Chalkboard's and Chalk Paint

Happy Post Halloween!  (or the 'Halloween Hangover')
Hope yours was fun, safe and full of treats.  Our kids gather so much loot in such a short time....I end up passing half of it back out when we get home (kids kept coming until 8:30)! It was kind of a whirlwind of a day for me so this morning, after getting the kids ready and off to school (yeah, go ahead and buy lunch today....you've already snuck candy into your breakfast)  I just wanted to veg on the couch and catch up on some of my favorite blogs.  Check out this AWESOME Halloween display that Sausha over at http://www.theshowandtellblog.com put up this year:

LOVE the use of old baby dolls ;)  Twisted but fun!

She's my kinda gal, a morbid fun sense of humor and sooo amazingly talented!  Be sure to check out the rest of her post to see all of the decorations. 

So I'm slowly getting back into the blogging after a bit of a hiatus.  I have a back log of desks/vanities I've been working on just to get them out of my garage.  I think I'll lump them all together in another post soon.  But a quick, easy little project that I recently tried, (and is perfect for fall, kids and gifts for the holidays) is making your own Chalkboards!  Here is all you need:
Frame of your choice-any size
Chalkboard paint (found at any hardware store)
Pressboard or even foam project board cut to size

So I found this pretty old frame at a Flea Market here in Austin a few weeks ago-$15.00!  I took it home and gave it a thin coat of blue, with a foam brush so just the details were hit with it.  No sense wasting time and paint on the whole piece for this step.

Once it was dry, I tried making my own Chalk Paint (look out Annie Sloan! :} I'll share this recipe in my next post)  and applied 2 coats with a regular brush.  While that was drying I went to Home Depot and picked out a piece of pressboard in the lumbar section and had them cut it down to the exact size (be sure to measure first!) of the inner groove inside the frame...I'm sure there is a name for that area but I don't know what it is.  They cut any piece you purchase for free, and you can keep the scraps for practice too ;)  I then sprayed it with 3 coats, or basically the whole can, of chalkboard paint.

Before

After

I did some light distressing around the frame to get the blue underneath to show through and then attached the chalkboard into the 'grooves' and secured it with some wood glue...I know, super technical ;)  You are probably better off using little nails or those frame staples that hold pics in.  I was just being lazy and used what I had on hand.  Here is the final result:

And here is a sneek peak at one of the desks I did recently, same color paint was used on her.  Well I must go pry the candy out of my 3 year old's chocolate covered hands...his siblings just found him hiding under MY desk with his trick or treat bag ;p  I will post about making your own Chalk Paint tomorrow and hopefully get some more before and afters up soon!  XOXO