elbeau

I have purchased 2 4x8 sheets of insulation board to use as a large design wall. What do you recommend using to cover it...batting? felt? something else? Also how to do you attach your choice to the insulation board? Then, how do you attach the covered board to the wall? Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge!!

Railroadersbrat

Honestly, I didn't go that far but I needed something in a hurry because the quilt I was working on just took off, so I used an old vinyl tablecloth since the back is felt and Velcroed it to the wall. Never thought about insulation board, what a great idea!

I would use flannel and then just staple it on if the board is thick enough. You could also just use thumb tacks, or maybe tape it on so if the flannel gets dirty, you could take it off and wash it.

Hanging it up, maybe some brass or silver 'L' brackets so you could prop it up on the wall or get a picture hanging kit, they're inexpensive to get. If you're going a more permanent route, just use screws and get out a level so it's not hanging crooked. Great job for the hubby!

mindless

I made 2 of these design walls from insulation board. One larger than the other. Neither is hanging on a wall though.
I used felt on both. I was given large amounts of felt yardage, so I used it. One was a baby blue. The other ...dark green.
One I used upholstery nails to hold the felt on. On the other, I used purple duct tape. The nails keep falling out (so did staples before the upholstery nails), but the duct tape is still holding up well after about 4+ years.
They work great for holding up blocks, but I tend to use pins anyway, just in case.

I also find that I don't like the colors. I often hang a length of batting over the board because I like working with the neutral color better than blue or green.

They are both portable. The reason they aren't hanging on the wall is, I also use them to extend the width and length of my sewing table when I want to fmq with my little (domestic) machine instead of the longarm. I taped heavy plastic to the back, and I made a little cutout near one corner that slides around my machine perfectly. Like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAS25v3ZTk0

I also have covered a small (18" x 24" ) piece of foam board with batting to use for just a block or two.

Sometimes, it's easier and faster to just tape a cheap $store table cloth to the wall when I'm using the big board as a table top.

rryder

I duct taped two of the insulation boards together and then used 505 spray baste to attach black felt to my insulation boards. Mine leans against the wall rather than being attached to it.

Rob

misseva

I just used yellow head straight pins (the big long thick ones) to pin my felt to the foam board. I used T-pins to attach the foam board to my wall. The pins make small holes in sheet rock.

LAF2019

I used spray glue and batting each over 2 insulation boards. I did not hang them up. I currently have them tucked behind some storage totes but can easily pull them out and place in front of the closet (side by side or just one depending on the size of the project) when needed. Honestly, the spray glue was difficult to work with on such a large piece, but maybe you will be better than me!

DJ

I'm going to re-cover mine soon. Originally, I used batting to cover mine and it's now sagging. It's hard to use a lint roller on it to remove the threads, so when I re-cover it, I'm going to use the spray baste to hopefully secure it to the insulation so that I can use the lint roller and it won't get saggy.

DH made a wood frame that is attached to the back of the insulation, and the batting is wrapped around and stapled to the wood frame. It's very light weight and hangs on a couple of monkey hooks. I will be re-covering it with flannel this time.

Peckish

I used W&N batting and just tacked it to the wall, no foam boards needed. The batting is sticky enough to not need pins; my blocks and rows all stick without pinning.

Battle Axe

What thickness of insulation did you get? The first time I bought some I got 2 sheets that were too thin. One would want some that is one inch thick and covered in tin foil. Then I covered mine with blue flannel and taped with duct tape and then nailed it to the wall.
You can stick a smaller block on the flannel and it will stay, but if you try to puit more than two blocks together, you need to pin it.

pahega

I used two 4 x 8' insulation board from Home Depot that is 1.5" thick. I used Warm and Natural batting and 505 spray adhesive to attach the front of the batting over the board. I wrapped the edge and brought some batting back to the back and used the old fashioned straight pins that don't have much of a head to fasten the batting to the back. I attach both boards to my wall butting them up to each other and hung them with 3M Command strips that have velcro on them. The boards don't weight that much but I think I used the large size of Command strips. I don't remember how many I put on each board, but by using them I could take the boards down from the wall and make them portable, plus put no holes in my walls for screws, etc. I love them, probably the best part of my sewing room!