Vette's Venue: I'm on a roll . . .

I finished another project! Whoop-Whoop!!

One of my new year's resolution goals was to finish all the left over projects of 2012. The challenge was really to finish ALL of my left over projects before I started any new projects in 2013. All I can say is that a leopard cannot change her spots overnight, or in the course of one month for that matter.

Since January 10, I have:

1. Painted a table to put in my antiques booth;
2. Re-placed a lamp switch (which has been broken for about a year);
3. Re-strung a bracelet that broke at church sending beads flying everywhere;
4. Created a Valentine's wreath from flowers that I have had in storage for approximately 4 years; and
5. Finished making a framed chalkboard for the kitchen at my office!!

I actually started this project about 6 months ago. I know, I know, it's a project that I should have done in one weekend. But in all fairness, I started this project while I was right in the middle of up-cycling my dining room table and chairs. And that project was by far more of a top priority. Anyhow, I started with this enormous picture frame that I rescued from the side of the road. It was a little warped, but for a freebee it would work just fine. I have a full-time job as a judge's secretary and we had just updated our office's kitchen/break room with a fresh coat of paint. And we had plenty of paint left over for me to play with. I bought a piece of thin lewan at Lowe's and had them cut the board to the frame's opening measurements. I then applied three coats of a magnetic paint that I had bought on clearance at Wal-Mart. After the third coat, I tested the surface to make sure a magnet would stick and it did! So off I went to shop for chalkboard paint. Chalkboard paint ain't cheap. And then a friend told me she preferred the chalkboard spay paint over the kind that you brush on. It was less expensive, but I'm really not good at spray painting. So then so I was stuck in the land of indecision. I'll think about it tomorrow. By then, I had Thanksgiving and Christmas to think about. Finally I bought the spray paint, but then I had to wait for the weather to warm up. I applied one coat of spray paint, and it looked horrible. I told you I'm not good at spray painting. Weeks went by before I finally broke down and bought the expensive can of chalkboard brush on paint. It was worth it. I brushed on two coats quickly and evenly. It looked much better.

At long last, the end was in sight! All I had to do to finish was to find my glazing points and insert the finished board into the frame and attach a hanging wire. But I couldn't find my glazing points. I looked in every logical place I would store glazing points; no luck. I had lost my patience. I was ready to have this thing done and out of my house! I figured my handy dandy staple gun would work just fine.

It worked. Too well.