Look whose little old MacBook got a facelift this weekend! I spotted this idea from minifanfan on Making It Lovely last week and just had to give it a try.
I purchased my Japanese washi tape from Le Box Boutique on Etsy. There are hundreds of washi tape sellers but I chose Le Box because they allow you to purchase tape by the foot rather than having to purchase the entire roll. They were very easy to interact with and I would definitely recommend them if you’re looking to purchase washi tape!
I chose these ten patterns but only ended up using eight of them on my keyboard. The purple and blue patterns looked a bit more opaque than the others when applied to the keys and I’m kind of anal when it comes to matchy-matchiness.
I first thoroughly cleaned my keyboard with rubbing alcohol to remove any dirt or oil that might keep the tape from sticking. Then I created a template from cardboard to more easily cut the length of tape needed for each key. I also snipped off the corners to keep them from snagging and peeling off the keys. Washi tape is similar to masking tape or blue painters’ tape in that it is easy to stick and restick in case you don’t get the placement perfect each time.
I originally wanted to do all the keys, including the small keys in the top row, but the tape seemed to have a harder time sticking to the small keys. If you’re wondering, most of the patterns are easy to see through, just in case I forget which key is the Z or X.
This project was a bit tedious but simple – perfect for a few hours in front of the tv. It actually went much quicker than I thought! I think the corners may start to peel over time, but the time/money investment wasn’t very big, and for now, I’m pretty sure I have the prettiest MacBook around!
What do you think? Have you ever done a project inspired by a photo found online?
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You’ve completely inspired me!! I’ll be doing this next week when I have some free time
Thanks for sharing!
This is adorable! It inspired me so much that I did it to my own keyboard this weekend
Thanks for the cute idea (and the link to that awesome Etsy shop, I might spend all of my money ever there)!
maybe you could try putting some clear nail polish around the edges to keep them from peeling…
Jamie, I would be nervous about that because I wouldn’t want it to affect the keyboard’s functionality. All it would take is a little drip below the key to stick it forever! It was also important to me for it to be removable – it all came off without a problem.
wow, amazing! I’m just now looking for inspiration to do something similar.
I was given several rolls of washi tape for Christmas, but I didn’t have any idea of what to really do with it except stick pictures to my wall–until now!!! I’m trying this out as soon as I get home.
Thanks for all the great crafting and blogging ideas. You’re blog is refreshingly easy to dip into for a few minutes and come out with innovative and creative ideas.
So the tapes used are see through?
I’m gonna try this on a PC, hopefully it’ll work:) just got to pick up some washi tape from walmart or michaels
Any way that you could list the colors that you used? The eysy site is a little overwhelming and I loved the colors that you picked. I cannot WAIT to do this!! Thanks!
So Cute – !!!!!
So doing this today! Thanks so much! I’m trying it on my black keyboard, I’ll let you know how it goes!
Sarah @ http://www.allthingsblogs.blogspot.com
Found your awesome DIY through oh, hello friend and just wanted to say THANK YOU! My MacBook Pro keyboard is super fun and will undoubtedly help me complete my Dissertation now
I’m thrilled!
can the tape be taken off without damaging the keys?
Love this! I might try this on my laptop!!!!
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