Chalkboards

Hi!

I love Thursdays.  I guess it's my first "free" day of the week with no where to go! 

Yesterday I mentioned that last year I had begun my Christmas Crafts.  This is one I did for the kids' teachers.  Chalkboards!  

I was inspired by something I saw online (but can't find anymore).  Someone had made a chalkboard with really nice wood and used chalk that was made out of a stick or something.

Here's how I made mine. I used some leftover 1x4's, cut to length on the miter saw and then jig sawed on the top corners. I drilled a hole in the top and smoothened it out with the dremel sander.  As you can see below, I did a couple with wood on the back and a couple with white paint, depending on how the wood looked. I think I stained one wooden one and left one plain.

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I used 2 coats of chalkboard paint on the front.

 I got some old belts at the Salvation Army and used those to hold the chalk.  I glued them on and also put a little finish nail on the front and 2 on the back. I looked for chalk markers, but couldn't find any.  Martha Stewart had some chalk, but it cost a lot more than the regular chalk and just looked like regular chalk with a pointed tip. So, I used just regular chalk.

I kept 2 of my first "test" chalk boards for us.  They are on the hall wall. 

This one I painted gold on the back!

It was a nice little project.  One of the teachers was surprised to find out that I had actually made them!

:-)