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June 21, 2013

DIY Chalkboard from a Picture Frame

DIY

I stopped by my parents’ house yesterday to go for a walk, and the next thing I knew my mother and I were digging through the garage.  My mom loves buying old furniture and repainting it (that is why I have the cutest desk ever!), and yesterday she pulled out this big, old picture.  She picked it up at a yard sale years ago because she liked the frame.  She suggested we turn it into a chalkboard, so we did! It was SO easy and barely took any time at all – especially because my parents’ house is DIY central and they have everything you could ever need for crafting (my house is definitely not DIY central – I can’t even find printer paper right now!).

Pick up an old picture with an awesome frame at a yard sale, thrift shop, or on Craigslist.  This isn’t a bad picture, but it was dirty, scratched, and full of holes.
Clean the picture and frame before you start, or else all the dust and dirt on the picture will end up in your chalkboard!  We also removed the picture from the frame.  If this is not possible, tape off the frame.
We used Kilz spray primer and it was SO much easier to use than the traditional primer that you paint on!  We did, though, end up with a few lumps because of the spray primer, so we had to sand those out after allowing the primer to cure for one hour.  I recommend wearing eye and mouth protection, and clothing you don’t love, as this stuff was flying everywhere – and it was not very windy!
Sand over the primer (you should always sand after a coat of primer) and even up the surface.  Make sure you wipe the picture down after this, as the primer will be dusty.
Paint time!  We used a chalkboard spray paint that we found in the house (I used it 10 years ago for a school project and it still works – although we were running low).  Spray one coat and then move to a second and likely a third coat.  You don’t need to allow it to dry in between.  Spray even coats of paint until the chalkboard is covered – or until you run out of paint!
Love this!  I can’t wait to use it!
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