Project #5 DIY 'Love-Language Board'

The Language of Love

My fiancee is practically perfect in so many ways: her smile makes me blush, her eyes twinkle like a little star, her laughter fills me with a rush of giddiness, her voice soothes my heart and her touch makes me melt.  She is like the sunshine that breaks over the tall mountain to the east in the mornings, spilling happiness and warmth over everything its rays touch. She works harder than any of my brother's football-star friends and can find the hiding sun on a rainy and cloudy day.  Yes, she is practically perfect . . . practically.   The one set-back (emphasis on ONE) she has is a difficulty keeping track of her keys, wild flowers and love notes.  Because I'm meticulous when it comes to being punctual, I wanted to create something to help her stay organized and minimize the time she loses looking for keys etc.  Thus I created the 'love-language board' to help keep track of wild flowers, love notes and keys to her heart. . . 

Getting Started

There were a few more materials than normal because of the different things I wanted to do with the love board.  I went to Michael's and got all the materials which included the following

• Cork Board (Purchased a pack of 4 12x12')
• Medium Cloth Pins (one pack had about 15)
• Pack of Craft Nails (it came in a packet of 1.5' 1' and .5' nails)
• Paint 
• Stencils
• One small pine branch (about 1' or .5' in circumference)

In all, I paid about $20.00 for all the materials.  I would recommend buying everything but your cork board first, then use the receipt which gives you a 40% discount and purchase the $12.00 board.  

Step One

Choose your board- Before you get underway on your board, you want to make sure that you have a good sized board to work with.  I used a full length board that was about 3 feet long and 6 inches wide.  This will give you plenty of room to work in your cork board as well as some room for your clothe pins.  Sand down your board depending on how rough want your board.  I sanded mine to the point that it wouldn't give me slivers if I rubbed my hand across it, but you can do whatever the junk you want!

Step Two

Determine orientation of your board- I wish I would have thought of this before, but for this step you will want to determine which orientation you want for your board.  If you want it to hang parallel with your door, wall or wherever you hang it, you will want to make sure that the following steps agree with the orientation of your board.  This will make more sense in the following steps. 

Step Three

Add the cork board- Depending on how big you want your cork board to be (I had to make sure that mine was SUPER big due to the amount of love notes my fiancé receives) will determine how much space you'll need reserve for your board.  I double layered the cork board so the pins would only sink into the cork and not the wood.  Apply a few strips of Wood Glue like jelly on a PBJ to have the two cork boards stick together.  Apply a few more strips of glue on the back side of the board and then apply directly onto the board.  Put a nail in each corner of the cork board and also in the middle to keep the board secure on the wood 

Step Four

Paint your dreams- I used a stencil with butterflies and wild flowers because the love of my life is literally the human form of a wild flower.  Her natural beauty like a cloudless summer night, or happiness that spreads to all those around her, her gentle and tranquilizing scent or softness and grace are the pure personification of a wild flower.  Her spirit floats on the charity she feels for her fellowman like the air on the wings of a butterfly. After the paint dries, nail in a few nails either at a 45 degree angle or whatever will help keep keys up against the board.  

Step Five

Glue your clothe pins on- I used seven pins evenly spaced to hold wild flowers.  I applied a generous amount Wood Glue to the back of the pins to keep them firmly in place.  Determine how far from from the top you want your flowers to hang and then apply a clothe pin.  Continue to place your clothe pins from your designated height from the top of your board until you come to the nails in the center.  Allow plenty of time for the pins to dry on the board.  

Step Six

Make your push pins- To make my push pins, I went to a local park and cut of the branch of a Pine Tree.  It wasn't too thick, about the same diameter as a dime which worked perfectly with the nails.  I also used a PVC pipe cutter to clip little 1' clippings for the push pins.  After you have clipped a as many small pieces of pine as you desire, take a .5' nail and push it through the middle of the pine.  If your pine branch is fresh this process will be super easy, no hammer required. 

Step Seven

Hang your board- I nailed two nails towards the edges of my board so that a copper wire would pull against the nails supporting the board in place. Pretty simple...but if you need more ideas for this then I wish you all the best.


In hindsight, I wish that I would have made one board that could hang parallel (up and down verses sideways) with the door or on another wall.  This would save space and make the walls look more clean and space oriented.  My fiancé loved the board and although she doesn't use it the way I would love her to, she did put the spare key, two roses and my love notes on the board and has them in her room :)  As my father in law once told me, "A happy wife makes a happy life!" so true...