Writing on the wall…

 

Does writing on walls bring back memories of your childhood?  Most of us won’t remember scribbling on walls with crayons when we were toddlers but if you are of a certain age you may have fond memories of writing on the chalkboard at school, unless you had a detention and had to write endless lines as punishment.

 

Every fall I like to work on a project, preferably something I can do myself.  It’s part of getting reacquainted with the inside of my house after spending the summer in the garden.  This year I wanted to change up things in my dining room.

I’ve had these tall mirrors on the back wall of my dining room for years now.  They’ve added sparkle to the room during the day reflecting light from the outdoors and at night when the chandelier is on.  That part is lovely but I’ve never been happy with the reflection of the kitchen cabinets in the background.  At a certain angle, you can even see the fridge!  Not great…

Finding another solution has alluded me for some time.  The other walls in the room are covered in Sid Dicken’s Memory Blocks which have both colour and visual weight and I haven’t wanted to add anything that would compete for attention.    Hmm

 

Once the mirrors were removed, the space looked flat. I could have continued collecting memory blocks, but I’d need quite a few to fill that void. Truthfully, I’m not as excited about the latest collections as I am about the ones I’ve collected over many years.

This is where “writing on the walls” comes in.

 

 

 

 

I have a talented nephew who is willing to do anything I ask him. He made two frames for me and attached them directly to the wall. The outer frame is 2.5″ wide, and the interior frame is 3/4″. I left 6″ between the two.

 

 

 

 

 

Painting was the fun part. I used Annie Sloan chalk paint in French Linen topped with dark wax for the outside frame. The inside frame is painted in Annie Sloan Traditional Gold. The area (mat) between the two frames is BM Ivory White matte paint, with black chalkboard paint in the centre.

 

 

 

 

 

My attempt at modern art! No, I just “primed” the chalkboard using the flat side of a piece of chalk. I erased it, and now the chalkboard is ready.

 

 

 

 

 

I had Jake, my nephew, add a floating shelf under the frame to anchor it.  I could have placed a console table instead, but I already have two buffets in the dining room and thought it might be too much.  Why “Bistro 23”?  I used my lucky number because I need all the luck I can get when it comes to cooking…

 

 

My objective is to have multiple uses for this frame.  For special occasions (I should say “on the rare occasion”) when we have dinner parties or family dinners, I will print out the menu on the chalkboard…that way the guests know what they’re in for!  Over the holiday season I will hang a wreath in the centre and at other times I will hang a piece of art.

 

xox Judy❤️