Board and Batten Front Hall Make-Over

So, over Christmas I was browsing Pinterest on my phone... it might even have been Christmas day.  And I came across this post.  I leaned over to my husband and said, "We have to do this."  He actually agreed.  Now, I don't know if your front hall is like ours... abused.  Between kids, a dog, and lots of company, our walls look like they have been beaten up.  I thought this was a great way to add functionality and cover up some of that abuse.

Here is our front all.  It is large, so I planned a large project.  The longest board was almost 12 feet long.  I sketched out my plan on paper and then I sketched it out on my wall.  I based my plan on the fact that wall studs are 16 inches apart.  Well, it turns out ours were 12 inches apart.  I did not change my plan. We just had to use wall anchors.  With 2.5 inch boards, having the centers of them 12 inches apart would have been way too close.

After I sketched my plan on the wall, I added paintable wall paper to what will be the centers of my boards.  I did this for two reasons... visual interest and to hide some of that wall abuse.

Next we put the boards up.  My (awesome) husband did all the cutting (in the garage and it was freezing outside).  We put the bottom board on first; then the bottom uprights; then the center board; then the upper uprights, then the top board; the side boards and then the shelf.  There is also a little piece of corner round under the shelf which we put up last.  From the floor to the top is 60 inches.  The horizontal boards and side boards are 1x6 (which are really 3/4 x 5.5, I don't get that).  And the uprights are 1x3 (really 3/4 x 2.5).  The shelf is a 1x3, as well.  

The we painted the wall and the boards... all the same color as the other walls in the adjacent room.

 

Then I painted the insets the same color as an accent color on our main floor.  We kept it all the same color for 2 days and I felt like it needed something.

I added hooks and things to the shelf to finish it off.

The whole project was less than $100 (honestly the hooks were the most expensive part).  We already had paint, tools and hardware.  We only bought the wall paper, the wood, and the hooks.  And it didn't take very long.  On New Year's Eve I sketched the design on the wall.  On New Year's Day my husband when out and bought the wood and wall paper.  The following Saturday we got it all up on the wall.  Sunday I painted it.  Tuesday afternoon during nap time I painted the insets.  Tuesday night I went out to Lowe's and bought the hooks and Wednesday night I put them up.  We did have some teen and tween help.  Oh, and I started potty training a toddler the day I sketched the design on the wall.

We love our new functional front hall and we've gotten lots of compliments on it.

Another Pinterest project success.  

DIY Magnetic Chalkboard wall

Once again Pinterest was the inspiration for my project. I did a small magnetic wall at our old house maybe 9 or 10 years ago. It was in the space between the cabinets and the counter top and I just painted regular paint over it... not chalk board paint. Well on Pinterest I saw someone's pin to a link at the Martha Stewart website about how to make your own chalk board paint. Not only is that less expensive than chalk board paint, but you get the color you want. So I asked for some magnetic paint for Christmas (and got it). Then I spend more of my Christmas money at Home Depot and bought another quart of magnetic paint, some unsanded tile grout, and a quart of my color of choice for my chalk board (which in this case was dark blue). I also bought accessories needed to paint (tape, roller covers, tray liners, etc) and the PVC pipe for the previously made play house, but I digress.

First I painted a border around the wall... a lighter color to set off the chalk board wall.



I let that dry and then I taped off where I wanted the magnetic paint. How I decided how big I wanted it was basically I did it as high as I could reach and then on each side and the bottom I went in 6 inches.



Then I painted the magnetic paint. This area, which is approximately 64 square feet, took 2 full quarts of magnetic paint. I did several coats... I lost count after 6 or 7. The more coats of magnetic paint, the better your magnetic hold.



I took the tape off and allowed it to dry. Ideally it probably should have dried overnight, but I just wanted to get it done. I let it dry while I went grocery shopping then I retaped the wall and mixed the grout into my paint. I put 2 tablespoons of unsanded tile grout per cup of paint (so I did 8 Tbsp for a quart of paint) into a gallon bucket and then I poured the paint in. I mixed this for several minutes.

I painted two coats and that used up almost the whole quart.

Then I used the side of a piece of chalk and seasoned the board (covered the whole thing) and then used a damp cloth to wipe it off.



Then our magnetic chalk board was ready to use. I had hoped this would be an attraction to Little Brother and occupy him during school. So far it doesn't hold his attention very long, but the rest of us have been enjoying it. :)

Some hints and tips: The magnetic paint has a powerful odor. Paint during a season of the year that you can open the windows. All of us were getting a little light headed by the end of the day. Also the magnetic paint splatters. Wear clothes you don't care about and don't wear rings or watches or bracelets. It was several days before the magnetic paint was off my hands. Keep the tape on the baseboards too. And use green "Frog Tape", not the regular blue painters tape. It costs more, but the quality is worth it. You get a crisp edge that doesn't pull the paint off with it when you remove it. I was concerned about that with 6, 7 or 8 layers of magnetic paint, but it pulled off perfectly.