Monday, April 25, 2011

Repurposed Washboard by Betsy Sammarco

Try repurposing a vintage washboard into a memo or inspiration board!

First, you'll want to find your washboard. The washboard needs to have a metal washing surface. Some washing surfaces were glass and some reproductions are plastic. You’ll need the metal surface for the magnets to work.



I found a washboard with a nice header on it. Since my board will be used in the sunniest room of our house, it was perfect!


Here's what I did to customize my washboard:



1. Make a removable butterfly topper:

Cover a JBS Butterfly Chipboard piece with JBS patterned paper. I added a piece of Sunburst chipboard to add to the "sunny" theme. The butterfly's body is made of various buttons.


The butterfly's antenna is a Rhinestone Bow Embellishment turned upside down:








Magnets are glued onto the back of the butterfly with Helmar's Professional Acid Free Glue.





By adding magnets to the butterfly topper, it can now be removed or changed around as needed.



2. Make the decorative magnets:



The magnets are Chipboard buttons, Vintage Sew-On buttons, and other embellishments layered on top of each other and glued with the Helmar glue.









The Helmar glue holds the magnets quite well and you can take the button magnets on and off without worry.



3. Use your new memo/inspiration board! Mine is hanging in my scrapbook area holding bits and pieces of inspiration!










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7 comments:

  1. was glad to see you didn't mess with the integrity of the board~it is a sweet creation!!!

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  2. OMG, Betsy - that is fabulous!! Adding a metal surface washboard to my list of vintage things I need to be on the lookout for!

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  3. What a cute idea. I think I have a wash board in our jumble of a garage/storage mess. Thanks for sharing the idea with us.

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  4. how CUTE! i think I have washboards just sittinging in my basement! Thanks for the CUTE idea.

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  5. What an inspiring project!
    My grandparents used to have a washboard -- this brings back so many memories.

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