What if you don’t want to paint your fridge like a chalkboard? I mean, maybe your refrigerator is beautiful like it is.
That’s OK, because there are plenty of other things you can paint to be a chalkboard – or a white board or that matter.
I must say, I do like walls because they are pretty easy to paint. Plus, you can use a chalkboard wall to display notes, scribbles or art sometimes, and other times you can use it as a a plain black wall. (Or you can make another color for that matter.)
Plus, you can paint an entire wall, and sometimes a bigger blackboard is better than a small one.
How to Make a Chalkboard Wall
Just like the appliances, labels and other items, you just need chalkboard paint. Now, if you want your wall to be magnetic (cool for kids or offices), you’ll want to apply magnetic primer first, before the chalkboard paint itself. Get complete painting instructions here.
Before the primer, or even before taping off the edges of where you want your chalkboard to be, you want to make sure your painting surface is smooth and clean. If your wall is textured, that’s not good for chalkboards. You’ll want to sand it and wipe it clean of dust prior to painting. An electric hand/palm sander comes in great for the project. You can get one from stores like Home Depot for about $50 or less.
Tip: if you have a vacuum with a wand extension, this can be great for sucking up excess dust on the wall.
Of course before sanding, you want to remove any nails and fill in any holes with spackle or putty. Hmm. I feel like I’m giving your instructions in the wrong order. Oh well, there aren’t that many steps.
Here are the steps in the right order =)
- Remove nails, tacks, etc
- Sand wall surface, wipe off dust
- Tape edges of painting area
- Paint with magnetic primer, let dry completely
- Paint with chalkboard paint, let dry completely
- Prime your board by covering the entire wall with chalk. Yes this is time consuming, but works fastest when you use large chalk and lay it on its side to make large swipes along the board surface. After you are done, wipe the surface with a clean dry cloth.
Note: Keep in mind that you can paint your chalkboard wall any color you like, with tinted chalkboard paint, that is. You can also make your own chalkboard paint with inexpensive ingredients (it’s easier than you think) and use whatever color paint you like.
