Makeshift Table Skirt for the Classroom

My creativity was shining today!!!  Well, I thought it was.

I DO NOT like this look. Wires everywhere and students can see what is in my storage unit, the one with the clear plastic drawers.  I also don't like the mess on top of the table, but that's a totally different story. I'm working on that one too.

Anywho, I remembered a while back when Dollar Tree first opened, they use to sell plastic adhesive table skirts, I used one years back to hide a similar type of mess when I was teaching 5th grade.  Well, guess what? They don't have them any more!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! (Your trying to figure out when Dollar Tree first opened, aren't you? STOP! It was in 1986.)

So I went to WalMart to see if they had any adhesive table skirts. Well, the answer was ""Nah, to the ah to the NO, NO, NO!" However, in the party section, they did have plastic table covers for $0.97. So I grabbed a couple of teal colored ones to match my theme for this year.

So I'm looking at my messy table trying to figure out how I can make this table cover into a table skirt and then it dawns on me! The edge of the table is metal!!!  I can use hot glue!! Hot glue will peel off metal and not damage it!  Well, that's what I was thinking. So I rushed home and grabbed my trusty ole' hot glue gun and glue sticks and tried it.

It peeled right off! The hot glue, after it cooled, peeled right off!  YAAAASSS!!!!

So here is what I did next.

Apply glue.

Pinch plastic, but do it carefully!!! The glue is very hot!!!!

Press it down further with an old pencil so that you don't burn yourself.  I'm not gonna lie.  It would have probably been easier if someone was helping me.  But I glued small sections at a time and it was pretty easy.  Don't  put glue on large sections because it will cool fast and the skirt won't stick.

I had to carefully go around the wires to the E.L.M.O. so I left a small area that was not glued down.  Just in case I had to remove the cords for some reason.

I know it seems a little messy, but I'm snapping pics up close to the edge of the table.  Be patient. The final picture is coming up!

 I have to give you a few more details.

First of all, when you take the table skirt out of the package DO NOT unfold the entire thing. Unfold it up to the point that it is still folded in half.

The folded edge is what I glue to the metal part of the table.

Well.  Here it is!  I think it looks great! I'm still trying to decide if I should add a border to cover the top section. Tell me what you think!

SUGGESTIONS:  If you decide try this, first apply hot glue to a small section of the table in an area that is hidden or can't be seen.  Wait for it to cool, then try peeling it off. I highly recommend that you do this first to test and see if it will work on your table.

Another option is adhering painter's tape to the section of the table you plan to glue the skirt onto. When applying glue and plastic table cover, do it only on the painter's tape.  

I hope this idea is helpful!  Thanks for looking!!!  If you do try it, I'd love to see the outcome!!