Re-purposing an Antique Frame

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Hubby and I had a wonderful time at his parent's cabin in the woods for our family barbecue on Saturday.  I promise to share some photo's of mom's AMAZING gardens, and an adorable project she just completed, later in the week!

Speaking of projects........

I suppose you could call me a rebel when it comes to following decorating trends.  I like what I like-WHEN I like it, and not because everyone else has it.  That is probably why I never succumbed to the whole RAGE on chalkboards. 

Even when my daughter, Mel painted an entire wall in her kitchen, (BTW- I absolutely LOVED it), I still didn't bend.  I just didn't see any purpose in it.  I mean, why would I write out a grocery list on something that I can't just throw into my purse when I go shopping?  And if I want to leave a funny/romantic note for hubby, I'm certainly not going to put it on something he'll never look at when he's blindly grabbing his morning coffee! (I put them in his lunch, where I KNOW he'll see them!)

So, why then, did I finally break down and make one?  Well, it's simple.....hubby asked me to!

Yep folks-you read that right!  My hubby-the man who turns tail and runs the moment I mention the word...P-R-O-J-E-C-T, actually asked me to make a chalkboard.

Imagine my surprise (and indeed...shock), when I asked him, why in the world he wanted one, and he replied, "Because I've always wanted one in the kitchen!"

Well, I certainly couldn't deny the man his lifelong dream, now could I? 

But there was a tiny problem. 

You see, the main walls in our kitchen (those big enough to hold a chalkboard) are covered in bead board.

When I purchased this old frame years ago at a flea market, the watercolor that filled the top frame had been water damaged.  Even so, I thought there might be a chance that I could save it.  I was wrong.  The painting was beyond repair, and I was forced to throw it out because of mold. 

The frame (and very AGED mirror) has been sitting up in our attic since I moved in, just waiting for me to find it a new purpose.
Initially, my plan was to spray the mirror with chalkboard paint, as well as, a piece of wood to fill in the top frame.
Everything was going perfectly, until I attempted to put the mirror back in it's frame and it shattered into a million pieces!!!!!  UGH!!!

So, it was on to plan B-Find TWO pieces of wood to fill in both frames!!!

I also had to sand the frame to get rid of all the chipping paint and moulding, and glue the right corner of the decorative top piece that was coming apart.

I then painted the frame with a coat of primer and let it dry.  Once dry-I painted a coat of Behr Pebble Gray that we already leftover from the dining room-and than antiqued it a bit with some Ebony stain.

After priming the wood pieces to fit inside the frames-I painted them with three coats of Rust-Oleum Chalkboard paint. 

 

Viola!  Hubby has the chalkboard in the kitchen that he's always wanted, and that old frame finally has a purpose!!!

And me.....well, after seeing the end result, I am now obsessed with chalkboard paint!!!!

What is your latest obsession?

I'll be linking up to these amazing blogs, so stop on over and be inspired!!!!

I should be mopping the floor
Boogie Board Cottage
Between Naps on the Porch
The Dedicated House
Dwellings-The Heart of your Home
Plucky's Second Thought
Happy House and Home


Happy Monday!!!

Christine