Magnetic Chalkboard Tutorial

Little by little our new family office is coming together. I just have a few key pieces to finish and then I'll be able to share the complete makeover with you!

One of the things I really wanted for me and the girls was a magnetic chalkboard. I am a huge list-maker and while I'm very organized, sometimes I need a visual reminder. The girls, especially Lo, do great with lists too. It really cuts down on me having to remind them over and over (...and over...). Initially thought I could use magnetic paint under chalkboard paint, but after a quick unofficial Facebook poll I found I needed a Plan-B (It was pretty much unanimous that the magnetic paint doesn't work). I decided to use sheet metal sprayed with chalkboard paint. In the end it was the perfect solution and I'm beyond pleased with the result!!! I used a combination of supplies I already had and a few purchased with coupons. In the end I spent under $10 to make both boards! 

Here's what you'll need:

• Empty frame - You can usually get a good deal on frames without glass in them at Goodwill or at your local craft store. The one I used was from my clothespin frame. It was originally purchased at Michael's in their "mistake" frame bin. The one I put over my desk is huge, 24x30in. The girls' is 11x14in.
• Chalkboard paint - I like Krylon spraypaint. In my experience the regular paint kind doesn't adhere to all surfaces well. They sell Krylon at Jo-Ann's so you can use a coupon. 
• Tin snips - Giant scissors for cutting metal. I borrowed mine from a friend.
  
• Leather gloves - I used my gardening gloves. Once you cut the metal the edges are sharp and can cut you. 

• Sheet metal-I went to 2 different home improvement stores before I got smart. I guess the secret is out that people are using sheet metal for various crafty projects. When I asked for the sheet metal the sales people at both stores took me to a display of "decorative" metal. The sheets were in various sizes and the one that I needed for my large frame was marked $29.99. Um no thank you! There was no way I was going to pay that much for thin, flimsy metal! Instead I "borrowed" a magnet from the store and went in the plumbing aisle and basically stuck it on every piece of metal I could find to see which ones were magnetic. The one I purchased was 30"x36" and was only $7.99 a sheet (as an added bonus there was a $3 rebate on them too!). You could easily make two smaller boards with one sheet of metal. 

Here's what my frame looked like before:

• I removed all the fabric, twine and pictures and painted it one of my favorite colors left over from Noa's yellow room (It was a mistake paint so I'm going to be so sad when it's all gone!).  I did the same with the girls' frame.

• Using the cardboard backing from the frames I traced the shape on the sheet metal. You really need to be exact. I found that it's hard to trim with the tin snips, instead of cutting it just bent the metal. One of my sheets was too big for the frame and it took a bit of work to get it to fit properly.

• Follow the directions on the chalkboard paint and cover the sheet metal with several thin layers of paint. Let it dry according to the directions on the paint. Once it is completely dry you can put your metal into the frame, just be careful not to scratch the paint. The metal is fairly flimsy, so you'll want to make sure you have some support behind it. I found using the cardboard and backing from the original frame was enough. My mistake frame didn't have backing so I cut a piece of cardboard to fit it and then used duct tape to keep it in (no one is going to see the back). 

• Before you can use your board it needs to be seasoned. Basically you cover the entire board with chalk. I usually let mine sit for a bit. I have no idea if that makes a difference, but that's how I roll! Once it's seasoned it's all ready to use. The more you use it, the more seasoned it becomes and the better it will wipe off

Ta-da!!!

I'm in L-O-V-E love! Now I have a place for notes, reminders and pictures of the family. The girls love theirs too and keep asking me to write down homework for them, that NEVER happens!

I've got some cute ideas for magnets that I'll be sharing with you soon! You certainly can't have a cute board without cute magnets too!

Thanks for checking in!

The Hubby's Pub Desk Stool

As I mentioned yesterday, slowly I'm getting our new office/playroom together. The main project left is planning my wall space. I'm just waiting for the weather to cooperate so that I can get my spray paint party started! While I'm waiting for things to warm up, I'm attacking some of the smaller jobs that need to be finished. First up was the hubby's stool seat for his pub desk (will discuss his need for a pub desk at a later time). 

First I shall digress...

When I first starting blogging a few years ago I tried to come up with cute and catchy titles that would spark people's interest and entice them into reading more. As I started reading more blogs myself, I realized how that while it's clever, it can sometimes be frusterating. I can't tell you how many times I've searched and searched through someone else's blog looking for a particular post (usually a tutorial) and I can't find it because I can't remember what catchy title it's hiding under! I vowed to try my best to make most of my titles straightforward so that you can hopefully find what you're looking for. Then we get to today's project, MY HUSBAND'S STOOL. Um...the nurse in me just giggles. My hubby's STOOL tee-hee-hee. I thought maybe I could do My Hubby's BLUE stool, but that made me laugh too. I could say "chair" but in reality it's not a chair, it's a stool. Do you see my dilemma? So that is why today's title is long winded, so you don't think you're going to get a whole post about the hubby's GI system!

Back to the hubby's stool...

Here's what it looked like before I got my hands on it...

As much as I wanted to stencil something on the seat (it's flat top was BEGGING for some sort of stencil), I had to restrain myself. For the past 7 years the hubby has been surrounded by pink and princesses. He gets made-up routinely and rarely has anyone to share "manly" things with. I thought that I'd just give him a boring, manish seat. He only has one tiny corner of the whole office, it's the least I could do!

It was a super quick fix. Primer, paint, distressing (my favorite part!!!), black wax and a coat of polycrylic and I was done! It came out perfectly and goes nice with his manly corner of the office/playroom.

Thanks for checking in!

Dressin' Up The Dresser

Not too long ago my friend Kristen sent me this picture and asked if I'd be interested in refurbishing it for her. It's been in her family for a long time and they wanted to put it in the nursery for the baby they are expecting in April. I was up for the challenge!

It kinda reminded me of the World's Ugliest Dresser that I updated for Lo's room awhile back, but instead of poop-brown paint it was covered in stickers. NoJo sat and watched me take off all the stickers, which was not an easy task. Her response was, "Now I know why you tell me no stickers on the furniture!" A little Goo-be-Gone and a coat of Zinsser and she was ready for her new coat of paint.

The dresser itself was pretty beat up, there were lots of dings and dents and the edges were pretty uneven. All that made me so excited. I knew it was going to look totally amazing once it was all finished. We went with a dark blue the matched a table in the room. The color is Prussian Cadet by Valspar. I made my own chalk paint (for directions you can go {HERE}) so I used a flat finish. I think the chalk paint is the best for distressing and wearing down the edges. I gave it two coats of paint and once it was dry and cured (The waiting is the hardest part!), I got down to the real fun, the distressing. I used a fine grit sanding block to give it the aged look. All the dings and dents worked to my favor and gave the dresser lots of character. Once the dresser was "aged" to my liking I used my dark Mylands Wax to give it even more dimension and an extra layer of distressing. Once I had everything how I wanted it, I gave the whole dresser two coats of Minwax WATER BASED Polycrylic in Satin finish. I know in the past I've sealed my pieces with Annie Sloan Wax (which I still LOVE), but I wanted the dresser to be able to be wiped down and survive any type of beating it may take. I really like the Minwax. I used it on Lo's desk & Noa's desk and it's been great. I can just wipe off all the crayon, marker and glue without having to worry about taking off all the wax too. It goes on super easy, dries quickly and is virtually odorless. It comes in a few different finishes, but I like the satin because it's not super shiny.

I was beyond excited with the results! She's so purdy!!!

Kristen found these adorable drawer pulls on-line. They are so cute and go perfectly with the surf themed nursery. 

It was so much fun and I've definitely been re-infected by the Refurbishing Bug! I've been walking around the house choosing my next victim! 

Remembering To Say "Thank You"

It seems as we become more and more dependent on computers, smart phones, and i-whatevers, the written word becomes less and less. I'm just as guilty as the next, but one area I do not think technology has a place, is in the thank you note. Personally, I think if someone takes the time to do something nice for you, you have the time to write them a handwritten note letting them know how much you appreciate it. When the girls were younger we allowed their thank yous to be in the form of a picture, and as they got older we gradually increased the amount of actual words. First we started with a simple "thank you" and now that they can write, full thank you notes with actual sentences are required. They still like to include pictures too which is always a nice touch.

For the past two years Lo has been a Daisy Girl Scout and when anyone thinks of Girl Scouts their mind instantly goes to cookies!!! She's been a great little seller and even though she had LOTS and LOTS of customers, she was still responsible for thanking everyone. Last year we went with a simple "thank you" photo showing her with all her cookies and her incentive she earned for selling over a certain amount. She attached this picture to each cookie bundle for each of her customers. They were a huge hit!

This year she was another great little sales girl and again had LOTS of customers to thank. We decided that since she is in 1st grade now she needed to write a proper thank you note. This is what she designed (sorry for the awful picture...the real file was to large to post). 

It was super easy to make and only cost us about $0.09 each! First she wrote her note and drew her picture. Then I traced her letter with a Sharpie so that it was easier to read. I scanned the whole note and saved it as a JPEG file. Once it was all saved I just had to download it to our local Meijer Photo store and it was ready in less than an hour! 

I love her pictures, the hedgehog especially, and how she spelled Trefoils-so cute!

What kind of creative ways do you have your kids express their thanks? Shout 'em out! We can never have too much gratitude!!!

It's A Boy! (more freezer paper stencil fun)

Last week we had a baby shower for a friend. She has two girls and #3 is a bouncing baby boy! I always think it's so much fun to make personalized gifts. One of my favorite crafty activities is freezer paper stenciling. The possibilities are endless and it's so much fun! For my full tutorial you can go {HERE}.

Little man is going to be named after his daddy, who is also named after HIS daddy, so he will be John III.

Oh boy so many fun ideas come to my mind!!!

Here are the ones I decided on...

There definitely is a mustache craze going on right now and I couldn't resist...

This one is my most favoritest!!! (...if you get the joke than you're my most favoritest and I'm going to take you to San Diego to eat a dolphin!...I like pizza!...Hi Steve!)

Package them all up real nice and purdy and you've got a super-duper fun and unique gift that didn't require any special crafting supplies!

Happy stenciling!

Home State Home

If you've been following me for awhile you know that the hubby and I have moved a few times in the past twelve years. It's always a tricky question when someone asks us where we are from. Where are we from??? We used to call Cali home, but we haven't lived in that "home" for over 12 years. While we LOVED Boston, we never really considered it "home." Indy was supposed to be a two year pit-stop, but 6 years later we're not sure we're ever going to leave. For us, home is truly where our hearts are. When I found {THIS} from The Vintage Lemon I knew I'd found the perfect way to express how each "home" has found a special place in our hearts. 

To start I needed to print out each state. The website states that they are formatted for 11 x 14 prints but I could not get them to work, the photo printing site kept telling me they were not formatted for that size and the quality would be low. In the end I did 8 x10 prints which fit my space much better. For me, Costco was the most cost effective place to have my photos done (BTW, they have fab-u-lous prices on large poster prints and canvas. Just something to keep in mind for your future projects.). I also had the sheet of hearts printed as well.

I already had two of the black frames (from Target), lucky for me they are a stock item and I was able to pick up another one! I love when the crafty planets are aligned! I used the hearts to mark the city that we lived in in each particular state.

Now all I needed was to find the perfect spot in our house. 

The corner of our entryway has looked like this for quite awhile...

And now it looks like this...

I LOVE it! 

(Of course now I think the table needs to be painted! Ha! That's how it goes around here!)

Not only do these make great decorations but they would also be a unique gift for a wedding or anniversary, marking where the couple met, fell in love or got married. Lots of opportunity to be creative!  

Homemade Moon Sand

As much as I L-O-V-E, love to be crafty and I am not a fan of messy crafts. I hate play-dough, cringe when my child brings home sand-art or glittery pictures from school and we rarely paint. My idea of crafty fun tends to be less messy.

A long time ago, before I had kids, I sent my good friend Amy's son Moon Sand for his birthday. I don't think she's ever forgiven me and who can blame her. Clearly the person who invited it didn't have children and hated moms. It's sticky, sandy and you find it everywhere for days years after it's been put away!

At the end of the school year Lo's class made their own Moon Sand and she came home with a little zip-lock bag filled with her share. She was so excited that she made it, and was pleasantly surprised I let her keep it. She carefully kept it outside and made sure she put it in the bag after playing with it. All was going well until she let her sister have a turn. With in 2 seconds the entire bag of Moon Sand was gone, lost in the cracks and crevices in our screened porch. To say Lo was devastated is putting it mildly (she's a bit of a drama queen), her precious sand was g-o-n-e, gone. Apparently this ridiculous heat caused me to lose my mind, because I said "yes" when the girls asked if we could make our own!

Are you brave enough to make your own?!?!

Here's what you need:

• 9 cups of flour
• 1 1/2 cups of baby oil
• You can also add 1/8 cup of Powdered Tempera Paint per 3 cups of moon sand for colored moon sand if you're feeling especially adventurous. We skipped that step, I think powdered paint would have sent me over the edge.

Put your ingredients into a large container

Then get ready to get dirty and mix everything up together

Add more Baby Oil if needed. You'll know you have enough and everything is mixed well when your sand looks like this:

This was by far a HUGE hit with the girls and the "recipe" makes enough for lots of playtime fun. I definitely recommend keeping it outside and in an area that can be hosed off because it is EVERYWHERE. The girls have played with it everyday since we made it and personally I think the mess is worth the smile on their faces!