Kim Does Pinterest: DIY Chalkboard

Have y'all read the Little Baby Garvin blog? Ohmylanta, so adorable!  The author, Jessica, documented her pregnancy by taking photos each month of herself in front of a chalkboard.  You may have seen these photos on Pinterest and I just thought it was the cutest idea ever.  She made her chalkboard, so it inspired me to make a chalkboard for the Erskine household.

My dear friend Ashley and I went thrifting.  I was on a mission to find this "dream" frame to make my chalkboard and so we went into a military/veterans thrift store on Coast Hwy and low and behold here it was:

For $25 I got this already distressed, off white frame.  It was exactly what I was looking for!

My husby kindly took me to Lowe's to get spray primer and chalkboard paint.  Both were a little pricey but you get a lot of chalkboard paint, so if you need to paint an entire wall, you are basically set.

I removed the painting and foam board and used the glass from the frame.  Jessica had a piece of wood fitted for it but I found multiple tutorials that used the glass that came from the frame and I liked this the best.  I made sure my aerosol primer (spray can) was for glass surfaces and took it out to the backyard to paint.  Tip: don't do it in your backyard unless you have a table and newspaper...rookie mistakes.  Little bits of grass and nature were all up in my business.

Follow the instructions on the can and then make sure it dries.  It is so incredibly important to make sure that the paint thoroughly dries, otherwise you'll get air bubbles and this became another reason for me to paint the other side of the glass...rookie mistake #2.

Once appropriately primed, it was time to break out the chalkboard paint.  I used foam brushes but I would recommend buying a small roller brush instead.  This will insure that you get a smooth, even coat.  To make up for my lack of a roller brush, I poured the paint on the glass and then used my brush to even it out.  Important tip, make sure there isn't water on your brush, otherwise you'll get a streaky finish.  

It needs to dry for three days.  I started this project before husby had leave, so it sat for two weeks.  Then I placed it back in the frame.  The frame already had metal tabs to hold the original print, so I used those. I'm sure you could hammer in a few nails into the back of the frame to further secure it (a few tutorials also recommend this). 

Then you need to shade the entire chalkboard surface in chalk.  This gives it a layer of chalk and protects it from leaving marks later on.  I bought a pack of white chalk and then the color variety.  I haven't hung it up yet but I have both mega command hooks as well as a picture hanging kit.  Wish me luck!

Friday Favorites- July 13, 2012

First full week after leave! These are some beauties off of Pinterest that I found and just had to share :)

Favorite Inspirational Message

"Some people look for a beautiful place, others make a place beautiful."

-Hazrat Khan

I love this! I feel like this quote speaks volumes on how I see the world.  Especially with creativity, you see beauty everywhere and even in places that people refuse to look.

Favorite Holiday Pins

I'm a big fan of diorama type decorations and capturing little scenes.  I thought both of these were absolutely darling and something that I definitely want to do to decorate our home.  I hope my Space & Missiles roomie, Brittany, is ready for this ;)

Favorite Newlywed Home Decor

Timeline of Your Love

My Pinnin', Tumblin', & Facebookin' friend, Kelsi Johnson re-pinned this and as soon as I saw it, I knew that I wanted to recreate this look.  I'm mad obsessed with this idea and I think it's absolutely beautiful.  I love looking at family photos at all of my friends' homes and this is just a lovely way to recapture that same idea.

Favorite Sassy Tattoo

"Curiosity often leads to trouble"

 Oh lordy, sassy quote and awesome placement of a tattoo!  I really like where this is placed, so much that I'm thinkin' it should be the spot for my next tattoo. 

Kim Does Pinterest: Scrabble Letter Tiles

 I found this idea on Pinterest and loved it! A really simple DIY project that is great wall decor.

Materials:
6 pieces of square plywood-$3.29 at Michael's
6 small squares of wood (these will be your spacers)
Hot glue or e6000 glue (aka something that will get them to stay together)
Black acrylic paint
Bristle brushes
Command Strips to hang them up

Step 1. PAINT! Paint each tile with one letter from the word "FAMILY." I had my laptop open at the same time and checked out the correct number of points for each letter.  I'm a perfectionist, I can't help it.  Having different brushes out will also help you transition from making a thicker font to having the accuracy to paint those itty bitty numbers.  Then let each of those tiles dry.  I did this at night while my husby was playing Battlefield, so I did step 2 in the morning.

Step 2.  SPACE & GLUE- first space out your letters and adjust them so they're a little off kilter.   Glue on the small squares onto the front surfaces of three of your letters.  These will act as your spacers and gives 'em dimension (it seriously looks better).  Place more glue on top of the spacers and then lay the remaining tiles on top.  Let them dry.  I would say let this stay for a couple of hours before hanging up.  I could give you a better time frame but I did this project before my husband had leave and so they were "drying" for two weeks before they were hung up.

Step 3.  COMMAND STRIP TIME!  Place command strips accordingly to the three tiles that will be closest to the wall.  Place where ever you so please and voila, new wall decor :)

Holly & the Sprinkler

While visiting Wisconsin, Holly was introduced to the sweltering hot weather and the beautiful relief of a lawn sprinkler. This and the kiddie pool in the back would entertain her for hours :)

Home Decor: Mod Podge Letters

Tralala tralala, I have a new home aka a DIYers dream come true!  A really simple home decoration to make, which is also perfect for any type of shelving unit, are these decorative letters.  I chose "Erskine" because that's our family name, however you could mix it up and do a cute, "Live Laugh Love" or "#winning," really whatever you'd like.  These would also look cute hanging on a wall with the magic of Command Strips.

Materials:
Three dimensional, cardboard letters $2.99-$3.99 (Hobby Lobby)
Exacto-knife/box cutter
Scrapbook paper  (I chose the large squares of paper not the 8x11)
Mod Podge $7.99
Bristle brush
Cutting board (I just used the one from my kitchen, we conveniently have two)
Paper towels

The most expensive aspects of the project will be purchasing the Mod Podge and the letters themselves.  The good thing is that Mod Podge will last you for so many DIY projects and the letters are your actual home decor, so it's worth it.  When selecting paper, I love neutral colors/earthy tones.  I chose scrapbook papers that looked distressed or were more like photographs to give them that extra dimension.  Examples included distressed wood, burlap, dirt, hay, etc.

1. Organize your letters and scrapbook papers so that they coordinate and then lay them out.
2. Lay out paper towels to serve as your drying space.
3. Take your first letter and coordinating scrapbook paper and make sure the paper's surface that you want is actually facing away from you and on the cutting board.
4. Take your brush and paint Mod Podge onto the letter (make sure you're placing the glue on the side you actually want to place the paper on and only that side).
5. Glue the letter down onto the paper and press firmly.  I placed my letters close to edges to save time in cutting paper and to save paper.
6. Take your box cutter and while the letter is on the cutting board, cut along the edge of the letter.  You should now have the front surface completely covered on your letter.
7. I roughly measured, "guesstimating" with strips of the scrapbook paper, and applied glue to the other surfaces of the letter and covered those with paper.  The only surface I didn't cover was the back and personally, I think it helps give additional dimension to the letter.
8. Take your brush and the Mod Podge and paint over the entirety of the letter.  I have the "gloss" Mod Podge, so it gave my letters a nice finish.
9. Set them aside to dry.
10. Place them where ever you please :)