Labor Day Weekend Project— Chalkboard Wall

I've been wanting to paint a chalkboard wall for ages, but just haven't had the time or the moxie to do it. I mean, to paint a little chalkboard square on a wall is one thing, but to paint an entire wall black is a huge change—especially in our little house. But I convinced myself that since it's the wall next to my computer desk and where the kids eat breakfast and do homework, it would be a fun and creative outlet for all of us. So the weekend before school started, I bit the bullet and started painting a magnetic chalkboard wall. And this weekend, I finally got a chance to draw on it!

I've been scouring Pinterest for Chalkboard wall ideas and picked some of my favorite quotes to feature for my initial design. Check out my Pinterest Boards here. By the way, I found that oversized ruler on Pinterest and ordered it on Etsy. Love it!

I used an overhead projector for most of the lettering, so I wouldn't end up with a bunch of type on a downslope. Unfortunately, my walls aren't perfectly smooth, so I couldn't be as precise as I wanted to be. A friend told me about Chalk Ink— a very cool product, but it's not recommended for use on chalkboard paint. Boo. I was also tempted to go to the craft store and buy a chalk pencil, but never ended up doing that. It's on my list to get though.

I love this quote. It's so cut-and-dry. Even my first grader gets it.

Ok, so I'm still working on having the "HAPPY KIDS" part, but I'm nailin' the other stuff!

Hoping this little diagram will help my kids understand the logic of true happiness. 

It makes me chuckle every time I read it.

PMA stands for Positive Mental Attitude. This drawing is a nod to my grandfather, who was a PMA fanatic and my idol, even more so now that he's gone. He was always giving me giving me things to read from Zig Ziggler, Tony Robins, Dale Carnegie and the list goes on. He would hi-light the heck out of everything and write me notes in the margins. I still have a box full of his stuff! Newsletter, books, cassette tapes, CDs, you name it! When we graduated from college he insisted that each of his grandchildren enroll in the 12 week Dale Carnegie course,  "The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking".  (The long and the short of that course is to engage your audience and present your information in such a way that it will make them remember you.) Anyway, I thought it would be something positive for Wesley to look at while he's eating his Cheerios in the morning. My grandfather always told me, "If you think positive thoughts, you will be positive."  

Jackson couldn't wait to start drawing. (FYI, that thing that looks like the sun under his right elbow is actually a dock for the pirate ship.)

Yep, I think they're gonna like this chalkboard wall. 

NEXT CHALK DRAWING THEME: HALLOWEEN!


I'm sharing this post with  The Girl Creative,   Keeping it Simple,  Sumo's Sweet Stuff,  c.r.a.f.t.,  I heart Naptime,