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12 Crafts of Christmas {Chalkboard Paint}

I painted a chalkboard racetrack as a chair-rail in one bedroom.

I painted a plain old chalkboard on the wall of the art loft.


For a gift one time, I painted flower pots and labeled them with names of different herbs.
And I even started growing those herbs from seeds.
(In case you don’t know me well, that’s a BIG deal.  A green thumb have not I.)

So when I was thinking of my favorite crafts, I thought of a few things that I could do with chalkboard paint.
I still have a fairly large can of it left over from the times I’ve painted the wall,
but I know that you can buy it in small 2oz. bottles and as spray paint as well.

Also, you can go the plain old chalk route if you want, but also available are chalk pens
that are less messy and less likely to smudge and smear.

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PARTY GLASSES

My first (and maybe my favorite) of the chalkboard crafts: party glasses!
(Inspired by these items found at Pier 1.)

With a little chalkboard paint you can:
a) go green by not using disposable cups
b) always know which cup is yours!

And it is E-A-S-Y!

(It would probably be easier to use the spray chalkboard paint for this project,
but I only had the regular can of paint on hand.)

Use painter’s tape to mark off a rectangle on the glass.
Use a small piece of coarse sandpaper to roughen up the part you are going to paint.
Paint it with chalkboard paint and let it dry.

Repeat.  Repeat again.  Repeat again and again until it’s dark enough.
**Don’t try to do one or two thick coats; it will peel right off
Make sure you do several light coats and let each coat dry thoroughly before adding another.**

Carefully remove the tape.

Now is the optional step:  I decided to bake my glass pieces at 350º for about 10 minutes.
I can’t prove that it makes it set, but it surely does seem like it helps.
Just don’t over-cook them because the glass can break if it gets too hot!

Now just don’t forget to keep pieces of chalk on hand for parties!

I’ve also found that my kids love using these glasses.
Some days, I’ll write  a little note to them:

Happy Birthday!
I love you!

Or a little reminder:

Have a great GREEN day!  (which is our code for reminding Carter to behave at school)
P.E. Today!  Wear sneakers!

Other times they just like having their name on their cup!

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OLD FASHIONED CHALKBOARD

I found a simple frame I had in my junk pile.
At some point I’d put corkboard on it and used it with thumbtacks.
So I took that out and painted the back surface to make a new chalkboard.
Lately we’ve started memorizing a weekly bible verse as a family
and I wanted somewhere to put it so that it would be easily changed each week.

If I didn’t already have a place to put my weekly menu, I’d probably make another one for that, too!

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MESSAGE CANDLE

Trying to use what I already had at home, I also decided it would be fun to do a candle.
I had a store-bought pumpkin candle and decided that for Thanksgiving I wanted it to say “Give Thanks”.
So I used painters tape to make straight lines all the way around the candle holder and painted a thick chalkboard line.
Then I took some cheap twine and wrapped it around the top of the candle holder
And finished it off by adding a few leaves and sticks for fun!
(You’ll want to make sure that none of those things can get close to the flame!!)

I know this one is kind of Thanksgiving-ish instead of Christmas-y,
but you can go here and find more really great Christmas candle ideas.

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LOVE NOTE BOX

And, finally, I don’t know if your children are as in love with their teachers as mine are…
But I never stop hearing about how great Mrs. S, Mrs. F, Mrs. H and Mrs. R are!
My kids are constantly making little creations and cards and “love notes” for them.

And since we’re going to be home for 9 days straight this Thanksgiving break,
I imagine I’m going to be collecting a lot of these straight-from-the-heart pieces of art.

I took small tin cans that I had left over from last Christmas and painted the entire surface with chalkboard paint.
(I did like the striped trim on this one, so I left that unpainted.)

**You could also use a recipe box or cheap wooden box from any craft store.**

After painting it, I used my hot glue gun to adhere a ribbon around the base of the box.
Then I let the kiddos write on the top and that’s it!  All done!

Wouldn’t it be fun to do one of these for family members?
You could fill it with little pick-me-up notes: things you love about them, short memories that make you smile…
And whenever (s)he has a bad day, just one peek into the love note box will make him/her feel better-even if just a little bit.

Don’t forget that with the chalkboard top, you can even change the “note” on top to fit any occasion!

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Chalkboard paint ideas are all over the internet, but here are a few things that I really loved:

Inside cabinet doors

Days Until … sign

Fireplace fix

Front door sign

Decorative doors

Labelled jars

Silhouette mug

AND MORE!

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Want to see more of my crafty creations?

Check out the other 12 Crafts of Christmas:
Week One: Silhouettes
Week Two: Personalized Wall Clocks
Week Three: Glass Etching
Week Four: Fancy Fingerpaint Art
Week Five: Freezer Paper Stencils
Week Six:  Tie-Knot Fleece Blanket
Week Seven: Jewelry: Ribbon & Pearl Bracelet, Wool Ball Necklace, DIY Button Earrings
Week Eight: Chalkboard Paint Ideas: Glasses, Chalkboard, Candle, Love Box
Week Nine: Frugal Finds
Week Ten: Personalized Pendants
Week Eleven: Edible Edition