.  I also think it would be a great gift for newly weds or mother's day. 

I made this really easy for you cause I made my first ever printable of all the cute elements that make up the page!  You can download it for free over on my facebook page.  I will have an envelope option available for you soon.  I will update this page once it's available.

Here's what I did to make it.
Supplies:
*12X12 mdf- mine is about 1/4 inch thick.  (you can make it any size with any sort of backing.  You could even use cardboard and put it inside a frame.)
*scrapbook paper- 3 coordinating papers
*mod podge
*bottle caps
*magnets
*tin
*printable elements (you can download the printable free over on my facebook page!)



You begin by adhering the scrapbook paper to the mdf (or whatever surface you would like to use.)  This is where I liked making it 12X12 since I didn't have to cut the paper at all.


I used some scrap pieces of tin that I had.  Any sort of magnetic material would work as well.  You can buy big sheets of tin (3 feet by 4 feet or something like that) at home depot for $15 a sheet.  I bought one a year ago, and am still using it for different projects.  Just be careful to not slide your finger along the edges.  It WILL cut you. 


To make it look nicer and to make it so that the tin couldn't cut anyone, I covered it with some coordinating scrapbook paper.

Next, I used mod podge to attach the different elements to the board. 


I used a 1 inch hole punch to cut out my days of the week.  Then I used a glue dot to stick the circle to the inside of the bottle cap.  I finished it off with an epoxy resin sticker (you could also use dimensional magic or resin.)

I used my silhouette to cut out some cute-sy envelopes and then used some bakers twine that I bought from Pick Your Plum to wrap around it making it even more cute!


I originally used hot glue to adhere the magnets to the back of the bottle caps, but then I realized it wasn't very permanent and didn't work well.  So instead I decided to not glue it at all and just let them be magnetized together.


I used a drill to make holes for the ribbon to go through. 


To attach the ribbon, I just pushed it through the board and tied a knot, once on each side.


Add a fun sticky note pad, and there you have it!  The board is complete.


The last step is to add your entree options.  I used some cute scrapbook paper and cut it down to printer size.  Then I printed off some of my family's favorite entree options.  Once printed, I cut them into individual strips that fit in the envelope.  The other thing that makes this even easier is that I wrote on the back of the cards the ingredients that I would need to buy that I normally wouldn't have on hand. 





This is the version I made for myself.  I like both this one and the one I made for my sister for different reasons.  I just thought I would show you so that you can see another option.  I made this one on a wood plaque and will be hanging it with a sawtooth photo hanger.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

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