Done!

Max's room is finally done.  After over a year of him resisting the idea of not drawing on his walls, he finally decided that he could handle it.
The thing is that the last wall in his room was always slated to become a chalkboard.  No need to go out and buy expensive chalkboard paint, just make your own!  It works, I have proof.  Here is how it works....

First go and pick out a flat latex that is of any color you choose.  Just remember that you have to be able to see the writing on it, so darker colors are better, but you could have a cherry red or purple board to write on.  Way more fun than the boring old green or black.  Max chose a dark blue.


Next, before you leave the hardware store you need to buy a non-sanded grout powder.








When you mix up your paint, you don't want to make more than 2 cups or so because it gets really thick and hard to get on the wall evenly.  For every cup of paint you want to add 2 1/2 tablespoons of the grout powder and mix it well.  Keep your eyes out for lumps and break them up.

Now all you have to do is paint you wall, door, or whatever you are creating your board on.  If you can lay down one coat, let it dry and then lay down another coat in the opposite direction you will have a pretty durable board.  Let it all dry for at least 24 hours and then sand lightly with 150 grit sand paper, wipe dust with a damp cloth and rub area lightly with chalk and erase.  You have now primed your board and it should work swimmingly.  Max did the priming of his wall and did a very creative job of it.

Nice job!

There ya go!  Happy as a clam drawing on his walls.  Love it!  I NEED to paint more chalkboard somewhere.  I am on a quest.  This was a great project and really pretty simple.  Give it a try and let me know how it turns out.

Please always remember and don't ever forget:

"Children are like wet cement.  Whatever falls on them makes an impression."
Dr. Haim Ginott