Don’t Cost A Dime: Chalkboard Banner

Some of my favorite projects that I do around the house are the ones that don’t cost anything. I get an idea, I have everything I need on hand, and I make it. Super simple! That is how it worked for this project I’m about to show you. I’m not even sure what sparked the idea but I just happened to have everything I needed on hand and I love how it turned out.

I don’t normally decorate for fall. Don’t get me wrong, I love fall, I just don’t normally take the time to decorate simply because I usually focus all of my efforts on the Christmas season. This year I just added a couple of simple little things around the house to remind me of the fall season.

First, I added a wreath to the fireplace. The problem with a wreath is we have an outlet right in the center above the mantel. Normally this is great, I can plug stuff in up there. But when you add a wreath, the outlet shows right in the middle. Not so great. That got me thinking about how I could cover this little guy up which got me to thinking about a banner. First I was going to just make a paper banner but then somehow it evolved into a chalkboard banner. Here is what I am talking about:

Isn’t it cute? And, it almost covers up the outlet. I think it at least detracts from it :) Here is how I made this little banner.

First, I drew what I wanted on foam posterboard. I happened to have white on hand. If I had to buy the materials, I would have bought black simply because the sides would be black also but white works and you can’t really tell anyway.

I actually measured and used a ruler and everything! Can you believe it?!

Next, I cut out my shape using scissors but you could also use an exacto knife (mine is MIA at the moment so I had to use scissors).

After my banner was all cut out, I used peel and stick chalkboard paper. You can find this lots of places, I had mine left over from another project. You can also find chalkboard contact paper on Amazon. I wouldn’t mind getting some myself simply because it comes in handy so often :)

Next, I used a bone folder to smooth the chalkboard paper to the foam board.

Then I trimmed away the excess using my scissors again. And ta-da, you’ve got yourself a banner!

Now comes the fun part… you get to write on it! Since I was using this as a little bit of fall decor, I decided to write Give Thanks. This would also be really fun to use for Halloween party decor. Or, use it for a party. It would also be really cute at a wedding on the back of the bride and groom chairs. Really, you can use it for anything. That is the beauty of chalkboards.

I chose to outline the banner with chalk to give it the look I wanted. It makes it look more like a ribbon which is what I was aiming for.

All I had left to do was add the twine. Since this is a very lightweight piece, I simply taped it to the back.

Pretty fun, huh?! I will probably keep this puppy around for Christmas decor too, just change the words.

And that my friends, is another Don’t Cost A Dime project completed :) Happy Thursday!