Make your own notebook/laptop skin

A completely individualised and unique laptop skin with limitless possibilities.

Step 1: Materials List and pre-project timesaver

Sheet of adhesive laminate or vinyl cling (represented by plastic baggie, not replaced by bag)
Scissors
Small Paintbrush (like in a watercolor kit)
1" foam brush
Mod-Podge
Magazines and mail order catalogs
Permanent marker
Masking tape (not pictured but necessary!)

Nice but not necessary- Rotary cutter and mat.

Before you start the project it's a timesaver to have the images you want already clipped. A good, mindless project for in front of the tv. This part doesn't have to be neat and tidy, you can do any trimming when you start gluing later on.

Comments

[thriftshopmaven]

I cannot vouch for effectiveness, but if you can't find the laminate or vinyl cling, perhaps contact paper would be an easy to find material.

I never peeled the cover off- the laptop died last year & cover still looks great!

[jessyho862013]

is so cool

[slimguy379]

thanks, this mine

[Nirvana11b]

niiiicccceeee!

[CosmicBrambleclaw]

I love this!, sending it to my Daddy :D

[Chocolate Moose]

Decepticobra, the ultimate 80's bad guy.

[TFElite]

Love the Decepticon Symbol!

[mastermakoko]

what is more in my country podge? we dont have it here,the only american glue i know is elmers.What is mod podge anyway,sybsitutes i mean?

[cmassey1]

I just did a google search and it looks like it's basically equal parts water and glue, and Elmer's was the main one used. And if you like it thicker, because that's runny, use more glue. Basically they just took a bottle of glue and squirted it into an old jar with a lid so they could save the rest for later if needed. Then to ensure they used the same amount of water, they just filled the bottle with water and squeezed that in. That way might work good to rinse out the bottle so you get all the extra glue.

Anyway, here's another site that tells you a way that's a bit more work but more from scratch than buying the Elmer's: http://www.instructables.com/id/Create-Cheap-homemade-Modge-Podge/

Good luck and have fun!

[joshmolina2]

I gotta try making a banksy laptop skin

[chatman]

THAT IS SO COOL!!!!!!!!

[TSC]

Here is a pic of the front of my laptop!

[TSC]

I was looking at the pic. before I look at the steps  and the pic with the mod poge  on the laptop and I guess  its mod poge and I was right  nice!!! I will give it 5 stars!!!!!!!!!!

[renger1975]

This is a nice idea. Using a vinyl laminate or laminating machine can make some neat covers.

[sidhusmart]

Can someone tell me where I can find this cling Vinyl stuff? I checked out Michaels (from where I got mod-podge), WAL-MART etc. I got a transparent book cover material at Office Depot. It kinda works for a while but it doesn't stick very well and comes off after an hour or so. So does anyone know a store where I can get the vinyl cling stuff?

[grindirules]

Looks extremely cool!! One question - is it necessary to use exactly mod spodge? Or is it possible to use smth else?

[Bluedog24]

How easy does adhesive laminate peel off and does it leave glue marks?

[niteycat]

Thank you for instructions. At first I used cling vinyl and it did not work out so good. Then I used a heavy adhesive laminate. Right now, I am letting the project dry for a few days and then I will be able to show it off. As for the images, I love my color printer it gave me the best images. As a finishing touch I was think about getting a clear adhesive vinyl to cover over the project. That way I hope it will give me a slick look that will not receive that much wear and tear taking the notebook in and out of my bag.

[christooss]

Great instructable. I will try to get vinyl tomorrow so I can start as fast as possible. Maybe images could be applied in first step so this would create custom stickers for other areas.

[ekim]

Nice idea and very transferrable to other things! I think once I show my daughter this technique, we're going to have skins on everything! Good thing it will be removable.

[ktchunsa]

this is great! i'm definitely going to try this. i was wondering if you ever got to remove the skin from your laptop. did it leave any marks? a definite perk would be if the materials didn't do any harm so that i could make a new skin every few months.

[thriftshopmaven]

I've not tried removing it yet, quite happy with this one that I've not felt the need. If at some point I decide to try I will be sure to post an update.

[silverchakra]

Excellent! I'm definitely going to do this! I'm going to use the cling vinyl -love that stuff! I think I'll use Golden's gel medium instead of Mod Podge and I already have tons of images. Thanks for such a great instructable!

[Gjdj3]

Nice.

[GorillazMiko]

Insanely cool! I will definitely do this when I get a laptop (which might be soon!) +1 rating.

[MrSahnsMan]

sweet! If you could you probably could use spray paint (with or without stencils) & clear coat on the adhesive laminate before sticking it on the laptop come to think of it if you could make a template first, you could use that for cellphones, mp3 players, ect. (Come to think of it you could make temporary car decals the same way by spraying a stencil on the stick on laminate, trimming it and sticking it on your car!) Nice Instructable! this gets a + rating from me.

[LinuxH4x0r]

Cool! I'll do this when I get a laptop