Blogging Photography

DIY White Marble Photography Background

DIY white marble background for photography

DIY white marble background for photography

DIY White Marble Photography Background

White marble has been the “it” photography background for a while now; you’ve seen it all over magazines, Instagram, and the blogosphere. Today I’ll show you how to easily create your own white marble background without spending a fortune.

DIY WHITE MARBLE PHOTOGRAPHY BACKGROUND

To create this, you will need a few things: first and most importantly you will need white/grey marble self-adhesive vinyl. You can find it at any arts and craft store, home depot, etc. I bought my on Amazon right here. You will also need a board of some sort to act as your surface, scissors, a towel, razor and an extra pair of hands, if possible (it’s much easier to do this if you have help).

photography backgrounds

You can use a piece of plywood (wouldn’t recommend that though, since the surface isn’t completely smooth), maybe an old cutting board that you have sitting around or a simple cardboard. I used 12” x 24” plexiglass sheet (you can find a similar one right here). Plexiglass is great for this because it’s smooth, light and thin which makes it very easy to store and move around. If you are going to use plexiglass for this, make sure that you go with the size you want, because plexiglass is very, VERY difficult to cut and/or trim.

DIY White Marble Photography Background

The first thing I did was to measure out the self-adhesive vinyl against my surface. My board was 12” x 24” and I cut out my vinyl to measure 15.5” x 27”. Before you remove the film and begin to attach the vinyl to your surface you have to make sure that both your board and the surface that you’re working on is clean. Even things as small as a dog hair or a tiny crumb can create small bumps and bubbles under your vinyl, so make sure you wipe everything down with a dry towel.

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gray marble background photography

Now, this is where the extra pair of hands comes in handy; one person should hold the board steady and hold up the vinyl and slowly remove the protective film, making sure the vinyl doesn’t stick to the surface unevenly, while the other person should slowly attach vinyl to the surface, while gently pressing it down using a clean towel, going back and forth across the board, to avoid any bubbles from forming underneath. You can also do it by yourself of course, but if you really want your background to be smooth and free of bubbles, it’s better to have a little help.

diy marble background

After you are done attaching the vinyl to your surface, turn it around and trim the excess all around your plexiglass, using a razor.

DIY White Marble Photography Background

Hope you found this helpful DIY White Marble Photography Background tutorial helpful, let me know if you have any questions!


65 Comments

  • Reply
    Maddy Cane
    April 16, 2015 at 11:41 am

    I may have to get some of this adhesive, it looks beautiful in photos!
    Maddy, xo // UNSTITCHEDD // Win a Luxury Beauty Item of your Choice

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 11:51 am

      Right? I love how bright it makes the pictures look :)

  • Reply
    Kira McGrigg
    April 16, 2015 at 11:49 am

    This is amazing! Hahahha, you totally know what you’re going to see on my blog in the future.. You never cease to impress me, girl. Your posts are always on point and fantastic.

    kiralynnmakeup.com

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 11:53 am

      Haha, hey, that’s what I wrote this post for! :D :D It’d make me super happy if you tried it out :) Aww heheh thanks so much Kira!! <3 <3

  • Reply
    Emma Walker
    April 16, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    Love this!

    Emma | With A City Dream

  • Reply
    Jasmine
    April 16, 2015 at 2:54 pm

    Definitely doing this! Your photo looks gorgeous and I’ve always admired marble backgrounds but wasn’t going to buy a table for blog photos haha this is the perfect solution – thank you :D xx

    Magpie Jasmine | Zoeva Brush Set Giveaway

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:45 pm

      Thanks so much Jasmine! Ahh I know, I told my husband that I want to renovate our kitchen so that we can have white marble counter-tops, just so I can take nice photos for the blog haha. He said I’m crazy :| So glad you liked this idea! ;)

  • Reply
    Taria-ann (@frunettte)
    April 16, 2015 at 3:26 pm

    I’ve recently discovered your blog and I really like it! I’m following you now on Bloglovin’
    Hope you’ll like mine too!

    XO,
    Taria-ann
    http://www.frunettte.com

  • Reply
    Linda Libra Loca
    April 16, 2015 at 3:58 pm

    Wow, how come I never thought of that?

    LindaLibraLoca: Beauty, Baby and Backpacking

  • Reply
    Biana @Blovedboston
    April 16, 2015 at 4:54 pm

    This is one of my favorite DIYs! I bought some of the paper from amazon a few weeks ago and love how my photos come out now! xo, Biana – BlovedBoston

  • Reply
    Rita Macedo
    April 16, 2015 at 4:55 pm

    This is so helpful and amazing! This background always looks amazing in photos and it’s this is a great alternative and it doesn’t take that much to do! I feel like your blog is getting better and better, keep going! Xx

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:45 pm

      Aww thanks so much Rita! <3

  • Reply
    Vanessa Mins
    April 16, 2015 at 6:17 pm

    What a great idea! I recently got a small marbled plate from a thrift store to use for smaller objects, but for larger setups this sounds like an amazing option.

    http://www.sevenminsblog.com

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:46 pm

      Thanks Vanessa!

  • Reply
    Becky Hines
    April 16, 2015 at 6:18 pm

    I never thought about this before, but it’s actually so helpful and would be much more affordable to do! Thank you so much for sharing, can’t wait to try this!

    Becky, xx // undertheseabeauty.blogspot.com

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:51 pm

      Thanks so much Becky! <3

  • Reply
    Nina
    April 16, 2015 at 6:24 pm

    Great post, xx
    http://www.ninasstyleblog.com

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:52 pm

      Thanks Nina.

  • Reply
    shaybellamakeup
    April 16, 2015 at 8:03 pm

    Ugh! Every time. *Insert appropriate IG emoji here*
    Your posts are always so informative, helpful, and beautifully executed. I honestly peruse your blog constantly.
    Makeupaddictsforlife. xx

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:52 pm

      Nawww thanks so much Shay!!! <3 <3 <3

  • Reply
    Vanessa
    April 16, 2015 at 8:33 pm

    Wow, this looks stunning, thanks for this great tip.^^
    New outfit is online…

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 16, 2015 at 8:52 pm

      Thanks so much V.! :)

  • Reply
    Joanna Joy
    April 17, 2015 at 4:20 am

    This is a nice tutorial. It looks like real marble. Great idea!

    astylishlovestory.blogspot.com

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 18, 2015 at 9:58 am

      Thanks Joanna! ;)

  • Reply
    Brenda BusyBee
    April 17, 2015 at 7:47 am

    I actually spotted this the other day when i was having a look on Amazon! Such a cheap yet effective way to get the marble look. Think I am definitel going to have to give it a go :) x

    Brenda BusyBee | Makeup Revolution Highlighting Palettes Giveaway

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 17, 2015 at 3:46 pm

      Heheh :) I definitely love how affordable this is, too! ;)

  • Reply
    Anxhela
    April 17, 2015 at 9:17 am

    Thank you for the step by step instructions. I was referred to your blog by Beauty Detour and I’m quite thankful because it’s beautiful & helpful to me as a starter blogger. Anxhela

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 17, 2015 at 3:45 pm

      Awww thank you SO much! :) Thanks for visiting! ;)

  • Reply
    Helena
    April 17, 2015 at 10:54 am

    This is such a wonderful idea! Never thought you could make your own “fake” marble table this easy! Thank you for sharing!

    simply-mode.com

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 17, 2015 at 3:43 pm

      Aww thanks so much Love! ;)

  • Reply
    Sarina
    April 17, 2015 at 12:33 pm

    OMG! You’re the best! The idea of using plexiglass is phenomenal. I was thinking about getting a few backgrounds but as I do not have enough space to store them I stuck to paper. I will definitely start to think about a few backgrounds I can create with plexiglass :D.

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 17, 2015 at 3:45 pm

      Thanks so much Sarina! It was actually my hubby’s idea to go with a plexiglass, I was going to use plywood, but he said I’d end up with tons of bubbles underneath the vinyl. I definitely want to create a few more of these too! :) Thanks for visiting!

  • Reply
    Samileen
    April 18, 2015 at 2:38 pm

    Girl you are the BEST!

    Sam|| BeautyDetour

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 20, 2015 at 3:59 pm

      Aww thanks! :)

  • Reply
    Heather Miner
    April 20, 2015 at 12:44 pm

    Such a cute idea, it really adds something to the photos!

    • Reply
      Paula
      April 20, 2015 at 3:28 pm

      Thanks Heather!

  • Reply
    beautylovesbooks
    May 17, 2015 at 3:22 pm

    This is such an interesting idea! Love the look of it!
    http://beautylovesbooks.com/en

  • Reply
    ChOwé Mourey
    July 8, 2015 at 5:48 pm

    Love this!

  • Reply
    Sara Nielsen
    July 19, 2015 at 5:10 pm

    It looks great! I will do this, so my product photos will be so much prettier!

    http://industrialbarbie.blogspot.com/

  • Reply
    THE CHICETTE
    July 24, 2015 at 9:46 am

    Love this idea!

  • Reply
    Monique Rehmus
    August 12, 2015 at 6:18 pm

    I absolutely love this post! Now I know how to make it. :)

    WHITE PLATFORM SANDALS

  • Reply
    MargaritaChi.co
    October 22, 2015 at 5:57 am

    I loooove this!!! Thanks for making.

    http://www.margaritachi.co/

  • Reply
    Thais gomes
    October 29, 2015 at 10:23 am

    looks beautiful!

    Kisses,

    BLOG | Taislany

  • Reply
    Megan @ Skinny Fitalicious
    November 18, 2015 at 10:47 am

    This is life changing! Thank you!!!

  • Reply
    Chrissie
    November 18, 2015 at 8:12 pm

    wow, this is amazing! thanks for the tip

  • Reply
    MizzJ
    November 19, 2015 at 11:18 pm

    So cool!

  • Reply
    Gen Davalos
    December 2, 2015 at 3:34 am

    Amazing! thank you for the post!

  • Reply
    Viviene Kok
    December 14, 2015 at 3:36 am

    Thank you for sharing dear! Random but Dior LipGlow is one of my all time favourite product :)

    Real Life Nerd // http://www.vivienekok.com

  • Reply
    tiffanytales
    December 14, 2015 at 5:06 am

    Thanks for sharing this! I bought myself a marble chopping board from Next’s homeware department for my blog photos. Marble definitely is the in blogger background at the moment.

    Tiffany Tales – A British Beauty & Lifestyle Blog

  • Reply
    Bernadette
    December 27, 2015 at 6:07 am

    Brilliant post. This is a awesome idea! I personally am a fan of a plain white background, when i finally got a white table i used as a makeup vanity i was super excited, it made my blog photos look 10 x better.

    http://themakeup-gypsy.blogspot.com.au/

  • Reply
    r-i-a n-a
    December 29, 2015 at 5:18 pm

    Thank you for great idea! :-)

  • Reply
    Kathryn
    January 13, 2016 at 10:05 am

    This was so so helpful! The plexiglass idea is great, will definitely look into that option as I tried with a foam board but ended up getting dips and creases in it and gave up! So awful but think I may give the plexiglass version a go. Thanks for the post! :)

    Kathryn | Hungry Little Bear

  • Reply
    Allycia
    January 22, 2016 at 10:25 pm

    This is an awesome idea! I may give this a try! Thanks for sharing!

  • Reply
    Christina Johnson
    April 11, 2016 at 10:03 pm

    Did this project as well. Genius!

    http://www.refinedapparelandgoods.com

  • Reply
    Cielo Fronteras
    May 31, 2016 at 5:09 pm

    This is genius!!! Thanks for sharing! Gotta try this! =)

    – Cielo

    Mermaid in Heels

  • Reply
    Fashionistaa
    June 10, 2016 at 12:38 pm

    I love this! What ring light do you use?

  • Reply
    Audra Nicole Koch
    June 26, 2016 at 4:04 pm

    THANK YOU! I was about to go buy a huge slab of marble from a warehouse but this is SO much easier!

    Audra | southernnyorker.com

  • Reply
    Kamilla
    April 30, 2017 at 11:39 pm

    Can I just say thank you! Love your blog, full of amazing informative content! Really Appreciate it!

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      May 1, 2017 at 7:07 am

      You are very welcome Kamila, thank you!

      • Reply
        Kamilla
        October 24, 2018 at 11:18 am

        Ive come back a year later and have another question!

        Why do you use that circle white thing? I don’t know the name, but tis in the photos. Does it help with lighting?

  • Reply
    Kashma7
    June 20, 2017 at 12:12 pm

    Great tip! Do you think it will work for step-by-step tutorials? For example: how to make a unicorn headband? Or could it be too distracting?

    • Reply
      Paula @ thirteenthoughts.com
      June 20, 2017 at 2:55 pm

      The one I linked to in the post has a really delicate marble that isn’t distracting at all- it all depends on the kind of contact sheet paper you get.

  • Reply
    Raydhiri
    October 7, 2020 at 9:48 pm

    This is super helpful! I have nice granite countertops but they’re so busy in my photos of food, etc. Thanks for sharing!

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