I really love how Crafting With Nature is sort of half garden book and half crafting book.

I measured and cut some little rectangles (I think they’re about 7″x3″) and grabbed a foam brush and some Americana chalkboard paint.I love the chalkboard spray paint and the big cans of it too for bigger jobs, but these little bottles are perfect for all your mini chalkboarding needs..

I did two coats and let them dry about 2-3 minutes between coats.I always hear people say that you need to put a crazy amount like 8 coats on when you do chalkboards, or that you need to let it sit for 24 hours before you touch it, but I’ve only ever done 2 coats and have always just barely let it dry, even on glass, and my chalkboards always turn out perfectly.So if you want to take the impatient route like I do, I say go ahead!.

Next, I “seasoned” them by rubbing some chalk all over them and then wiping it off.. Time to see how they look!I used some thumb tacks to attach them to the fronts of the baskets.

I just pressed them right in and they held on beautifully.

They look pretty neat too.. A few extras for fanciness and I had just the look I wanted.. You might think it sounds crazy to try and use cardboard to make a chalkboard, but it really works just as well as any other surface once you get the paint on there.But that’s for another post..

The previous owners had added these little stick-on warning signs all over the door, for a feeling of security, I guess.I get it, but they’re really really unwelcoming and ugly to look at, and that matters to me.

OK, well I get the dog sign and the alarm system sign, but the soliciting?Who’s going to solicit way out here?