Tadaaa!!!!

My chalkboard is finished!  I don't think it could have turned out any better.  The calendar will be super handy considering I can't remember anything! 

The only thing I'm missing now is some sort of eraser. As of yet it's been Kleenex and water.  Any ideas on where to find one?  Just as I typed that I realized I know exactly where to get one.  England's!!!  duh.

So, here's how it was done:

I bought the molding at McCoy's (best salesperson ever helped me --my Daddy!).  It took two of the 8 foot pieces to create the frame. 

I can't for the life of me remember what the exact material was that I used for the board.  I'm pretty sure it's almost exactly what you see most chalkboards made out of.  It has a smooth side and the other is rough and textured.  I know, that helps, like, none.  It was also bought at McCoy's. The size of the board was about 4 feet by 28 inches.  It turned out to be the perfect size so I didn't have to make any cuts.

I painted the board with 2 coats of chalkboard paint, then glued the cut molding to the edges of the board with Gorilla Glue (that was the most frustrating of all the steps --I wanted it perfect!).  Next, I masked the chalkboard area with painter's tape and newspaper and started spraying the frame with Krylon's Indoor/Outdoor spray paint.

The lines were painted on with a white acrylic paint.

I bought the chalk (2 kinds --Rose Art and Crayola) from Hobby Lobby (don't you just love them?!).  After scrounging through some of my estate sale finds I came upon the perfect dish to hold the chalk.  It fits nicely next to my pens/pencil/scissors/whatever holder.

I have considered creating more chalkboards to sell.  If you'd like one I would love to make it for you!  You pick the size, the color, the frame, everything!  Calendar or maybe even... dare I say it... a clock??  Oooohhh the possibilities are endless!

Drop me a line with any questions on how I made it or if you'd like to purchase one.  

I will get back to ya with the name of the material I used for the board.  Promise!!  

I think my next side project will be redoing a chair I bought for $5 at a garage sale a few weekends ago.  I've got cute fabric with a whale theme for the seat cushion and I plan on the color of the wood being a sea foam green....  We'll see!

Preview!

I have been working hard (ok, that's a lie) to get the house ready for DH and I to go back to work.  That includes putting the finishing touches on my homemade chalkboard!  I bought the the trim, sprayed it with Krylon's Indoor/Outdoor spray paint, painted the board with chalkboard paint ($4 clearance!) and assembled it with Gorilla Glue.  Now all I have left is to finish my grid for my calendar.

Let me just say a little a little something about Krylon's spray paint:

1. Don't try to self check out at Walmart with it.  Duh!! 
2. Their cans now come with a EZ Touch 360°™ Dial Spray Tip.  Heavenly!  Just twist the white nozzle to make spraying at difficult angles a million times easier. 
3. Krylon makes the most beautiful colors!  I had a hard time just buying one.  (I did grab a couple of cans on clearance recently --I couldn't resist!)
4. I sprayed the frame and 30 mins later toted it home in my car without a smudge!  Their 10 minute or less drying time is pretty spot on!
5. Sometimes I'm a genius.  On the back of the chalkboard I wrote,  "Krylon, Blue Ocean Breeze, Gloss," so I could remember what to touch it up with if the need arose or if I wanted to use the same color on another piece.  Pretty sweet tip, no?

I found that the further back I stayed when spraying the more even the paint went on.  I had no drips or pools.

One more thing...

Out of curiosity does any woman in their right mind really need a reminder for this?:

I know, I know, that was random.