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Shopgirl constructed a chalkboard project on a wall using magnetic chalkboard paint and home-center molding.
Just three do-it-yourself skills are needed for this simple chalkboard project: making straight cuts with a saw, hammering, and rolling on paint.
Start by painting a rectangular section of your wall with a magnetic chalkboard paint ($40/quart; www.fridgedoor.com; 800/955-3741). Then surround it with a frame made from painted home-center molding.
Using a steel framing square, plot a rectangular area for the chalkboard on your wall. (Ours measured 72x40 inches.) Mask off the area with painter’s tape, and coat with primer; then paint the area with the chalkboard paint following manufacturer’s directions.
Now it’s time to create the “frame” of the chalkboard. Position the two side flat trim pieces vertically against the outside “north-south” edges of painted rectangle. Install using brads and construction adhesive. (Always check for straightness with a level and framing square.)
+ click to enlarge photo
Install 1/4-inch-thick back filler pieces horizontally along the top and the bottom edges of the painted rectangle, including the just-installed side moldings. Attach the final top (above) and bottom molding pieces on top of their respective filler trim pieces.
To create a “chalk ledge/rail,” place the cove molding along the top edge of the bottom trim piece (2), displacing it 1/4-inch too high to create a lip that keeps your chalk from sliding off.
+ click to enlarge photo
If your top and bottom finish trim pieces are not thicker than the side pieces, you will need to cut and install filler trim behind them to bump them out from the wall. (Our filler was 1/4 inch thick.) In addition, you may need to piece together filler if you can’t find a single piece as wide as your final top and bottom trim pieces.
Don’t forget to hide and fill in gaps between moldings with vinyl caulk.
Lumber list
First determine how large a chalkboard you need (Ours measured 48x79 inches overall). Adapt the lengths according to your chalkboard’s size.
Here’s what Shopgirl cut:
(2) pieces of 4-inch-wide 40-inch long flat finish trim for the two sides
(1) 5-inch-wide X 79-inches-long carved molding piece for the final top edge
(1) 4-inch-wide X 79-inches-long carved molding piece for the final bottom edge
(2) lengths of flat trim pieces for use as filler beneath the top and bottom molding pieces.
(1) 1/4-inch X 79 inches long cove molding
Tools
Cross cut saw
Brads
Framing square
Level
Materials
Construction adhesive such as Liquid Nails Water-soluable
MagnaMagic Active Wall Paint (primer) from Fridgedoor.com
MagnaMagic Chalkboard MagneticPaint from Fridgedoor.com
Primer and paint for trim pieces
Molding kit option:
No time (or patience) to buy all the tools you need to install molding? Let Lynda Lyday, DIY network’s resident carpenter, be your personal shopper. The Carpenter’s Molding & Trim Tool Kit #LL0151 ($59) from her signature women’s tool kit line is packed with more than 18 tools (even a miter box and pull saw). 888/295-9329; www.lyday.com
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