DIY Magnetic Chalkboard

Today I am excited to share with you my latest DIY project, a large magnetic chalkboard for my sons playroom. This was an easy project that makes a big statement in the room and is a fun activity. I have the video tutorial below, but will also walk through the steps here for reference:

To start I took a trip to Home Depot for supplies here is my shopping list: 

• Here are the links to everything I used: 
  • Metal Sheet (mine is 36 x48")- here
  • Chalkboard paint- here
  • Hobby board for frame- here
  • Rustoleum glaze for stain- here
  • Foam roller
  • Liquid Nails

Then it was time to get started! 

1. First I set up my station outside for painting- TIP if you can do this inside or in the garage it will come out much smoother, alot of dust got in my paint from doing it outside. 

2. Take your foam roller and paint one thin coat then let it dry completely- this is where I messed up, between my first and second coat I didn't let it dry completely and when rolling my second coat it took up pieces of my first coat making some rough spots. 

3. Do a total of 4-5 thin coats (letting them dry in between) until you get the coverage you want. 

4. You then must let the paint "cure" for a few days- based on what the container says, before it is ready for use. 

5. While the paint was curing I stained my hobby boards I was going to use for the frame, I used the rustoleum glaze because I already had it from a past project. 

6. Once the stain was dry and paint was cured I used liquid nails to attach to wood frame. I applied pressure and put rocks on it to set overnight. 

7. Then it was ready to be hung up, we used cabinet screws in the studs (the metal sheet it very thin and light weight). 

8. Lastly I set up the board to have a large paper roll on one side for coloring, and chalk and magnets on the other side for play. 

I love how this turned out the size makes it a great statement piece on the playroom wall and gives plenty of space for creativity. My son absolutely loves the magnets and I see him using the coloring side more as he gets older. 

You can make this project in any size for any space. You can also get this version of the chalkboard paint, that allows you to tint it any color you want so you can have a white or colored chalkboard instead of traditional black. 

Please let me know if you have any questions :) 

Emily 

Links to everything shown: 

• Metal Sheet (mine is 36 x48")- here
• Chalkboard paint- here
• Hobby board for frame- here
• Rustoleum glaze for stain- here
• Magnets- here
• Paper roll- here