Decorating with chalkboard paint

Here are a just a few of the items that can be created or decorated with chalkboard paint.

Message boards

Sandra Downie, editor, event designer and party stylist behind The White Library entertaining and lifestyle blog, suggests using chalkboard paint to create a magnetic message board to keep in your office, kitchen or child's room. "With a magnetic chalkboard, you can use magnets or chalk. If you misplace your chalk, you still have a way to keep your items hung," she explains.

Walls

If you're looking for a whimsical way to decorate your child's room, consider covering one of the walls with chalkboard paint. "This project wouldn't require any additional space, and it's a great way to keep your child's room fun and interesting. He or she will want to doodle on that space for hours," says Downie.

Cyndi Finkle of Art Works Studio & Classroom says she has used chalkboard paint to create a rectangle on the wall intended for writing a "quote of the day" that pertains to art, inspiration or a particular artist the class is studying. "Everyone loves the quotes, and when people visit our studio they take photos of the quote with their phones," says Finkle. "We also have a big rolling chalkboard that we use to explain lessons and, sometimes, to let the kids express themselves."

Jars, bottles and other containers

If you have a collection of dried spices or baking ingredients, Downie says you can use chalkboard paint to create labels for the jars, bottles or containers. She explains that this is a great way to keep items organized and to ensure they look neat and tidy inside cabinets or on display in the kitchen.

Gift tags

Finkle adds that you can also create custom gift tags using chalkboard paint. "Use black tempera paint to cover paper and then cover the surface with glue. When it dries, you can write on it with chalk and [the message or drawing] will erase," she explains.

Place settings

"Chalkboard paint is a quick and creative way to impress dinner guests. I purchase mini tin paint cans and paint the outside with a colored chalkboard paint. I use the paint cans for individual place settings and fill them with a napkin, utensils and a small plant or half-bottle of wine, then write my guest's name and a special message," explains Shannon Miranda, principal designer at Woodcliffe Design.

Watch how to decorate with chalkboard paint >>

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Photos: Rust-Oleum (top), Cyndi Finkle (right)