DIY Chalkboard Paint Stripes

A really quick and easy project that I've been wanting to post is the chalkboard paint stripe Nick and I created in our plain little kitchen:

Like many renters in NYC, Nick and I struggle with ways to make our rented space ours without taking drastic measures difficult to reverse one day. This was especially true of our very small, stark white kitchen with one open wall constructed in a very bizarre shape. We thought up a lot of different useful possibilities for the wall including shelves and a pot rack - but were convinced I'd find a way to poke my eye out in either scenario (not unlikely). Since we both wanted to try our hand at chalkboard paint, we decided this weird wall would be a great place for experimenting with it.


After deciding an all-black wall in the kitchen was a no-go, we went for a thick horizontal stripe. I wanted to eyeball it but Nick, my eternal voice of reason, convinced me we should outline our stripe using painters tape and a level. I recommend doing this since it is black paint and easy to see any coloring outside the lines. We used Rustoleum Chalkboard Brush-On Paint in Black - it also comes in schoolhouse green or you can get the tintable kind to make your own color. It comes in spray paint form too! 

It only took us two coats, dried super fast and actually makes the kitchen look a little bigger.

We use it to make stupid jokes...

...to keep up with health fads...

...to try to be artsy while also being a supportive domestic life partner...

...to keep notes from visitors...

...to leave each other lame couply notes...

...oh, and we used the extra paint to cover the bare wood left in our window by management in the space where an AC unit would go to recreate The Brave Little Toaster AC unit (drawn by Nick).

It was a really fast and cheap project that we get to change and have fun with all the time. Happy chalkboard stripe painting!

Till next time,
Amanda