Kitchen Chalkboard...

I have finally jumped on the "chalkboard paint bandwagon" and made a chalkboard for my kitchen. Just in case there is anyone out there who has not made one of these yet, here is how I made mine.

I've had this mirror for several years now. It has moved from house to house, and was cracked somewhere along the way. I always intended to replace the mirror, but never got around to it. Then, it dawned on me that I could paint it with chalkboard paint, AND since I have been wanting a chalkboard in my kitchen for a while now, this old mirror fit the bill perfectly! Don't you just love it when a plan comes together?

I liked the original color of the frame, but I didn't think it would work very well in my kitchen, so I decided to paint it an olive green. Since I was gonna paint over the mirror, I didn't bother with taping off the frame. I just went to town with the spray paint.

Then, as I was painting it , my hairline crack turned into a complete break and the mirror fell out of the middle. What now? I was gonna buy a new piece of glass for the center, but when I got prices, I found out since it was an odd shape and size it was rather expensive. That was obviously out, but my mother in law had the suggestion of using a really thin piece of wood. She had some on hand, and even got it cut to size for me.

Next I just put 3 coats of chalkboard spraypaint on it, letting each coat dry an hour or so. I had an old white shelf that I no longer use and painted it to match then put it to work holding my eraser and chalk.
I am already putting it to use, and the wood is working fine. The key was using a really smooth piece of wood. I actually used luan, which is typically a subfloor, but it was thin enough to fit in my frame without being too heavy.

Now back to the office for me. I am trying to turn it into my official craft room, and the mess in there right now is scary! I hope to have it all wrapped up by sometime next week to show you. Wish me luck!