Blank Canvas...or should I say Chalkboard?

I had this wall that needed something. After searching for a while and figuring out what to put on it, we finally got an idea! Art was too expensive for such a large space that even Craigslist or Etsy couldn't even compete with. But, of course, this time our inspiration came from Pottery Barn.
Adam just saw this chalkboard the other day in the PB catalog and mentioned how much he'd like something like that to put a family verse up and change it monthly. Well, that got me thinking about our space...and I had just read about this family below on This Young House who painted an entire wall with chalkboard paint. My hesitation with chalk anything has been the dust residue that is left behind, but I didn't mind it so much in this picture for some reason. It just looked old-school-house-y to me.

So, after a trip to Hobby Lobby and picking up a frame that was originally 217.00 and now 80% off and using some old chalkboard paint that we had from a previous project, boy do we have an eye-catching wall now!

*You can also make a frame using trim pieces, but Adam said with the $43.00 I spent, it would've been about the same in price (unless you have some leftover from a previous project) and plus the time it would've taken to build it.

**Are you trying to read what I wrote? My bats (think AA, not flying creatures) died as I was taking the close-up picture. I'll spare you searching for your bifocals and will write you the excerpt from my high school diary below. That's right. It's a diary entry. :) After flipping through my "usual" diary that I wrote in occasionally, I would be mortified to share with you any thought processes that came to my 14-17 year old mind. That is a FFEO (For Family's Eyes Only) because I know they will love me in spite of it...and I have been known to bring it on camping trips for good laughs in the motorhome. So, I will grace you with an excerpt of my journal that I took with me on my senior choir trip to Italy. I just loved every minute of it and I can remember every mental picture I took this night that I write of.

Today, we woke up and ate the same ol' breakfast. Last night was so beautiful! We went to the square and got my picture drawn. This park is the kind you see in the movies. Missy and I were sitting by the fountain looking at people in this outside restaurant called Cafe' Bernini. This place had couples dancing, men serenading, and other men walking around selling long stem roses. We listened to some choirs in the square sing and then we sang also. Anyway, today we went to the Vatican. Also, we went to the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. I saw Peter's grave! Such long walks, but so worth it! I also saw the "Last Judgement" and...