DIY TV Cord Cover

We got our 50" Plasma hubby had to have a 50" on Black Friday 2008. Instead of buying an entertainment center, we hung our TV on the wall above the TV stand and put matching bookcases on either side, MUCH cheaper. Great idea except for one small problem, you see all the TV cords, which drives me crazy! 

Well it only took me 3 years but I finally took care of it. I'm hosting Thanksgiving at my house this year because my Mom's oven broke a week before Thanksgiving and I'm trying to make my house presentable. Since there is nothing I can do about the endless baby gear/toys in my house, I thought I would hide these dang cords once and for all. 

It took some serious brainstorming but I decided the best way to hide the cords was to cover a piece of cardboard with fabric and then attach it to the wall. It was super easy and only took about 30 minutes. The best part? It only cost $13.88!!

What you'll need: 

• Large piece of cardboard (I used a Tri-Fold Presentation Board)
• Appropriate size of fabric (I chose black with a small ribbed texture)
• Duct tape
• Tape measure
• Scissors
• 4-5 picture hanging nails

First I had to cut a little off the top of the cardboard and add it to the side in order to make it longer. (They didn't have a piece of cardboard long enough)

Then I laid the cardboard on top of the fabric and trimmed the fabric so only about an inch was left on either side.


Then I wrapped the fabric around and taped it to the back of the cardboard. Make sure to stretch the fabric tight but not too tight, you don't want ripples. 


Then just tape, tape, tape. I had a little rippling around the corners but once hung on the wall it didn't show because it was behind the bookcase.


Then I had my husband nail it to the wall. We nailed it in all four corners and once in the middle at the bottom. You can't see the nails because I made sure to make the cardboard slightly bigger than needed, so the nails are behind the bookcases. 

I am SO happy with how it turned out! It really gives the illusion of an entertainment center, instead of 3 seperate pieces of furniture. 

As you can see, we keep Connor's toys on the bottom two shelves. We have no choice now that he's mobile, he gets into everything. We can't have our DVD player or cable box in the designated spots in the TV stand anymore because Connor constantly changes the channel, so they too were moved up high on the bookcase. My whole house is slowly but surely being taken over by Connors baby crap stuff.

I haven't even thought about how the heck I'm going to have a Christmas tree this year. Yikes.