Ikea Table Chalkboard Transformation

 In our house colored chalk has magic powers.  The white stuff is "OK", but for our two very vocal little people the colored chalk is KING!  To say blood could be spilled over it may seem even more dramatic than normal coming from me, but we have had a close call or two over a coveted piece of purple chalk :)

 That being said, it also has calmed countless situations.  Offer to color with a perfectly pristine piece of purple chalk and heavens open up and magically the fight stops... usually :)  See I told you the stuff is magical!!! And I get it, if you are old enough to remember chalkboards at school...and I am it was the coolest thing to get to write on them and cleaning the chalkboard was actually a fought over classroom chore.  So I too am totally obsessed with the "chalkboard trend" and would paint the majority of the walls in my house with the stuff if my family wouldn't commit me to the nearest mental facility. 

Because of this obsession, I've already made the kids several chalkboard's including the crib side chalkboard (tutorial here) that they LOVE! We need another chalkboard, like I NEED more shoes, but that doesn't mean I have plans to stop shopping (I mean really :) or that I won't take any opportunity to make another chalkboard :)  I saw the idea of using an IKEA end table as a great kids table so I made one with my own twist as a birthday present for our adorable little friend.

 IKEA is great, if not for the affordable furniture we would have had clothes in hefty bags and rested drinks on our knees for more years than I care to admit.  But now with all my crazy projects we have phased out the IKEA pieces for some old gems, all accept this last end table so when we got invited to this 2nd birthday party and I knew I wanted to make something fun this seemed like the perfect project.

 I knew I wanted to sink a container into the table top to hold chalk and an eraser for easy cleanup, but instead of putting that in the center as I've seen others do I decided instead on a corner so that it would leave a bigger solid space for coloring.  I used a stainless steel kitchen utensil canister, but you could use anything with a thick edge or lip so that it will have something to rest on.  Once you pick a spot for the container trace around the bottom with a pencil.

 Now, drill through the table just inside the edge of your circle, this gives you a space to insert your jig saw.

 Cut around the line and you now have a spot for your container.

 The next step is REALLY important!  I'm normally a "no prime" kind of girl.  I just hate to waste the time with the step on most projects, but for this project it is necessary to help the paint to stick and the chalkboard to work properly. 

 So prime the entire table, top and legs.  You can use spray paint primer or brush on, I just happened to have a left over can of primer so I used that.

 I wanted the table to be a bright fun piece for his play room, so I set the table on its top and painted the sides, legs and underside bright red.

 The color of choice... Krylon Cherry Red.

 For the chalkboard top, instead of using spray chalkboard paint like I have in the past I wanted to try this time to make my own.  I'm so glad that I did because it really is so easy.  You need non-sanded grout you can find this at home depot for about $6 which will be enough to paint your entire town in chalkboard paint.. so share it with a friend or go nuts and paint away!  The only other ingredient is paint, so pick any kind of paint in any color.  I had some black craft paint so I went the traditional color route.

 To make it, the common recipe is 1 cup of paint and 2 tablespoons of non sanded grout.  Since I didn't need a lot for this small table I used 2, 2 ounce containers of craft paint (that's 4 ounces or half a cup) and 1 heaping tablespoon of the grout mixed in a cup.  The only secret I found to perfect this simple recipe is to put your grout in a cup with a little water, just enough to stir and dissolve the grout and remove the clumps then add the paint and mix it up.

 Two good coats, just to make sure the the entire table top is completely covered.

 

Once it's dry you can use a little light sand paper to sooth out any bumps.

 Next, rub a piece of chalk on its side across the entire surface then wipe it clean with a damp rag.

 Finally, I put a light layer of glue on the underside of the metal container and pressed it down into the hole and then glued on a few glittery letters to personalize it for our little buddy!

 And ta-dah here it is all ready for the birthday boy.

 I'm excited about how it turned out, and a bonus no wrapping.. thank goodness because I'm so bad at that :)

 Inside the canister I stuffed it with colored tissue paper, white and colored chalk, some safety scissor and stickers just for fun.

 I also added a personalized eraser to finish it off.

Hopefully he has as much fun with it as I had making it for him.

This idea would work on any old end table, so grab one from your garage or hit up your local thrift store and make one today.  

Enjoy,

Dollar Store Chalkboard Placemat

I couldn't finish off my string of dollar store inspired "stuff" without making a little something for the kiddos!  In our house, chalk... especially colored chalk is a big favorite!  The Crib-Side Art Station I made last year is set up in our garage and it still gets played with almost everyday!!!  Considering I have two little ones under four and they both have the attention span of a nat... a year later and they still LOVE it, that's saying something :) So I thought having a small placemat version for inside could be a fun alternative that won't take up hardly any space in my junk drawer!  If you don't have one of these PLEASE tell me your secret because I can't live without my hidden disaster area filled with a little of everything :) 

I found these fun leopard print placemats at my local dollar store for you guessed it $1 each and I bought four, two for me and two I plan to give as a gift to a little friend wrapped up with some chalk and an eraser.

Since the vinyl side had such a fun print I decided to make these dual purpose, one side fun and the other function.  

So I left the leopard and instead painted the underside with spray chalkboard paint.  You can make your own chalkboard paint by mixing paint in your color choice with non-sanded grout which I love for bigger projects, but since these are small I wanted something quick and easy with no clean up so I just used the spray paint version.  I got my paint at Walmart, it's under $4 dollars for a can and it will be more than enough to do two coats on several placemats. 

Once the paint is completely dry, this won't take long, get some chalk because these are almost ready for your future artists to get to work.

Most chalkboard paint manufacturers recommends that you rub a piece of chalk (on its side works best) over the entire surface once to "season" it or get it ready.

Give the chalk a quick erase with a regular eraser or a damp cloth and that's it!

Fun and function!!!  Such a quick and easy project... just the way I like them :) 

And the result is really cute!  I love how well the bright colored chalk shows up.

My kiddos couldn't wait to try them out, big smiles mean big success in my house.

And there were plenty of those!

Oh and psst.... don't tell my kids or yours but this activity may actually induce a rare sighting.... sharing!!!!  I know it may seem unrealistic and these results may not happen in every home, but to my shock and awe it actually happened in ours at least for a few minutes so here's to sending you some sharing inducing, chalk filled fun too!

Enjoy,

Old Cake Pan Tiered Tray

Day three of dollar store projects is in full swing, but I'm cheating a little.  To make this cute rustic tiered tray I did get a little help from the often overlooked kitchen section at my local thrift store, but I love the way it turned out.  I'm not sure exactly what I will store in it, but I think it would be cute as a jewelry holder, display in the kitchen or it may just may go on my new farmhouse table :)  The best part is it took just a few minutes to transform my two cake pans and a dollar store candlestick into something really unique.

The pans I picked up a few months ago during a sale at a local thrift store for 25 cents each, and the candlestick, just like the one I used for the "Crystal" Cake Stand (tutorial here) was of course a whopping $1. 

I decided on this great pale green from Krylon.  I bought this Pistachio for another project and since I had a little left over it was perfect for this.

Apply two quick coats of the spray paint then let it dry completely.

Now comes the connection.  E-6000 is magic!  OK maybe not magic but it will connect just about anything you want connected.  Put a thin layer along the top and bottom of the painted candlestick.

Now center the glue and candlestick inside the bottom pan then add the smaller pan on top and use a few cans to weigh everything down until it dries.

This is the finally product!

Only about $2.50 cents worth of supplies and the result is super charming.

This would work with any pans or tins, but I loved the dents and dings from these well used cake pans.  The character was included, no distressing necessary!

Enjoy,

DIY Dollar Store "Crystal" Cake Stand

Another day another dollar... dollar store project that is! I'm continuing my quest this week to make some

"stuff" that I absolutely NEED using dollar store finds.  OK need is obviously a strong way to describe my current state, but hey my theory is if it only costs a few bucks why not!  If you are still with me and understand my totally irrational reasoning... this fab "Crystal" Cake Stand cost $2, took 2 minutes and it looks worth way more!!!

To make this "crystal" (aka glass with some pretty grooves, just don't look too close and tell yourself it came with a Waterford sticker ;) you need a glass dinner plate and a candlestick holder from the dollar store... grand total $2.

You also need some glue.  E-6000 is some potent stuff, you can get it at Walmart in the craft section near the Mod Podge and other glues, it costs a few dollars and will last you a very long time because a little goes a long way.  Just make sure you use it in a well ventilated area away from the kiddos.

Not only is this glue really strong once dried it also dries clear so you don't have to be perfect, just put a nice even thin layer of the glue around the rim of the candlestick holder. 

Now carefully center your plate over the glue and candlestick and then press down.  A can works great to hold everything in place until the glue dries. 

In just a short amount of time those two average pieces you've probably walked past in the item overload that you can experience while wandering the aisles of your local dollar store become something very pretty... if I do say so myself!  

Perfect for a party, special occasion or just because it's a day ending in "y" and you NEED a chocolate cake.  That happens to me quite often too :)

Who needs to go spend lots of money on a pretty cake plate when you could make several of these, some for you and friends and never break a sweat!  No one will ever believe that it only cost you $2.

Enjoy,