One day, on my way home (as many of my stories go), I drove by a painting that had been put on the side of the road, along with several trash bags. Of course I stopped to take a closer look. Although the frame was not of the best quality (the fancy bits were moulded plaster rather than carved wood) it was still old.

What I liked most was the size of the frame and it’s proportions (the painting and frame colour were quite dated, on top of the fact that the canvas had a hole in it). The piece did have a nice kitch quality to it but in my home, I’m not going for kitch.

Out of the frame the painting came and out of the cupboard my paint can came 🙂 I chose white of course!

Then, I decided I would make a chalkboard out of wood and many layers of chalkboard paint. The frame, it turned out, was a standard size and so I simply bought a piece of particle board (not too thick so it wouldn’t be too heavy) and brought it home to paint as no cuts were necessary.

Then, I painted many many many layers of black chalkboard paint, waiting for each coat to dry well, before starting the next. Since I wanted to hang it vertically (both ways would have been nice, it only depended on the space it would hang in), I needed to redo the hanging wire in the back. As the frame was fairly heavy, I made sure to get a hook for the wall that would hold a heavy weight, just as I made sure the wire at the back was heavy duty and well attached. Below is the finished product.

The proportions of the frame seemed just right for a narrow wall at the end of a corridor. Great place to make little drawings, write messages or funny or inspiring quotes 🙂