All aboard! Can I get a choo-choo?
As promised in our Instagram and Facebook sneak peek, here’s the story of how we built a train board for Clara. Why a train board? Clara is absolutely obsessed with the train display at Barnes & Noble: a large track secured to a pedestal board that draws kids from every direction. If we pull into that parking lot, Clara is already shouting, “We’re getting to play with the trains!” before the car is even off.
When John suggested we make our own version using a train set Clara received for her second birthday, I remembered several DIY examples I’d seen online and started planning. Our goals were simple:
- Use the Melissa & Doug train pieces we already owned to create a large, continuous track.
- Build the board from solid wood rather than MDF or plywood to avoid off-gassing; whitewood is light and affordable.
- Paint a playful background on the surface—beach, forest, ocean—to spark imaginative play.
- Use low-VOC paint and sealer, and attach the track with screws from underneath to avoid fume-heavy glue.
Here’s how we completed the project for about $28: nine dollars in sample paint and one 12″ whitewood plank cut into three pieces for $19. John bought a twelve-foot-long 10″ x 1″ board of whitewood and had it cut in the store into three equal 10″ x 1″ x 47″ boards. He joined them with a Kreg Jig—alternatively you could use flat braces of wood or metal across the back—and added felt pads so the finished board wouldn’t scratch floors.
After joining the boards, he sanded the surface so it felt smooth and splinter-free; the seams are barely visible. Next we laid out the train tracks in many configurations before settling on a layout with hills, an elevated section, a bridge, a tunnel, and an incline that lets the train shoot off the corner of the board—an exciting feature we suspected Clara would love.
We sketched a background on paper first: light green for grass, blue for ocean, a sand stripe, and dark green for forest. I penciled those boundaries onto the wood and then picked three low-VOC sample paints: Japanese Fern, Mirage Lake, and Shamrock by Behr Ultra. Before painting, I photographed the track layout so we could recreate it after removing the pieces to paint.
Painting began with the water, then the grass, leaving space between those areas so wet paint wouldn’t smear. I didn’t prime the wood because we liked the look of a painted surface with a few knots peeking through for character; if you prefer a perfectly opaque finish, use a stain-blocking primer first. After the blue and green were dry, I painted the forest shapes and then the sand with leftover no-VOC white paint to create a bright white-sand beach between the ocean and grass.
Once the paint was fully dry, I sealed the board with several thin, even coats of eco-friendly poly (Acrylacq by Safecoat). We love this sealer for being low-VOC and non-toxic. I brushed on light coats, moved quickly to avoid gummy spots, let each coat dry thoroughly, and then applied another—three coats total for good protection.
We chose to temporarily attach the tracks to the board for several reasons:
- Clara is young and gets frustrated assembling tracks herself; fixed tracks reduce tantrums and increase playtime enjoyment.
- At Barnes & Noble she plays independently and creatively when tracks are secured, inventing stories about tunnels, crashes, and destinations.
- Attaching tracks with screws from underneath is reversible—if Clara later wants to build her own layouts, we can remove the screws and free the pieces.
After allowing the poly 48 hours to cure, John laid out the track on the sealed board and attached each piece by drilling pilot holes from the top through to the underside, then screwing up into the track so the visible surface remained free of hardware. We used countersunk screws so nothing would protrude and scratch surfaces. Felt furniture pads were added to protect whatever surface the board sits on.
For the elevated sections, we attached support blocks the same way: pilot holes from above followed by screws from below into the blocks so all hardware stayed hidden. To secure the track to those blocks, John used small finish nails driven into the track grooves and into the blocks. The nails are discreet but hold everything firmly. To create the piece that appears to lead off the board, John traced the board’s edge onto the bottom of the track, cut along that line, sanded it smooth, and reattached it from below.
The finished board passed the durability test—Clara has happily kicked the elevated section and it’s held up beautifully. As expected, she loves pushing the trains over hills, into tunnels, and staging dramatic pile-ups down the middle incline. Sometimes she even lets us join the chugga-chugga fun.
One of the best things about the design is its flatness: the board slides almost completely under the sofa for easy storage, which makes it feel more special because it’s something we bring out for play. That was another reason we opted for a board instead of a table, and it works well since we used the tracks and trains we already owned.
So that’s the full $28 train board rundown. Clara loves it, we love how simple and durable it turned out, and it adds a fun, imaginative environment for her play. What projects have you been building, painting, or sanding lately? Any other kids’ DIY ideas you’ve tried?