It’s Hump Day, yeeeeah! Woot! Woot! Have you seen that Geico commercial? It makes me laugh everytime (I’m easily amused)…see it here.
Last week I showed you the Big ass Wall Organizer Study Board Thingie in my son’s room. I had a hard time figuring out what to call it, can you tell? The goal was to create a general command center for him to keep track of his increasingly busy school and social life. And we wanted to make it for less than the $270 price tag of the PB Teen version. (I do give them props for their affordable pillows, though!) At a total price of under $30…I think we succeeded!
I scoured the internet for inspiration, and found Jen’s oversized wall calendar. Amazing! We used that as our starting point, but wanted it larger to include chalkboard and corkboard.
Want to know how long it takes to get projects done around here sometimes?! I teased this shot last February (thus the sweats)!! I had fully intended to cut the frame with a hand saw and miter box, and glue the pieces together. Then I found out my rockstar neighbor had a table saw and nail gun! #heyneighbor Can you believe in the 3+ years I’ve been home blogging, this is the first and only time I’ve used an electric saw and nail gun?!
This project is cheap and really simple…but there was some very taxing for me math involved. I’ll try to explain it so I don’t confuse us both.
I lightly sanded the edges, then distressed it just like our Floating Shelves and Chunky Desktop. (P.S, do the distressing before you build the frame.)
We propped the finished frame on some paint cans, and stained it with my favorite Dark Walnut.
Cute helper is optional.
Finish it off with a few coats of poly and let it sit for 7 months. Or 24-hours, whichever works with your schedule.
Now for the marker board part….I hope you’ve had your coffee!
No more math is needed for the cork and chalk panels (thank goodness), but the calendar was another story. Lucky for you ducks, I’ve done all the work for you….
I taped off the perimeter of the calendar, and used a ruler and Sharpie to draw the permanent frame. In case you can’t read my handwriting, here are the dimensions.
Once that’s done, move the tape inside of the calendar frame (so you don’t have a white gap between panels), and spray with chalkboard paint. When dry, season the board by rubbing the entire surface with chalk and wiping it clean.
Use spray adhesive or a glue gun to attach the cork panels to the other side.
And there you have it!
You could glue the frame to the front of the board, or use brackets, but since we had access to awesome-neighbor, we nail gunned it. Is that a verb?
Surprisingly, it’s only a few pounds, so I intended to attach it to the wall with Command strips. Turns out his walls aren’t completely level, so we just screwed it directly to the wall.
Not only is it useful, but it’s a cool way to fill the large wall. You can also customize the panels to whatever meets your need.
I know it sounds horribly boring and complicated, but it was very simple. Especially now that I’ve done all the brain-work for you! You could easily cut the board down for a smaller version…so great for a Family Command Center or in a Mudroom. Where could you use a big ass organizer board?
Look at you working those power tools! I love this project and am so glad you included a how-to! Hope you're having a wonderful Wednesday, Miss Cassie!
~Abby =)
I need to make one of these for our command center….bad. I heart power tools, they really do make projects so much easier. Thanks for sharing the how-to Cassie!
Such a great project!!
Ah it came out so well! Love the photo of your little helper too! š
You're a genius! And fearless š
So crafty! I bet that was a fun project.
Thank you so much for posting! your daughter is just as beautiful as you!!
Oh, such a great idea! I need to make one for my home office! I went to a home depot store by my apartment and found out that they can cut the stripes for me. It will be easy-peasy now! Thank you for detailed tutorial and idea š hugs, Kay