Goofy Monkeys: DIY Memo Board

WOOT WOOT! It's Pinterest Challenge time! The folks over at Young House Love, Bower Power Blog, The Remodeled Life, and Decor and the Dog are hosting yet another Pinterest Challenge - and I just had to join in on the fun because I love those guys and I love Pinterest too! Here's how it goes - pin something great then DO IT and put your own spin on it!

I've been a little slacker-ish in the DIY category lately (chalk it up to extra mopping & laundry that comes with potty training), but I wanted to hop straight back on the hobby horse. There are tons of ideas I have for the house, but since half of them need to be done in the kitchen (which would be much improved by a can of gasoline and a book of matches), I decided to do a project for my current favorite room in the house - the Big Girl Bedroom!

So here goes - the pin - there are a lot of these out there on Pinterest, but this one caught my eye - probably because of the frame:

{pinterest source} Basically, it's a memo board. You can stick pictures, cards, postcards, whatever, behind the ribbons to display them. I prefer this for a young kid to a bulletin board because I don't love the idea of tacks. I had thought of a magnet board, but I like the softness of adding a textile to the room rather than just stenciling something on metal. Anyways...here's what I used:

Frame (Target) = $17 <== I suppose I could have found a better deal or thrifted one, but I didn't have time!
Fabric (had it) = $0
Batting (had it) = $0
Ribbon = $2 (clearance)
Buttons (had 'em) = $0
Foam board = $1.50
Craft tape = $3

First thing's first - cut down the foam board to the size you need. Simple enough, I just popped the glass out of the frame and traced it onto my foam board. I cut it with scissors, but it would have been easier if I could have located my craft knife (where is that thing??)

I put it in the frame to check the size. Better safe than sorry. I actually had to trim it a bit more, which is a good call because there's going to be some fabric and whatnot going on this guy. I also cut a piece of batting (like for a quilt) in the same size.
I trimmed my fabric about 4 inches bigger on each side (after ironing it, of course). Now comes the fun part - put it all together! I lay the fabric on a table, wrong side up. I put the batting in the middle (carefully making sure my zig-zags were straight) and I put the foam board on top of that. I used tape to secure everything - I pulled the fabric tight on 2 sides and taped it down with clear packing tape. Then I taped the other 2 sides and the corners.

Next step was the ribbons. I sorta "dry fit" them by laying things out on top and used some straight pins to hold them in place on the edges while I taped on the back. Smarties can use things like rulers and protractors to get the ribbons parallel, square, or even. I just eyeballed it. I secured the ribbons on the back with more packing tape and pulled out the pins.

I flipped the board over and used plain old thread and a sturdy needle to attach buttons at each cross of the ribbons. This was a bit tedious and I'm not sure how well they'll hold, but I'm not sure of a better way.