Easy, basically free chalkboard!

I was sitting in the dining room one day, looking at the blank walls and wanting for something to help fill them up. We have several unused frames from the old house, but nothing seemed quite right. The wall space is so tall and narrow.

One thing I really miss about our old place was my big, fancy chalkboard in a repurposed antique frame. I would write our weekly meal plan on it, or decorate for special occasions. It's too big and square to fit in our new house's kitchen or dining room, so for now it's been living in the mini-kitchen in the basement.

I wanted to bring a new chalkboard upstairs, but as time passed and I had no time to get to the thrift store to find the perfect old picture to cover. After seeing a Reader Redesign post on YHL, I had another idea. I already had the can of chalkboard paint... And our pile of scrap wood is growing rapidly with all our construction projects. So I cut up some cheap 'ol 1x2s and stained them with a quick swipe of stain leftover from our kitchen cabinets gone wrong (before they became beautiful and white).

I eyeballed a rectangle with some frog tape and got to painting right on the wall. It took two coats and about 10 minutes total. Then once the stain was dry and the boards were sealed with poly, I just used a handful of finishing nails to attach them right to the wall. 

Now that plain wall is the perfectly rustic chalkboard I was hoping for. I can't wait to dress it up for the holidays!