A Kid's Chalk Board Table
By Brenda Hyde
Trash to treasure projects are rewarding, especially
when the piece of furniture you are working on would
have actually been thrown out! Our latest project
was my husband's creative idea and it turned out great.
He found an old coffee table in his dad's shed and had
the idea to make a chalk board table for our kids.
The materials we used:
coffee table
wood putty
4 pastel acrylic paints-yellow, pink, blue and yellow
one can blackboard spray paint
Kilz acrylic primer
paint brushes
sandpaper or sander
regular black spray paint
Wash your table if it's dirty or dusty and allow it to dry. Take
off the legs if they are removable. Use the wood putty to
fill in any gouges or deep scratches. Allow to dry and sand.
Wipe the table with a clean cloth to remove dust. Prime the
entire table and the legs. After the primer dries, paint each
leg a different pastel color. They will need two coats each.
Allow them to dry between coats. (See tips below)
Turn the table top over so the bottom is up. Using the
REGULAR black spray paint cover the bottom. Allow
to dry and give it a second coat. Make sure it's completely
dry. Place an old towel on your work surface and turn the
table over so the top is face up. There are several brands
of blackboard paint. Follow the directions and paint the top
only of the table. They go on just like spray paint and our
fairly easy to use. Spray evenly and make sure no one touches
it until it's COMPLETELY dry. It takes longer than paint.
When the legs and table are completely dry, attach the legs
back to the table. Most of the blackboard paints instruct
a certain drying period of 1 or 2 days before using.
This such an easy and fun project. Our kids loved the
table! If your kids are older they can even help with the
project.
Working Tips
Sandpaper: A 4x6 inch piece of 2x4 wood works well for wrapping the
sandpaper around the block and using this to sand rather than
just the sandpaper itself. It will make it easier to sand
evenly.
Painting: Take a scrap piece of wood (we used a piece
of 4x4) and drill 4 holes in the wood spaced several
inches apart. Screw in the 4 tables legs just enough
for them to stand up. This worked great for painting the
legs and allowing them to dry.
About the Author
Brenda is a freelance writer, wife and mom to three
living in Michigan. She is also editor of Old Fashioned
Living.com.
