By General Crafts Contributor Erin from the blog Lovesome.

Here’s a quick project to spruce up your computer desk! We’ve been using the same old mouse pad for years, it’s starting to peel and I’ve never been too crazy about it. So I decided to experiment a little and see if I could make my own. I love how it turned out and can’t wait to share all the details with you!

So let’s get started, shall we? You will need:

• a sheet or roll of cork 
• craft paint (I used acrylic)
• small paintbrush
• plate, bowl or old mouse pad for tracing
• scissors or Exacto knife

1. First, you need to trace the shape of your mouse pad onto the cork. I used our old mouse pad as a template, but any shape will do. For size reference, my circle is 8 inches in diameter.

2. Cut your shape out of the cork using scissors or an Exacto knife.

3. Choose what design you want to paint on your mouse pad. For one side of mine I printed a large “L”, cut it out, and then traced it right onto the cork with a pencil. For the other side I used masking tape to make stripes. Triangles, dots, a free-handed quote, or a silhouette would all be cute too, be creative and have fun with it!

4. Paint your design directly on the cork. I used acrylic paint and it worked great. For painting the “L”, I found it was easiest to trace the edges using a very small brush, and then fill the rest in with a larger brush. Go slow, try to have a steady hand, and it will turn out great.

For the stripes, my only tips are to make sure the tape is stuck very tight around the edges, and pull the tape up when the paint is still wet for the crispest line.

5. Let it dry and then flip it over and decorate the other side! Mine dried really fast, it only took about 15-20 minutes to dry in between sides.

Once you are done you can put it to use!