Chalk Board DIY - Kitchen Menu Board

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My mama, who is the queen of finding a good deal at garage sales or thrift stores, came across this beauty recently for only $5! She sent me a pic and told me she knew I could turn it into something useful! My mama is the best, and I might be a little bias, but who cares. Lol I’ve been wanting to try my hand at a chalk board DIY. I thought this was the perfect shape for a kitchen menu board, which is something else that I have wanted to make.

Let’s get started on our chalk board DIY!

kitchen menu board | chalk board diy | menu chalk board | mirror upcycle

The first thing I did was remove the back of the frame so I could remove the mirror. This was a trial and error deal. I actually tried painting the mirror while it was still inside the frame, but the painters tape, that I had applied to the frame ripped up the chalk paint and wasted about three coats of paint. The nice thing was that it peeled off in one large piece so it wasn’t a huge mess and I was able to repaint on a fresh surface. Once I got the mirror out, I cleaned it with alcohol to get any oils and dust off the surface. Then I used a small roller brush to apply the chalk board paint. Three to four coats is sufficient. Let each coat dry about one hour and then let your mirror dry for at least two days before proceeding.

Now, onto the frame

Between coats of the chalk board paint onto the mirror, I worked on painting the frame. I am in love with this chalk spray paint, y’all! Many of my recent DIYs are in this color! This is probably my most favorite shade of turquoise. I mean, is this color not amazing?! Ok, moving on.. Lol

After painting it right side up and letting it dry overnight, I inverted it and painted it from the bottom up. This insures that you reach every crevice with your paint. I let that dry for another day.

Put your mirror or glass back into your frame!

Once you’ve put everything back together, your chalkboard is complete. In order to prepare your chalkboard for writing, you must rub the surface with the edge of a piece of chalk. Once you’ve done this, you can wipe it back off. Chalkboard paint is porous and this will fill in those spaces. If this step is skipped, the first thing you write will always be seen, even if you try to erase it. Don’t forget this step! I did not get a picture of the blank chalkboard before I started adding the vinyl letters. This is going to be for our kitchen menu, and I didn’t want to have to constantly keep writing menu and the days of the week over and over, so I cut vinyl decals for those words.

I added this decal to the very top of my chalk board.

Check Out That Menu Header!

Next, I added decals for the days of the week along the left edge.

Here is the completed chalkboard!

I have it in our dining room, on a sign stand, beside our tea cart!

How stinkin’ fun is this chalk board DIY?!

Click or hover over the picture below to save it to your Pinterest boards!

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Supplies needed for this chalk board DIY:

A frame or mirror in whatever size you want
Spray paint or regular chalk paint in the color of your choice
Alcohol and a microfiber cloth
Chalk board paint
Small roller brush and paint tray
Chalk or chalk markers
Vinyl letters (optional)