DIY: Chalkboard Paint Labels

In the past 6-8 months I've really been trying to store things in glass jars rather than plastic that can leech chemicals into the contents. It started because I want to make healthy decisions for my husband and I but also because I couldn't handle throwing away perfectly good glass jars anymore! 

Growing up, we had a local dump that we'd take all our trash and recycling to. My dad had a great system of composting, recycling, and burning so that the amount of trash going into the dumpster was at a minimum. 

All food scraps went into the compost bin. Plastic, paper, glass, and cans went into recycling. Any kind of personal info like mail and documents went into the burn barrel. 

Then I got married and moved from home to a place that doesn't offer recycling! I think I get a little twitch in my eye every time I have to put a cardboard box into the trash can. 

But as far as glass jars go, I save almost all of them and put them to good use. Mostly I repurpose them into storage for bulk items but I also fill them with different things to give as gifts.

After a while I was getting weary of not being 100% sure what I was grabbing. You know, the whole baking powder vs. baking soda fiasco waiting to happen. Fortunately I never had any mishaps but I was waiting for it! 

Thanks to a Michael's gift card I received from a lovely and thoughtful friend for my birthday, I finally got chalkboard paint to ease my mind in the kitchen! 

Not to mention this project is super easy!

All you need is:

• Chalkboard paint (I found my Martha Stewart brand at Michael's for about $7)
• Foam brush
• Chalk
• Naked jars

Instructions:

Are you ready for how simple this is?

Shake up the bottle and squirt some paint onto a paper plate then dip your foam brush into the paint. Make sure you get an even coat on the brush. Now simply brush across the jar where you want the label to be.

As you can see, one coat doesn't cover it completely. Let it dry completely and then do another coat.

Paint the rest of your 45,356 jars.

Here you can see the difference between one coat (left) and two coats (right). 

Two coats (and sometimes three) get the job done. Let it dry for 24 hours.

Once they're dry, scratch chalk across the paint to "season" it.

Cover completely then just wipe away with a dry cloth. 

Now just write the name of the contents of the jars and you're good to go! Excuse my handwriting. It's not good to begin with but writing with chalk makes it worse!

I love seeing this in my cabinets now!

Always good to know the difference between baking powder and baking soda!

I absolutely love this project! It's so easy and inexpensive! I've heard of other ideas like painting printer labels but for an item that will be washed and reused, I thought painting right onto the jar would make more sense. And if I ever empty a jar and need to fill it with something new, it's as easy as writing on the jar!

The only downfall is that I have to be careful to not wipe off the chalk but it's really not that big of a deal. First world problems anyone? It's totally worth it to have a cute and organized kitchen!

How do you label your kitchen and your life? What have you used chalkboard paint for?

Till next time,

Catherine


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