Show us what you're workin' with Wednesday!!

I'm so excited to be hosting my first party!! I'm not gonna lie, I stressed this last week trying to come up with the project I was going to use to debut this little party of mine.


I was walking around the Provo Craft Outlet Store, totally fabulous, and I came across a bunch of these cute little blue metal plaques for only $2!! So, I bought 5 and had no idea what I was going to do with them. I brought them home and looked at them for a few days and decided to turn them into this:


I really like how it turned out and for only $2 I liked it even more. The great thing about it is that the chalkboard is painted over metal, so I could even use magnets on it if I wanted. After I made it I realized that you all don't have these lying around your house, so I put the brain to work and came up with another version.


Here are the supplies that I used:

* Wooden frame from the thrift store: $1.50
* 1 x 3 cut to the length of the frame
* Chalkboard Paint, I only had the brush on kind, but the spray kind would do the trick
* Paint in colors to coordinate with your kitchen* Sandpaper, Paintbrush* Twine or Ribbon

*** I DIDN'T TAKE A TON OF PICTURES OF THIS PROJECT BECAUSE MOST OF IT IS JUST PAINTING AND SANDING ***

I had everything on hand except for the frame so this project only cost $1.50!!! YAY!! Ok, let's get started. I took the glass out of the frame and cleaned it up and made sure it was completely dry. Then I painted it with my chalkboard paint and set it aside to dry. I took my sandpaper to the frame and gave it a light sanding to make sure the paint would adhere to it. I gave it a good coat of antique white and set it aside :)

My frame was about 12.5 inches and I already have a 1 x 3 scrap that was 12 inches so I just used it. I sanded down the edges and painted it with Maroon paint. I put one more coat on each ... chalkboard paint, antique white and the maroon.


After everything was dry I took my sandpaper to the frame to take off some of the paint. I really like the look it gives with some of the wood showing through.


I cut out the word "menu" with the cricut, if you don't have a cricut you could just print the word off using the computer and then carefully cut out the letters with an exacto knife. I lightly sprayed the back of my stencil with spray adhesive and stuck it onto the board. Using the same antique white paint I painted in the letters and let it dry. Now that the letters are dry I sanded down the edges and over the letters a bit to help them looked aged.

*** I did this part backwards, oops!! ***

I lined up the frame and the board and marked where I wanted the holes to go. I made the holes rather close to the edges because the edge was the only flat spot on the frame, and I was using a tiny drill bit to make the holes. But, to make it easier and to not have to worry about splintering the wood, just move the holes away from the edge and that way you could use a bigger bit. I also marked 2 holes at the top. I put them further from the edge so I could use a bigger bit, because I will need to string a ribbon through them later on. *** Now would be the time to spray the frame and board with a clear coat, I used a satin finish. *** I OBVIOUSLY sprayed them before I drilled the holes, grrr ... luckily it didn't mess anything up, I lucked out this time.

Once the clear coat was dry, I used black 1/8" ribbon to attach the frame to the board. I tied it in 3 knots in the back and then glued the knot to the plank, so it wouldn't move around, using my hot glue gun. I used Black 7/8" Grosgrain to hang the sign with. I tied the ribbon in knots and then glued a bow over the knot.


Once the chalkboard paint is dry put the glass and the cardboard back into the frame. OH YEAH, I TOTALLY forgot to paint the back of the frame so I covered the back with paper and black felt. I am actually kinda glad that I messed up because I really like how it turned out, it makes it look more finished and it hides the the cardboard insert, and the felt will help protect the wall.


Here it is all done!!! Super cute right??? Don't judge my handwriting, I know it's horrible, but the Menu board looks better with a "menu" actually written on it :) And for $1.50, you can't beat it with a stick!!!

Ok girls, I'm fully prepared to only have 1 or 2 links this week. It's ok!! I have to start somewhere right? So ... let's PAR-TAY!!! I'm also linking this up to my other ladies who like to party!!!