DIY KITCHEN CHALKBOARD

I have a wall in my kitchen across from the pantry that sat empty for the past year. I had been looking for the perfect piece of art the fill the space when my husband suggested we create a chalkboard.

First we marked out the size of frame using painters tape. We designed the frame to match our window frames. Next we installed the primed trim.

We changed the sill from the window design to a different style of trim that would act as a ledge to hold the chalk in place.

After filling the holes and sanding, we applied caulking to the seams and let dry. We taped off the frame and painted it "chalk white" by benjamin moore to match the trim throughout the house.

I selected a dark grey (Anchor Grey by Benjamin Moore) for the chalkboard surface. Benjamin Moore will tint the chalkboard paint to any colour, so I spent a few months trying to decide which colour to choose! In the end I'm very happy with the paint I decided on.

The chalkboard is painted and drying

The paint needed 4 hours to cure between coats and we applied 3 coats. Once the paint is finished you need to let it cure for 3 days before using the chalkboard surface. Prior to the initial use we followed the directions and rubbed the entire surface with a piece of white chalk and then erased with a clean damp cloth.

Our first chalkboard! After finally finishing the chalkboard I had to decide what to do with it! I had started a pinterest board with chalk art and quickly realized it's harder than it looks! I'm sure we'll be changing it up all of the time and will get better with practise but for this week it's helping us keep track of all the busy Christmas activities as school leading up to Christmas break.