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Doin’ It Myself: How to Make a Chalkboard Message Center and Polka-dot Pots

Alternate Title:  How I spent my evenings last week.
Alternate Title:  I could totally be the Puffy-Paint Princess if Puffy-Paint was “in” again.

I’m stressed.  Life is a bit crazy and I don’t particularly want to deal with it (note: this has nothing to do with taxes, which I finished weeks and weeks ago.  If you are still in the throes of tax-stress, I can empathize)  In lieu of “dealing with life”, I am keeping myself elbow deep in sandpaper and paint.  So far, I am loving the results.

Project Number One:  I was inspired by this photo and after falling in love with the whole idea of chalkboards and chalkboard paint, I decided that a framed chalkboard would be lovely in my standard-apartment, beige-ish/bland kitchen.  I am slowly trying to vamp up the kitchen, so far I have this re-do piece and a bright red pepper grinder I found on clearance at Anthropologie.  There is still so much that I could do, and I have all summer to do it.  I’m stoked.

How to make a framed chalkboard message center:

Materials:

• sturdy wooden frame in size of your choice, glass removed
• painting supplies, brushes, sandpaper, etc.
• primer & paint for frame
• plywood, cut to size
• black chalkboard paint
• staple gun & staples, or hammer & nails.

Step 1:  Find a pile of frames at a thrift store which will all be re-purposed into something lovely.  For this project, I picked out a nice, thick wood frame with a heinous 1983 floral print inside; I trashed the flower thing and kept the glass for another project.

Step 2:  Lightly sand the frame, wipe away dust and dirt with a clean cloth.  Prime the frame and paint in the color of your choice.  I chose fire-engine red.  I primed with Krylon spray paint and then used the last of the red glossy spray paint from my lamp project.  I figure because they are in separate rooms I can get away with using the same color, right?  (Correct answer:  right!)

Step 3:  You need to get a piece of plywood cut to fit inside your frame.  I went to Lowe’s and picked out a 24″x24″ piece of birch plywood for under $4 dollars.  I asked the guy working in the lumber section if he’d mind chopping it down to size for me, which he did in about 37 seconds flat.  I lightly sanded the wood, being careful to get rid of any slivery pieces on the edges.

Step 4:  Purchase a pint or quart (or whatever) or chalkboard paint.  This was $6.28 and I am a thousand percent positive I will use it until it is gone.  Prime the plywood and paint a couple of coats of chalkboard paint, following the directions on the can.  Let this dry overnight.

Step 5:  I painted a thin border on the front of the chalkboard with white acrylic paint.  Simply tape off a thin stripe on all four sides and fill it in, remove the tape before the paint dries completely.  I may eventually add a decorative stencil, like a fleur di lis…who knows.  To season the chalkboard you need to rub it with the side of a piece of chalk and then erase everything with a dry cloth or felt eraser.

Step 6:  Staple, screw, or nail the plywood chalkboard into your frame on the back side, make sure everything is tightly in place, you don’t want things going skeewampus later.  I may have gone a little crazy with the staple gun–I am quite confident that in 3,000 years future anthropologists will find this chalkboard in-tact.

Step 7:  Hang on your wall and enjoy!  Yes, that is my actual grocery list, and yes I am aware I should probably consume more than breakfast food and chocolate chips.  Don’t judge–chocolate chips are their own food group.

Adding up the receipts:

• frame: $3.00
• plywood:  $3.76
• spray paint, primer & red gloss:  approx. $1.50
• chalkboard paint:  approx. $1.50
• white chalk (box of 12 pieces):  $0.69

Total Cost: $10.45

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Project Number Two:  I am not a gardener, I do not have a green-thumb and have been known to kill a cactus because I forgot to water it.  That being said, I absolutely love fresh flowers, love them!  I have had various levels of success keeping house plants alive, and regardless of past fumbles I always purchase a couple of plants every spring to wake up my house.  A few weeks ago I saw this post and started having dreams about polka-dotted pots.  Seriously.  And now I have two of these beauties sitting on my kitchen table, spouting ivy and pink geraniums.

How to make Polka-Dot Pots:

Materials:

• two terra-cotta pots & saucers
• paint–I used black and white.
• painting supplies, brushes, etc.
• circle-shaped brush, or circle stencil
• polyeurethane to seal pots

Step 1:  Purchase or re-purpose two terra-cotta pots, mine came from the thrift store–one had already been painted black, sort of.  There was orange showing through everywhere and it desperately needed a little love.

Step 2:  Paint the pots how you like, I painted the small one black with white polka-dots and the larger one white with black polka-dots.  I used two different sized foam circle-shaped brushes to make the polka dots.  The base color took a couple of different coats, allowing for drying time inbetween.

Step 3:  Seal the finished pots with polyeurethane so the paint doesn’t run when you water your plants.  Let this dry for a couple of days before planting your new treasures.

Step 4:  Plant, water, and enjoy.  I love the pink geranium and the trailing ivy.  I also love the bright yellow tray–another thrift-store find that benefited from some bright paint and a coat of gloss–this whole vignette makes me smile every time I walk past the kitchen table.

Adding up the receipts:

• 2 pots & saucers, from a thrift store: $3.00
• black and white paint:  $1.18 for both
• circle foam brushes:  $0.66 for both
• polyurethane: approx. $1.00
• plants:  $4.73 for both

Total Cost:  $10.57

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