Chalkboard

 Last year I saw this hammered looking chalkboard at the thrift store. I knew my kids wanted one, but I passed. A week later it was still there and I decided it was meant to be so I got it. It was super cheap and needed some serious clean-up.

Because I had some supplies on hand, this really was an inexpensive project. My mom had a big container of chalkboard paint and she let me have some. I washed off the junk that was on there and then painted a few coats of paint on it. Once that was dry I used a little wood glue to stabilize the corners of the frame where the two sides came together. Then I covered up the new blackboard and brought it outside to spray-paint the trim. (Sorry that there are no pictures of these processes, but really, you can easily imagine it.)

Once I finally got some chalk, the boys were so excited to be able to sit down and  scribble all over. Originally I was going to staple or glue some ribbon on the back and hang it at the foot of their bunk bed. Eventually I figured that was a bad idea. So, finally, I found a way to put it up in the kitchen without making any permanent damage to the doors in there.

I attached it to the door with these adhesive strips. They are amazing, easy to put on, and so strong. (We've got some of the same brand of hooks to hold the boys coats on in their room. Our house has very tine closets and certainly no coat closet!)

Now the boys have a little spot in the kitchen to go draw and I have a little more color in there. (Plus I get to look at cute drawings like this one of "dad" by my son when my husband was out of town.)