So Here's My Life

The things we make,
the food we eat and
the shenanigans in between.

A blog about making things by
MICHELLE SEXTON

Monday, January 9, 2012

DIY Chalkboard Talk Bubble.

This is a belated Christmas present. I had serious procrastination issues this past Christmas season. I was still recovering from my sprained ankle, I had a respiratory infection, my blood sugar was all over the place, and I also managed to sleep wrong and hurt my neck (and I wasn't able to get adjusted until several days after Christmas). I was a wreck. Needless to say, the last of my homemade Christmas gifts didn't get finished. My husband and I just finished this one last week. (Yes, I am horrified that it took me so long to complete this.)



A couple of months ago, my son felt that needed to climb up his dresser. This was the result.
He did this, not once, but twice. TWICE!! But he hasn't done it since.


After the second time he pulled the dresser down, it was apparent his dresser had seen better days. So we replaced it. Obviously there was no hope of reselling the dresser, so we took it apart, and saved some of the pieces.

We made this chalkboard from the bottom board of one of the dresser drawers. And here's how we did it.

Even thought it isn't pictured, be sure to draw the outline of the talk bubble onto board. My husband is nice and mathematical and so he drew and measured the outline with a ruler and a protractor. A compass would also be good, but I haven't owned one of those since high school geometry...that is the subject that you need a compass for, right?



Once you have the talk bubble outline, use a Jigsaw to cut along the outline. (A Jigsaw is a power tool that cuts - in case you didn't know, because I didn't until my husband educated me.)





Then use chalkboard paint to paint the bubble. (I found my paint at Hobby Lobby) Make sure to follow the directions on the paint bottle. Mine required 2 coats of paint, and I had to prime it with chalk after it dried and before using it.

Finally, add a saw-tooth hanger and magnets to the back. (I don't have a picture of that, but I'm sure you get the idea. :) )

Serious and ridiculous fun. Oh yes.

2 comments:

Fred said...

Found this over on FunkyJunk. Love it! Very simple, fun design... We've just been getting into some basic woodworking-type stuff and this might be a simple next one to try.

Beth said...

What a cute shape for a chalkboard! I love it!