::chalk paint cards DIY::

Yesterday, I had inspiration hit me.

Several months ago, I bought a pack of plain white cards. I've been sending them out plain -- they're great to just write a simple message in. But I've long wanted to embelish the cards; it was just a matter of what and when.

I've wanted to work with chalkboard paint since it first came out. What a neat invention! I already had a bottle of chalk spray paint from a project that failed.

Plain white notecards + chalk paint = idea

Now, this idea has already been utilized by someone on Etsy.  I checked first.  I thought maybe I was the first to come up with this idea.  Ha....um no.  But it was a nice thought.  :)

It's super easy.  The cards I purchased are a nice heavy cardstock and the paint did not bleed through.

Just cover the opposite side of the card that you do not want to be spray painted.  [This is technically the back of the card.]  I used painters tape to make sure the edge was crisp.

When you spray the paint, do it quickly...one sweep horizontally and one sweep vertically and that's it!

After about a minute, I removed it from this area and let it dry.  I let it dry overnight which was less than the 24 hours suggested by the paint manufacturer.

Then, this morning I wrote a little something on the outside.

Something else to note:

I did spritz it with hairspray then slid the card in and out of the envelope to make sure the chalk wouldn't smear.  It didn't.  But next time, I'll try not spraying hairspray on the finished product.  It made me nervous to see a splotch on my card but it did dry clear.

This was so much fun!  And I definitely plan on spraying up a big batch of cards and have them ready to go.  It's versatile way to embellish plain note cards.



ps....And the giveaway is still going. THANK YOU for all those who have entered. THANK YOU especially to sweet Jolene. She got the ball rolling for the giveaway and some of her readers have popped over here. Welcome to Cotton+Wood. I hope this site is a blessing to you.