Chalkboard DIY Archives - The Weekend Country Girl

Chalkboard DIY, Coldspring, Country Style, Curbside rescue, reclaimed wood, recycled furniture, The Garagemahal

Making a Standing Chalkboard

February 4, 2015February 4, 2015 Karen

We are clearing out the Garagemahal as we prepare to put our beloved Star Hill on the market. I am getting pressure from Mr. Math to get rid of the hoard. My collection of odd bits and parts, Doo dads, rusty metal, and miscellaneous hardware needs a new home. Mr. Math would be fine with the new home being the trash.

Not this girl.

Saturday morning I stood in the hoard and started looking at what I had to work with. I decided to make a standing chalkboard/ message board. (They need a better name and I am open for suggestions.) In fact while I was at it, I figured I may as well make six of them for the ladies at craft night.

I pulled out a set ls spindles from a table the social planner and I got off the road one day. It was a wreck when we got it but the spindles were solid wood so I saved them.

I pulled out my stash of hardware. I have quite a collection of odd handles, knobs and bits. Some of them I buy for pennies at thrift stores, garage sales, or ReStore but most come off pieces I redo and change the look.

I had a can of spray chalkboard paint in the cabinet. I have to admit that the spray chalkboard paint is not my favorite, but it works.

I grabbed two sections of 1X12 pine board that were shelves an a section of 1X1 moulding and a 2X6 board for the project.

My sweet husband cut all the spindles down to the same size and then used the drill press to put a hole in the center of each top for a screw to go in.

I played with the parts until I came up with a plan.

I cut the pine board, the 1X1 moulding, and the 2X6 into 6 inch segments each.

The assembly process took both Mr. Math and me working. The steps were to connect the spindle to the 2X6 with wood glue and a screw, then connect the 1X1 to the other end of the spindle with a screw in the center.

Two screws at each end of the 1×1 went into the 1 inch width of the 6 inch section of the 1X12,

A little wood glue, wood filler, and a quick spray of primer unified the four sections.

The whole thing got primed, painted with sea salt, then heavily distressed and glazed.

I then taped off a chalkboard rectangle on each board then spayed them.

While the chalkboards were drying, my friend the social planner helped me pick out some of the hardware and knobs to attach to the pieces.

Do you remember the roadside end table? The handle from that piece made it onto a piece here.

So did some hardware from my windfall.

Once the chalkboard was dry we attached the hardware to each piece and the social planner attached a clip with E6000 in case someone wanted to use it for invitations or photos.

Here they are ready for the party.

The cost of this entire project was what I spent in screws, wood glue and paint. I am estimating I spent $10.00 total in supplies I will have to replenish.

These would be great table numbers at a wedding or on a buffet table Here they are lined up for craft night.

It was nice to see the craft group enjoying their surprise.

When the ladies came in they got to put a tag on their chalkboard. It was fun to see the different ones each chose.

Well, what do you think?

I love hearing from you,

Blessings,

Karen

Chalkboard DIY, Decorating

A Chalkboard Alternative

April 3, 2014April 4, 2014 Karen

My friend, Kandy, asked my husband to build a big wooden frame to be a sort of canvas. She had an idea in her head for a painting she wanted to create. The “canvas” was huge when finished, like four feet by five feet with a smooth plywood front. After Kandy looked at the “canvas” a while, I think she decided that she wanted this to be something she could change when the mood struck. I must say that is a great idea when someone are as creative as she is. She had a piece of sheet metal cut to fit and attached to the canvas and she now uses it like a chalkboard. She uses liquid chalk pens when she wants to create something new on the big metal surface. If you haven’t tried using those pens you will love them. They work like a paint pen but clean off with water. The colors are more vivid with them than chalk.

Here are some examples of her handy work:
.

Kandy also figured out a way to rest her outdoor pictures on a shelf using drawer handles. Great idea for a way to have art without destroying stucco. Isn’t her porch beautiful. Yes, folks that is her porch, not her den.

Behr Paint with Primer, Blogging, Building a Home, Chalkboard DIY, Coldspring, Country living, Country Style, Curbside rescue, Decorating, Dining Table, DIY Painting and Glazing Furniture, DIY Projects, Dresser, French Provincial, Lake Livingston, resale finds, reusing an old frame, Roadside Finds, Thrifty Art, wedding, Weddings

10 of My Favorite Posts and a Big Thank You!

January 7, 2014February 7, 2014 Karen

If things go as they have been for the last week, by the time I wake up tomorrow I will have had 50,000 page views on my little teeny tiny minnow of a blog. I will also be celebrating two years of blogging. There are blogs out there that get 50,000 page views a day and it has taken me two years. I never said I was fast. first and foremost, I want to say thank you, friends, for reading, thank you for commenting, and thank you for causing me to improve what I produce. I still have no idea what I am doing most of the time. By that I mean my husband and I are making it up as we go on our projects, and sometimes failing miserably. I am about the most technology challenged blogger out there. There have been many times when I did something on the blog but had no idea what I did, how to fix it, or if it was good, how to repeat that good thing. Between the time I started this blog and now both our children have married, my husband and I changed jobs, we sold a home, went a while “between homes”, bought a home and moved to a new city, my son and daughter in law have moved in part-time, I started a new blog called My Burb Home, and I have taken up photography as a hobby. Not bad for two folks in their 50’s.

This next year we plan to travel to two places on our bucket list, work on both our weekend home and our suburban home, build a raised garden, put in a fire pit,and continue to work on found furniture. Life is good for this weekend loving couple.

I wanted to share with you some projects from the last two years. As I looked back, there were others that could have or should have made the cut but I plan on rewriting several of them now that I don’t stink like when I started. Not many of you were around when I first logged in, set up an account and started rambling so some of the projects below may be new to you. Just click on the hyperlink and it will take you to the original blog. I hope you enjoy.

10. French provincial furniture makeover. I love that we were able to take a couple of homely particle board pieces of furniture and make them beautiful. I am seriously considering selling this set because I want to redo the room like now I recently saw on a home tour but I love the color combination and how much I learned on this project.

9. Western Dresser. We found a homely little Goodwill dresser and made it something fun for the lake house guest room we call the bunk room.

8. Table and Banquette seating out of reclaimed wood. Wow! This is one of my oldest posts and my dinky little camera did not do this beauty any justice. I will be re-photographing this set. This was a collaboration between Hubby and me to come up with a solution to a tiny space using reclaimed siding from our house. It is one of the most functional spaces in our home now.

7. Farmhouse Table. I love the look of a rustic table but man, they are expensive. Our $90.00 solution to this problem turned out to be one of my favorite pieces of furniture. It moved with us and was where we gathered for our first Thanksgiving meal in the new home.

6. Wedding Chalkboard. I did tell you my kids got married, right? I was fortunate enough that both my daughter and daughter in law wanted me to make personal items for their wedding. I loved that they wanted things that I worked on as a part of their special day. The link above is one of those items, an ornate frame my daughter in law, Sweet Amanda, found at a resale shop that I redid for the wedding and added a chalkboard. I chose this one because it was the first wedding project. I love all four of my precious kids.

5. Map Chair. Another piece of furniture that needs to be re-photographed. This little chair would be easy to recreate for a friend moving to a new city or a college student who needs to remember where home is. I seem to have a thing for chairs.

4. Painted Suitcases. I have made a total of seven of these painted suitcases now The link is to four of them I did at one time. I love finding cheap old hard sided suitcases, priming, painting, distressing, glazing then adding a chalkboard to one side. It makes a great entry into a home when guests are coming over or to announce an event. If I ever started a business, I would sell these because I enjoy mine so much.

3. Junk Fairy End Table. The last three are easy. They are my favorite, favorite projects. They speak to my love of color, family and friends. The junk fairy ( AKA The Social Planner) dropped off this homely table while we were gone one day. I did not need it, so posted a photo of it on Facebook and offered to redo it for a friend. Robin snagged it. I am happy that she chose green as the color for the table. I really like how the stained top turned out. I enjoyed it so much that I painted a table in my own home close to the same colors.

2. Beverage Station. I am now working on number three of these babies. What a great re-purpose project for an old stainless sink and a sewing machine cabinet. I love the look and they make entertaining in a back yard or porch more inviting. My favorite blue color, Behr sailboat blue, got used here. My long-suffering husband gets major credit for the stainless sink idea here.

1. Mudroom Bench. When we moved this year I literally looked for homes that my mudroom bench would fit in. It is by far my most favorite project to date. I look forward to the day that someone sends me a photo of their version of the project.&nbsphttp://theweekendcountrygirl.com/2013/01/28/toilet-paper-roll-art/; A found dresser, waiting for heavy trash pickup, and a resale shop mirror turned into this beauty.

I hope you enjoyed my little walk down memory lane. Thank you for taking the time to look back on my last two years. Thank you for allowing me to share what we do.

Chalkboard DIY, Country Style, Curbside rescue, moving, Repurposed Furniture, Roadside Finds

Curbside Headboard Into Garage Chalkboard

June 17, 2013June 17, 2013 Karen

The best time to go trolling for curbside finds is Saturday afternoon just before dark. The very best time to go hunting is the weekend of the huge neighborhood garage sale near our current city house. The garage sale occurs every spring and the finds over the year have helped furnish our lake house and have provided materials for projects in our city house. People tend to throw out items that do not sell. I love items that do not sell.

The most recent garage sale weekend we collected a dresser totally junk but the drawer fronts were solid wood and will be reused along with brass hardware, a pink chair- it now has a home with a teenaged young lady who loves thrift shopping, and this wooden twin headboard that wonder of all wonders- Hubby wanted to make into a project! Of course I let him run with it! He decided to make a chalkboard out of it. Wow. I know. I must be rubbing off on him after 32 years.

This was tricky. He cut the spindles so that they followed the curve of the wood, cut out a piece of hard board for the chalkboard and turned it over to me to paint. I painted the chalkboard four times, then painted the frame with a jar of 25 cent green paint from he Lowe’s clearance section.

Hubby connected the chalkboard to the frame with construction adhesive he. Had on hand and clamped it in place.

In our clean out to move I found 6 hooks that were wrapped in a sack. I hold on to hardware when I find it. I never pay more than a few cents for hardware and save it in a cabinet at the lake so I really have no idea where this came from or what project I bought it for. Whatever the circumstance, Hubby put three of the hooks, painted dark brown onto the bottom of the frame. This is going in his garage by the door so he and hang hats and write notes when he is trying to remember measurements.

I am so proud of his work!

Chalkboard DIY, chalkboard paint on furniture, Painted Furniture, Repurposed Furniture

Project Progress

May 10, 2013May 10, 2013 Karen

In spite of the storm tonight I did make progress on a project that Hubby thought up! When all is said and done this project will cost 25 cents!

Chalkboard DIY, Decorating, mantle, Owls, Reused frame, silver, The City House, Thrifty decorating, white and gray decorating

Decorating the Mantel Between Seasons

March 1, 2013March 1, 2013 Karen

It is that time of the year that I struggle with decorating the mantel in our den. Now that we are getting ready to sell the city house, I wanted to decorate it for more mass appeal and for my own enjoyment. I took down everything Valentine’s Day related, moved some things around then went on a house hunt. The silver stuff came from the yellow and gray bedroom. I quickly drew an owl on the chalkboard, but it is only temporary. I am just trying to figure out what I want it to say. I do love the stack of Bibles. My grandfather and my grandmother’s Bible are there along with my “cradle roll” Bible I carried when Hubby and I got married. What do you thin? Be Honest!

Chalkboard DIY, chalkboard paint on furniture, Decorating, DIY Painting and Glazing Furniture, Dresser, glazing, ornate chalkboard frames, Painted Furniture, Repurposed Furniture, resale finds

Visiting Facelift Furniture

February 7, 2013March 8, 2013 Karen

This past weekend we visited Facelift Furniture in College Station, Texas. I am so proud because I planned a trip for the social planner, Tanis and our husbands. Planning a trip is not what I am known for. Facelift Furniture is a business opened in 2011. I discovered them when searching the Internet for repurposed furniture near us. I am so glad I ran across his web page, and then his Facebook page

I recently purchased his ebook too… I sound a little like a creeper here, but I promise, I am just a fan of his work!

Facelift Furniture is located in the back row of a group of industrial buildings, so don’t let the GPS fool you like ours did.

2151 Harvey Mitchell Pkwy S #329, College Station, TX 77840
Open 8-5 MWF, 8-4:30 TTh

I lifted this information straight from Jeff’s web page because I could not say it any better:

Facelift Furniture specializes in furniture restoration. We love getting creative with dated, worn down and ugly pieces of furniture, transforming them into valued pieces for any size or type of room. These transformations are made using latex enamel paint, glaze, and distressing techniques. We sell finished pieces, and furniture you can select to be painted. We can also upstyle your furniture!

My goal in going was just to get ideas, see the quality of work he did and hopefully get to see the great colors he uses. I love his turquoise pieces and the green he uses. Jeff was so gracious. He gave us the grand tour and answered a million questions for me.

The photos above are from the show room.

Now on the way to College Station Tanis mentioned that she was looking for a large buffet type piece for the Rocking F Ranchito. In the spirit of full disclosure, I advised my buddy to wait until she moved in to make sure that once she saw the space she could get what she wanted. My social planner is one stubborn chick! Within ten minutes of arriving I could tell that Jeff had a new fan. Within 15 minutes he was clearing out a path in his work area so that we could see a long unpainted dresser that he thought would work for the space.

I knew as soon as I saw it we would be returning to pick up the painted piece in a few weeks. After much deliberation, the deep red that Jeff calls chili red was selected. It really will be perfect in the Ranchito and add that “pop” of color the house needs.

I would like to thank Jeff for allowing us to see the projects under way right now, answering my questions, and best of all, giving me a reason to go back in the end of February to shop. I love the way he repurposes old cabinet doors and into hat racks and chalkboards, but I especially liked ethe way that he repurposes old chair backs and headboards into hat racks. I did not photograph any of the furniture he has in his shop or projects under way because I know that he will be posting them himself. Please take a look at his amazing work. I hope one day that what I do looks as good as his. Oh… buy his ebook. It is really easy to read and he provides a great material list and even shares the colors he uses.

Update: Here is the finished piece via cell phone camera.

Photo: Larry and I are in college station picking up a piece of furniture that I had Facelift Furniture (Jeff) finish in a chili red and brown glaze... Turned out really cool! This will be in my dining room for linens and silverware etc. Jeff has a web site and an ebook that my friend Karen uses to refinish her pieces!

Chalkboard DIY, Reused frame, reusing an old frame, reusing an old window, Roadside Finds, Roadside Rescue, Star Hill

Turning Trash Into a Kitchen Menu Board

January 22, 2013January 22, 2013 Karen

Recently my social planner, Tanis, picked up two old windows that were in a trash pile where a home was being renovated. They were already the perfect shade of red on one side and had just the right amount of peeling paint. I loved them and I know that they are going to look great at her new home, The Rockin F Ranchito, in Coldspring.
One of the frames wil be a hat rack with an adhesive Rocking F Logo on the glass and the other will be a menu board for the kitchen. The glass is removed from this one.

Tanis painted both sides of the frame with polyacrylic to seal in the paint should it have lead. Here is the finished product after Hubby put in hard board and we painted several coats of chalkboard paint.

Chalkboard DIY, Coldspring, crafting, Decorating, glazing

Painted Chalkboard Suitcases; Hitting the Motherlode

January 6, 2013March 26, 2013 Karen

Recently I made painted a suitcasethen put a chalkboard on one side. The idea was from another blog, and I loved the idea. The Southern Belle wanted the suitcase so of course I gladly gave it to her. It is now in her home in Charlotte, North Carolina. I decided when I made the first suitcase that I wanted to make one for Sweet Amanda’s friend Molly. She has started a business doing hair and make up for weddings and photo shoots. A fun suitcase can hold her treasures she needs to take to the locations. MollyDo’s
Sweet Amanda recommended a Huntsville thrift store, but I had trouble being in town when it was open. I finally made it to town when it was open and I hit the jackpot! I found four suitcases that will work perfectly for a painted suitcase. The sides are hard, not sunken in, with very little texture, and a vintage shape. I went to the store with my social planner, Tanis and together we agreed that $5.00 each would be the most I would spend. I was thrilled when the lady at the register told me that they were going to be $ 2.00 each! No haggling required. I happily took them all to the truck.
Four suitcases meant I was going to have several projects to give as gifts. This is the perfect week because I have time on my hands and the winter usually makes me hibernate and grumpy.

Here all all four of them!

My plan for the four suitcases was: one for Molly, one for Sweet Amanda, one for my social planner, Tanis, and one for me!
The largest is going to Molly. I researched Molly’s business Facebook page for her logo. Using the colors of the logo and her design for inspiration I chose fuchsia as the color. Not a perfect match but fun and cheery like her.

For Sweet Amanda’s suitcase I decided that a light yellow color would be fun for her eclectic home. Tanis was easy. Her new home is going to have a barn red front door and there will be touches of red throughout. Red was the natural choice. Tanis chose Heritage Red in the Allen and Roth line at Lowe’s. I bet we find other uses for the paint.
Because each one is unique, I decided to try different types of paint to see what I like best on a suitcase: cans of spray paint for Molly and Sweet Amanda (two different types) and brush on paint for the others. (Two different brands.)
For my own suitcase, I chose my favorite off white color, Olympic cinnamon cake. It was on hand in the Garagemahal so no cost. The off white will work well at the city house and on the porch at Star Hill.

The weather did not cooperate the week after Christmas. I feel sorry for those of you who live where it gets really cold and stays that way. I had to spray paint inside the closed garage with a mask on and a preheated space. Yay for Hubby’s Christmas present, a propane heater! I had nothing but problems with Sweet Amanda’s suitcase. The yellow Fusion paint did not cover well, it took a second can. I could not find an exact match so I decided to do something different with the two colors; I taped off a pattern on the front. I really liked the result but it took forever to dry- like hours, then a small disaster… the suitcase fell over. It took some touch ups, but the end result was great. Not a fan of the Fusion paint. Mark that one off my list.

My social planner, Tanis, pitched in to help. It was NOT that cold in the Garagemahal, I promise!

Molly’s suitcase painted like a charm. I am a fan of the Valspar paint + primer spray paint. It even said on the front of the can good for metal, plastic or wood. Go to Lowe’s and snatch up this paint. Less than $4.00 a can, great coverage, and a ton of colors. I will definitely use it again.

For the other suitcases I had to paint first with bonding primer then wait for the paint to dry then I brush painted them. It took a lot of work, and tim due to the drying time between coats but I think I like the brushed on, vintage quality. The next time I am going to use Annie Sloan’s.

I did learn a few things from the first suitcase that made the process go a little quicker and will hopefully make them last a little longer. I taped off the hardware including the bottom hinges, used my trusty liquid sand on the outside do each piece, then primed the brush on paint with a bonding primer.
I painted Molly’s handle yellow. I like the contrast but did not like how hard it was to cover. I will be wrapping the handle with twine next week. Tanis’ suitcase needs some touch ups. The chalkboard paint peeled off with the tape in one spot. Boo!

I glazed my suitcase and roughed it up. I liked the old quality.
All of the suitcases will look better with age, dings and time.
Here are the finished projects. I love them. I hope that the recipients like them too.

Chalkboard DIY, ornate chalkboard frames, repurposed frame, Reused frame, reusing an old frame, the Southern Belle, Thrifting, vintage style, wedding, wedding preparation, Weddings

Finding Frames for the Charlotte Wedding

October 30, 2012January 9, 2013 Karen

The Southern Belle asked me to look for small ornate frames for her June wedding. She wants to turn them into chalkboards to write menu items and information to guests. Because the chalk boards are black, I am painting the frames white until I get instructions from the Southern Belle.

Here is how the beauties started:

Bought for $1.00 each

Bought for 25 cents each

The top two are Home Interiors specials from the 70’s. The bottom two are plastic faux wicker. They will all make great chalkboards.

I am determined to become a better spray painter, and I believe I am on the right track finally. I have discovered the spray paint handle.

This is the best thing since sliced bread. I love it.

It is amazing how they turned out. I did not take a picture of the larger one when bought. It was southwest style teal and salmon. I bought it for a dollar. Hubby already cut the chalkboard for the large one.
I am going to spray the mirrors for the narrow ones with chalkboard Sprint. I can see them as direction signs at the reception. On my way to collecting some frames for the girl. It is nice to be able to help with her wedding- even from a distance.