Fancy Framed Chalkboard Menu

I am huge on menu planning in our house, I feel like it helps me with my grocery budget as well as keeping me accountable for cooking during the week.  Although lately I have had a tendency to just blow it off and cook whatever is easiest, which results in unhealthy dinners and I blow through my budget quicker.  So today I’m showing you the Fancy Framed Chalkboard Menu I made in hopes of getting our meal planning back on track.Supplies:

–  1 Large Poppy Seed Projects Paisley Frame {fits 6 pictures}
–  DecoArt Americana White Acrylic Paint
–  DecoArt Americana Graphite Acrylic Paint
–  2 Foam Paint Brushes
–  Sandpaper
–  DecoArt Americana Chalkboard Paint
–  Saw Tooth Hangers, or Extra Strong Magnets found HERE
{optional if you’d like to hang it on the side of your fridge}
–  Chalk or Chalk Markers

First I gave my entire frame a light coat of my DecoArt Graphite Gray Acrylic Paint.  I wanted my frame to have a distressed look.After the first coat of gray dried I applied a layer of my DecoArt White Acrylic Paint.

While the white was drying on the frame I grabbed the small board inserts that came with my frame and painted them with my DecoArt Americana Chalkboard Paint.  Follow the instructions on your chalkboard paint, it usually calls for 3 coats of paint.  Season your chalkboards according to directions on the bottle.

I added two more coats of white paint to my frame and let it dry.

Once everything was dry I sanded all the edges around my frame and some spots on the front of the frame.  I wanted the gray to peak through with the wood.  Then I just popped the small board inserts back in the frame and used a chalkboard marker to label my days.  Since there is only 6 spots, Saturday & Sunday are a combined day. For us that totally works since we usually eat out on Saturdays or just snack.

At this point you can either hammer a couple saw tooth hangers in to the back and hang your fancy framed chalkboard menu on a wall in the kitchen, or you can attach some of the extra strong magnets I gave you the link for and hang it on the side of your fridge.  The magnets will hold a lot of weight, just be sure to read the weight limit of each magnet and order the correct amount this frame is a little heavy.

So what do you think?  You could also use this as a weekly chore chart, calendar, and just a cute memo board.  Then if you ever want to just use it as a frame again you can pop a picture in and you’ll stick have the cute chalkboards to switch it back again.