Easy Chalk Board

Here’s the finished product.

Just because I’ve always wanted to, I made a chalk board the other day.  It’s a project that is easily completed in one day, the only part that’s time consuming is letting the chalk board paint dry.  You can purchase all the supplies for around $20-25 depending on whether or not you already have some basic painting supplies.  Mine came out looking a little rough, but I kind of wanted it to look like that.  I used a piece of cheap plywood, but any surface will do.  Here’s what I did:

Supplies: 

1. Plywood cut to 18″ x 24″ (If you go to Home Depot they will cut it for you for free!)

2. Chalk Board paint

3. Foam paint brushes

4. Paint stirring stick (you can get them free in the paint department of any hardware store)

5. Paint can opener (I had one in my house, they are probably inexpensive)

6. Painter’s tape

7. No. 2 pencil.

Process:

I started by covering my workspace with newspaper for easy clean up.  A drop cloth works, too.  I used my paint stirring stick to draw a border as a guide to ensure a straight line with the painter’s tape.  I lined the tape up with the marks I had made then covered the border and edge with tape.  The paint can recommended a coat of primer, but I skipped that because I didn’t want my chalk board to look fancy or perfect.  I used foam brushes but would recommend a roller so the paint dries more smoothly.  I applied three coats of paint, letting the board dry for four hours between coats.  Overall I think it looks pretty good!

Here are some pictures:

I used Frog Tape, a No. 2 pencil, foam brushes, chalk board paint, a paint stick and can opener to turn a piece of plywood into a chalk board.

You can see the resulting grooves from the foam brush. Try using a roller or sanding and priming the wood for better results. I like the character.