My design wall is vertical, 96x96 (we have 10' ceilings). The design board is formed by two 4'x8' styrofoam insulation panels affixed to the wall with a non-styrofoam-eating adhesive, schmeared with a lightly thinned glue similar to Elmmer's Glue, and covered in gridded flannel.
My husband later added a rack of three 9' dowels running parallel to the top of the design wall - this allows me to work on and store 3 projects more than what's on the design wall. Total cost was $200. If you need more how-to details, just PM me. Photos attached.

Cost breakdown:
2 insulation panels $18
3 "guns" non-styro-eating adhesive $21
1 gallon Elmer's Glue substitute $ 8
6 yds gridded flannel $75
4 pieces molding (design wall sides) $24
4 wooden rosettes (design wall corners) $12
2 Dowel rack brackets $10
3 Dowels (9' each, 1 1/2" diameter) $25

My hubby made me a design wall last year and I love it. We used the foam board (insulation board) from the hardware...we used the thicker board, I think it is 3/4 or 1 inch. My design wall is 6ft x 6ft. We bought 2 boards and cut them 3ft x 6 ft, covered them with batting which was cut to fit and only covered the front of the board to the edge. (glued that down with glue from Walmart, can ask my hubby if you need that info). <br>We then covered the batting with flannel and that was cut to wrap around the edge of the board and cover the back about 3 inches all the way around. I tacked the flannel to the front of the board with thumb tacks and then flipped it over and we glued the 3 inch flannel edge to the back of the board with the same glue. We spread it with a sponge paint brush and then just pressed the flannel to it and it stuck held and dried very well. After it was all dry my hubby screwed both pieces of the board to my sewing room wall with 3 long screws along the top piece and two down the side. The bottom board had 3 screws along the bottom and two up the sides. Hubby bought large washers about as big around as a 50 cent piece to use to keep the screws from being pulled thru the coreboard. He even painted the washers the same creme color as the flannel and after screwing it all to the wall he got a piece of paper and made a little hole and spray painted the head of the screw so it all matched. You barely notice where the screws and washers are. The design wall works great and I am really glad I used the batting behind the flannel to cover the boards. I will take a picture and post it as soon as I can if anyone is interested. I just love it and when I am not using it for quilting I use it to put up photos of my grand kids with a few stick pins. So it serves as a big bulletin board too.

I covered a very large ugly framed oil painting with flannel. Just tucked the top of the flannel around the top of the pic frame. Another idea for a small space is to hang 2 wreath hangers on a door........put a pocket at the top of your flannel......stick a rod in it and hang! :)

A plastic tablecloth(fabricside up) closepinned to the metal on the drop ceiling in my basement sewing room. Works great. Sometimes I have 2 or 3 up depending on the size I need.

Mine is a big piece of ivory felt 72" which is safety pinned to my vertical blinds. When I get my craft room cleaned out and set up for sewing it will probably be tacked to a wall. Some things stick on own. Some need pins.

Beautful quilt in your avatar.

I went to the dollar store and purchased a flannel back table covering for a large table (paid only $1.00) then brought it home and nailed it on my wall behind my sewing machine from the edge of the ceiling down flannel side up. I not only use it as a design wall but sometimes put pictures on it etc. it lays flat on the wall so I never have to move it as it is not in my way and is directly behind my sewing machine so I can actually reach across and put a block on it. Holds large blocks and small blocks and if I need to I can use pins if need be. In case your wondering do the pins ever go into the wall.........No because I pass the pin only on the table cloth like when you are pinning a pattern on fabric. It works great for me and was very inexpensive. Hope this helps.

There is one on the market that opens like an old projection screen. That one I'd like to see. I just tacked up backing on my wall and it hold the squares I'm working on Don't bother with the "don't need pins" fabrics. I did and it did not work. I also know many that use the back side of "oil cloth" the kind you buy at Ace and little ones use to draw on. It is a nice heavy fabric and the back (the side you would use) is a flannel like material

Mine is two big sheets of 1.5" insulation on a frame and covered with white flannel. Actually the flannel is like a big curtain on a rod so I can remove it if it needs washing. I tucked the sides and bottom with some pins. We had a bit of water in the basement last year so I have to be ready if this happens again. I usually pin all my blocks to the design wall.

That is brilliant! I am often annoyed that I have to take something down that's unfinished because I HAVE to start something new. (you know that multi WIP thing!). I am showing this to DH and telling him to modify mine to include something similar. Thank you. :-D From me, probably NOT from him! :lol:

My DH stapled a thin double bed size batting to a 2 inch board and hung it up in my sewing room. To check blocks etc. I just rub my hand on the batting and press the blocks on.
For larger pieces I use pins. Works really well for me.
Good luck, Kutnso

I don't have room for a full-size design wall, but to see what several blocks look like together, I have a large sturdy piece of cardboard, covered w/ batting & flannel. I can pin to it (if i want to move it around) or just lay pieces to get the look I want. Then it's easy to store under the bed. I think my next one will be double-size w/ a crease, so it can be folded for storage. If I had the room, I'd love to have a 100" square of double-thick cork. A friend did one of these (she put 2 layers of cork on a firm backing & her husband framed it for her). She could use for notes, pin up blocks & when she needed it, it was large enough for queen-size quilts.

I am fortunate enough to have a separate shop to quilt in and use an entire wall for a design wall. I nailed flannel to the wall right under the ceiling and let it fall to the floor. About 10 feet tall. I sewed all my flannel (white) scraps together and can put up any number of projects or an entire king quilt. It's really neat. I realize everyone can't have this, but I always use flannel regardless of where I put my design wall. It's cheap and washable. Congrats on the new house.

foam board - the pink type used for insulation at Home Depot. Covered with white flannel sheet.
Two 4'x 8' sheets side by side. 8' square.
Takes up the whole wall. Love it

I use a 4' by 8' piece of foam insulation board attached to the wall at the ceiling. It has light gray felt stapled on. I had the bottom 2' cut off and made into 3 small boards covered with flannel that I use to keep blocks together at the sewing machine.

I bought a roll up patio door blind (very cheap one, less than $10) and used a hot glue gun to glue white flannel on it. Hung hooks at the top of the wall close to the ceiling. I can roll it up is I need to, but don't do that very often. This works well for over closet doors, you can unroll it only when you need to.

My sewing room has a closet with sliding wooden doors. I put two layers of flannel on each door (thumbtacking the flannel on the back of the doors where it doesn't show). Works great!

Hey, I just happened to think: WHy not find an old projector screen that is fastened to the ceiling. Since I don't have wall space, that may work. . .

My design wall is 8ft x 8 ft, made from 2 of the 4x8 insulation boards at Home Depot or Lowes. It comes in different thicknesses, mine is almost 1 inch which I like cuz I can also use pins on it if I want. It is covered with the least expensive flannel that was on sale at JoAnns in an off white color. LOVE it. It is only pinned on in the back and on sides so that I can remove it to launder it. Recommend that if you do you use flannel, launder it first before you apply to your design wall, cuz once it is cut to size and you launder it later it won't fit cuz it will shrink.

If I could've I would have made it 8x12 but had no more wall space left.

good luck, be sure to post photo of your finished wall

warm quilt hugs, sue in CA

If you have a large wall and the room for a design wall, Do It!! I find mine to be Invaluable! We used a couple left over sheets of foam board that we used in the basement for insulation. I covered them with fleece fabric purchased from a remnant bin. I was lucky to get two nice big white pieces of it. I just stretched those over the foam board and pinned 'em in place. My spouse nailed them up on the wall and TAAA DAAA-Design Wall! It isn't all that pretty, but is very functional and I almost always have something up there.

I have the same kind of cheap tablecloth (not sure where it came from) and I can hang it when I need it and take it down when I don't. Since my dining room is my sewing room at the moment, it's a great option for me.

I made long light beige flannel panels for my six foot wide door. When I need to use my "design wall" I close the curtains and go to work. When I want sunshine, I open my curtains!

i also use the insulation with batting,so lite i use t pins to hang it, that way you have no holes then i hung a curtain rod over that, this hide the work wall and you can enjoy one of your quiltsmove it away theres your work wall
jean

I posted this some time ago, but here it is again.

We put up a long traverse curtain rod on the wall over my door to the sewing room. I got a queen size flannel sheet and put the curtain hooks through the top section of the sheet where it is 3x thick. Then we hung it on the traverse rod. Now I can pull it open or closed, and there is plenty of room for more than one project on it. I do use pins to hold the pieces on so they don't fly off when I open/close the "curtain" design wall. I love it!!

A couple of years ago, hubby & I stopped at a yard sale and purchased a roll of very thin purple carpet (used for carpeting in interiors of vehicles) for $5.00. Hubby cut off a huge piece and we hung it on the wall in my sewing room. I usually pin my blocks to it.

Works great for me.

Blessings,
Sandi

Used the same thing but make a bigggggggg pillowcase out of flannel to cover it, can us both sides. Works great and is light to move around.

I bought 2 yards of 72" acrylic felt in ivory and tacked it to the wall. Most squares stay put, heavier pieces can be pinned.

Here is a photo of my design wall that my boyfriend made for me. He used corkboard for the backing and I use pins to pin my blocks on it.

I have a design wall made with foam boards put together and have but a layer of batting and will be putting a layer of flannel over top of that though havn't gotten that part done yet. Use it all the time, in fact it is full now....

Where did you buy the blind. I have been having an awful time finding One. This is what I think might work the best for me.

Mine is like beachlady's, only smaller. I love it

Janedee, where did you get the grided fabric?

Mine is very similar to Wundermar's. Two 4x8' sheets of foam insulation board from Home Depot/Lowes. I found a king sized flannel sheet at Goodwill and made large "pillow case" covers to slip over the boards w/regular white sheets for the back side (also from Goodwill). Stapled the ends, and DH built a wood frame to hold it up on the wall off the floor. Also hung a couple brackets above so I can hang a few more quilts in front of it, or hang up my loose felt design wall I've used for years - it's just more floppy than I like when trying to audition blocks. I love the solid design wall. I do use pins for pieces that stay for awhile plus I run the ceiling fans in the summer.

that's a great idea

I just made one using 3M removable hooks, binder clips and the back of a flannel tablecloth. Can take it down when not in use and put it up on the front of a sliding closet door. No cost and it isn't in the way when not needed.

That is a great idea, I like it.

Nothing special here either, I bought 2 metres of table protector material (this is quite thick with a vinyl top and fleecy back) ran a seam along the top and bottom to take a rod threaded the fabric onto a chrome wardrobe rod then hubby hung the design wall from the top frame of my lounge room wall using garden ties for now.
Of course once we start working on the house again it will have to come down but for now it does the job.

Maybe1day

I use my mil china cabinet,that we inharrited(sp?).I have it so I can put my batting or ufos in the cabinet side and the back faces me and my machine,I have an old table cloth with flannel stapled to the back. It works great.

It is nice to audition blocks, fabric and colors and get that perspective from a few feet away, that really seems to help.

I used foam insulation from Home Depot mounted on luan and covered with batting and then warm and white. I have two areas - one is 4' x 6' and one is 2' x 4'. I used to have felt stapled to the wall when I had a paneled wall, but I recently had my sewing room remodeled and didn't want pins or staples in my drywall!