DIY Farmhouse Chalk Lettering {Happy Daddy Day!!}

June 19, 2016

Happy Daddy Day to all those fabulous Daddy's out there!!
I am especially grateful for the "daddy's" in my life! I am extremely blessed with a loving hardworking hubby, the best dad any girl could ask for and an amazing father in law!!
Now that all that lovin' is out of the way, let's move on to a super simple way to add a little farmhouse flare to your chalkboards! 
I'm sure you all have seen those adorable small paddle chalkboards, I recently purchased mine from Antique Farm House and couldn't wait to write cute sayings on them! Then when they arrived and I started writing on them, I wasn't really loving how my handwriting looked on them and then an idea popped into my head... The other day my kids were playing with their Melissa and Doug stamp set and I thought what a great temple they would make for chalk lettering!


So I decided to borrow my kid's stamp set and get to work on creating my own chalk lettering.


The Melissa and Doug stamp set was exactly what I needed to create that farmhouse lettering style I was looking for. This set was brand new and barely used, so if you try this with your own stamp set, just make sure to clean your stamps with proper stamp cleaner. You can find it at Michael's or any craft store. It comes in handy when you have stamp ink all over the place!


Let's get started creating fun farmhouse lettering!

Supplies:

1. Chalk

2. Small paddle chalkboard or any small chalkboard of your choice. 

3. A stamp set. I used this one from Melissa and Doug, but any stamp set will due. You just want to be sure the size of your stamps works with the size of your chalkboard! 

4. A pencil sharpener. You can thank me later! 

5. A small ruler or piece of paper. This is optional, but I like to be sure my letters line up correctly.


Creating your farmhouse lettering:

1. Be sure you chalkboard has been "seasoned". If your not sure just rub a stick of chalk over your chalkboard and let it sit for a few hours (a day or two is best) and then wipe off. This steps prevents and writing or marks to remain on your chalkboard after you have wiped the chalk off. 

2. Be sure your stamps are completely clean and dry! 

3. Once your stamp is nice and dry sharpen your stick of chalk until it looks like a pencil. Once it's good and sharp figure out the saying or words of choice and color the stamp using your chalk. This will act like the "ink" if you will for your stamp!

4. Once you have colored the stamp with your chalk firmly press the stamp on to your chalkboard exactly where you want it. This is the part where your ruler and Q-tip comes in handy! If you make a mistake, just wet the Q-tip or use your baby wipes to make your corrections!


5. Once you've "stamped" all you letters to create the saying, just sharpen your chalk again and go over the letters so they stick out more and look as if you actually wrote them!! Cool right??


The sharper your chalk the easier it is to work with!


This is a super simple way to add farmhouse charm to any room in your home!
Chalkboards are my favorite! It's so much fun to be able to create anything you like and then just erase it and start over when you get bored!! 


The possibilties are endless!!! 
Happy lettering!!

*You saw this post first on Gracie Blue ~ the blog*


Thrifted and Relifted {Antique Mantle ~ Repost & Link Up Party!}

June 1, 2016

Hi friends!! It's time again for #thriftedandrelifted
Today I'm sharing my antique mantle I repurposed into a magnetic chalkboard!
Be sure to play along with us on IG and you can also link up you thrifted and relifted projects below!!








There's no better feeling in the world than completing a project that was conceived in your brain and finally brought to life. This is exactly how I feel about this gorgeous antique mantel I found on a Facebook tag sale page almost a year ago! From the moment I saw it I knew exactly what I was going to do with her and exactly where her permanent home would be inside our home...
Here is the picture of her from the tag sale site on Facebook.

BEFORE
I immediately fell in love with the detail and of course that adorable shelf!
I actually didn't mind the condition it was in either, but when I brought her home I felt she needed some TLC... So like a good new mommy to antiques, I put her in a safe place in the basement until I found time to get to transforming her into a magnetic chalkboard for the awkward large wall between our kitchen and living room. Up until a few days ago that wall was empty for a good three years.... I just could not commit to putting just anything there and I knew exactly what I wanted on that wall and this mantel was going to make that happen!!
I spent most of the winter sanding down all the old stain off the mantel and the later half of the winter trying to decide if I wanted to keep it all natural or give her a nice paint job.... I literally thought about this for a good four months... Don't judge LOL! Fast forward to a couple weeks ago and gorgeous weather, I got the itch to just do what I had to do. I painted a large piece of galvanized sheet metal I purchased off Amazon exactly one week after I picked up the mantel and attached it to the mantel with little picture hanging nails. I knew I wanted it to be a chalkboard (of course) but I also wanted to be able to use the magnetic scrabble pieces I had from another project...
Now here's the funny part of it all. I had finally made up my mind that I was going to keep the mantel all natural and just use a little of the Lime Wax I used on Gracie's dresser.... This is were the "oops" happened. I wiped on some of the Lime Wax and OMG. My gorgeous pine mantel was pink. Yes, my friends it was pink... So in a big fat panic, I decided to just paint over it with some Pure White, Anne Sloan chalk paint and then distress it a bit.... Well, now "oops" #2 was, I ran out of paint.... With my heart racing at 6pm on a Saturday night, I ran into the basement to see what color paint samples I had.... I was certain I had some kind of white paint in the house, but all I had on hand at that moment was a sample of Gray Owl by Benjamin Moore.... So like a mad woman I ran outside and started to paint over the white with the Gray Owl.... I let the paint dry over night and began distressing early Sunday morning and all I kept saying to myself was "Thank God for that Lime Wax!!". Had I not taken a chance with the Lime wax, I would have just stayed in my comfort zone and kept the mantel all natural with no "Wow" factor... It would have totally just blended and it would have been just another thing on the wall....
But now that "thing" on the wall is absolutely perfect and I just love the way it looks and how much life it brings to our space...
I will warn you, I took a lot of photos. This really is my first project that I took my time with and did exactly what I wanted to do with it....












 I have been waiting to have a unique piece like this in our home for a long time.... I love that it is so versatile and that I can display sentimental pieces from my children for all the world to see.... This piece will be a staple in our home for a very long time... Did I mention its screwed into the wall?? So, yes... a very long time.

Now it's your turn!!
I can't wait to see your #thriftedandrelifted projects!!