Making Bulletin Board Fabric Work {A Bright Idea}

It's that time again!
Are you ready for some...

BRIGHT IDEAS? 

It's Back to School 2014 and I know that some of us are already back into full swing!  But, I have a simple back to school tip (or really any time of the year tip) for making your bulletin board fabric smooth and tight.

Since I'm a little (ok, a lot) OCD when it comes to my bulletin boards, I've learned a few tricks over the years.

First~ I use fabric.  I know there is a lot of debate over the right covering, but I prefer fabric.  I'm lucky enough to be able to use it.  I know there are a lot of schools that don't allow it.

Let me show you what works for me. First, measure your board and cut your fabric slightly smaller in length and width.  Yes, smaller.  The reason is because you will be pulling that fabric to stretch it to make it more taut.

Next, iron that fabric!

I usually bring my ironing board, but it won't fit in my new, tiny car.  So, an old beach towel worked just fine.

Now, I think you could probably get away without ironing your fabric, but I like to make sure it's nice and crisp when I start.

Next, staple the center of your fabric to the center of your board.  Here's where/why I like using fabric.  It makes it easy for this to be a one-man job.  The beginning of the year can be CRAZY, and it's nice not to have to bug your neighbor to help your hang paper.

Don't worry, it didn't get wrinkled.

Next, staple one side.

Looks wrinkled, but hold on...there's more.

Ok, now that the second side is stapled, I have a HUGE problem. It's too big.  Shoot, I must have measured wrong.  Not to worry, a simple trick my mama showed me years ago to the rescue!!

Cut, and rip it right on the seam.  The beauty of cotton is that it will rip right up at the seam in a perfectly straight line.  Good thing, because I can't cut a straight line worth a toot.

Cut, and rip to the top.  I usually cut the final little bit, just to be safe.

Then, start stapling the bottom.  Don't worry, it will look like this at first:

But, as you stretch and pull that fabric, it will begin to look more like this:

You will notice that it doesn't go to the edge of the board.  I do that on purpose, because the border will cover that right up.

And from the side, you can see it a little better that there are NO bumps or buckles in the fabric:

 Because that would drive me batty.

I hope you found a new little trick while visiting!

If you are new to my blog and enjoyed this bright idea, please consider joining me on Facebook, Instagram or at Teachers Pay Teachers for more great ideas!

For more bright ideas tons of different bloggers, please browse through the link-up below and choose a topic/grade level that interests you. Thanks for visiting! 

What are you waiting for?  Have a great time checking out the links to find more
 BRIGHT IDEAS!

An InLinkz Link-up