Tuesday, October 29, 2013

DIY Chalkboard Fridge with Jute Handles and Custom Magnets




So, after moving into our new house about a year ago our "to do" list was pretty long...  We tackled the main things like flooring, painting the walls, etc. and now have moved on to the little details that make our house feel more like our "Home."  The fridge that came with the house works fine, but after painting the walls and kitchen cabinets a fresh coat of a creamy white, the fridge immediately stood out since it was a brighter shade and didn't quite match.  There were also a few dents and part of the plastic handle was missing, but I just couldn't justify buying a new fridge just because I didn't like the way that it looked.  Here is the "before" pic:


Hubs and I wanted to do a weekly menu for the kitchen anyway, so I decided to kill 2 birds with 1 stone and go with a chalkboard fridge makeover.  I did some research on Pinterest and found a few tutorials on chalkboard paint and decided to give it a whirl, adding my own touches to the mix along the way...  Here is what I used and how I did it...


1.  Valspar tintable chalkboard paint - I bought this at Lowe's and had them do a custom color mix for me.  The regular chalkboard paint is more of a blue-black, but being the color freak that I am I wanted a warm-brown-black to match closer to the color I used on the kitchen counters (another DIY that I probably won't ever attempt again in my lifetime, but that's another story...).  There are about 10 colors on the paint box to choose from, so I picked the brown color and just had them add as many shots of black to it as the can would hold.  There are some really fun paint options to choose from though, I think it would be so cool to do this in the pink or green or blue!

2.  Mini roller (and plastic tray) - Lowe's/Home Depot/Hardware Store

3.  Painters tape - Lowe's/Home Depot/Hardware Store

4.  Jute rope - Michael's/Hobby Lobby/Online Craft Supply Store

5.  Magnets (7) - Michael's/Hobby Lobby/Online Craft Supply Store

6.  Unfinished wood letters (M, E, N, U)- Michael's/Hobby Lobby/Online Craft Supply Store

7.  Unfinished wood discs (7) - Michael's/Hobby Lobby/Online Craft Supply Store

8.  Mini tart tins (7) - I found some cute and inexpensive ones on Etsy

9.  Chalk marker - Michael's/Hobby Lobby/Online Craft Supply Store.  I really hate how chalk feels, these pens are a life saver!  They also dry nice and don't smudge as easily as regular chalk...
IMPORTANT UPDATE!!!  If you leave the chalk pen on the fridge for an extended period of time it will not come off like regular chalk!  This is fine for the quote part that I did on the left side because I want that to stay up there, but for the menu part it is back to regular chalk for me...  Craft Fail.  You live you learn, right?

Step 1:  Clean fridge and tape off any areas that you do not want to paint (ice maker).  I realized at this stage of the game that I would not be able to paint all of the fridge unless I unplugged it and could leave the doors open to let the paint dry...  So, I just decided to live with seeing a white line in between the front of the doors and on the sides...  Not a big deal, but just something to think about if that kind of thing would bother you over the long-term...

Step 2:  Remove the handles and decide what you are going to do with them...  I wouldn't suggest painting them, because after daily use the paint will more than likely rub off over time.  You could leave the handles the original fridge color, or mix it up like I did with the wrapped jute.  I knew the white was going to be too stark, and I had some jute I'd been hoarding for another project so I decided to try it...  freaking LOVE the way it turned out!  I simply wrapped the jute all the way around the handle with a little high temp glue gun action on the front and back to hold it in place.  When I was done I sprayed a few light coats of Scotch Guard to protect it from dirt and every day wear and tear.  I also added the chalk paint to the ends of the handles to blend into the fridge and figured that would be ok since that is not where you grab the handle to open the door.  The verdict is out how these handles will hold up down the road, but it didn't cost me anything to try it so I'm super happy that I did!

Step 3:  Ok, back to the painting the fridge...  the online tutorials showed using Magnetic Paint Primer before putting on the Chalkboard Paint.  I had bought the primer, got ready to use it, then decided I better read the small print directions and warnings before I poured it in my paint tray - turns out the primer is pretty toxic.  So, I skipped the primer step and went right to the Chalkboard Paint.  I put about 5 light coats with the roller letting each coat dry about an hour in between.  It did take some time, but I'm hoping those extra coats will help the paint stay put longer since I didn't use a primer...  We'll see... *fingers crossed*

Step 4:  Here comes the fun part...  I went to Michael's (in between dry times) and found some wood letters to create the "Menu" part.  Instead of buying all of the same style, I picked letters from different sets to give it more vintage-y feel.  I painted the letters with cheapo acrylics and then distressed them with my Dremmel (sandpaper would work just fine too).  Then I used the high temp glue gun to attach the magnets to the back.  For the "Days of the Week" magnets I painted wood discs and hot glued those to the inside of the tart tins, and then glued magnets to the backs of the tins.  If you don't have access to the tins, you could use smaller wood letters to represent the days, or even just the painted circle discs by themselves would be cute too!

Step 5:  After all of the paint is dry, remove the painters tape, screw the handles back on, add the magnets, and chalk it up!!!



The finished product...


I'd rank this project on the easier side of DIY, and I'd say the biggest hurdle is having 5+ hours to spend between dry times, so I'd probably tackle it on a weekend.  The other thing I should mention is the vent at the bottom of the fridge could be left as is, or if you want to paint it I would suggest an appliance spray paint.  I think it would be pretty difficult to paint the vent with the chalkboard paint, so I just got a basic black appliance spray and put a few light coats on it.  Since it's at the bottom you don't really notice it, and it doesn't bother me that it isn't a 100% match to the fridge color.

Ok, well good luck if you decide to try this at home!

XO,
Genevieve

27 comments:

Caren Memmott said...

I found your post from Pinterest and I'm so glad I did! Most tutorials use the magnetic primer, but I wanted to know how your magnets are holding up without it?

Genevieve Gail said...

Hi Caren! I had worried about that too, but the magnets are actually holding up totally fine! I did have to glue multiple magnets to the backs of the wood letters because they were on the heavy side, but other than that it's been A-OK. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

Did you just paint the front or the sides as well? -Janel

Unknown said...

I wonder if the paint will adhere to a stainless steel fridge?

Genevieve Gail said...

Rob- not sure about stainless... I think you would probably need some type of a primer first in that case... My fridge was originally more of a matte finish and had a slight texture to it that helped hold the paint, I think the smooth texture and shiny finish of stainless may be a little more tricky and need to be primed...

Janel - yes, painted the sides as well!

Unknown said...

Love this! Did you use a gallon or quart of paint?

Genevieve Gail said...

A quart actually did the trick, Lindsay! I even have a little extra to spare for touchups... Good luck!

Anonymous said...

I am so excited about this! My husband & I were just talking about what to do with our fridge as we move out of our condo. Our current fridge will not "fit in" decoratively. I think this is the answer! Thank you so much for the idea!

Kathy said...

This is... unbelievably fantastic!! I want to do it now too! THANK YOU for sharing this awesome tut!!!

Amber Mae said...

This is by far the cutest chalkboard fridge I've seen out there, but did it hold up without sanding or primer? Or does the paint tend to chip off?
Just want to make sure I know what I'm doing before I take the plunge :)

Genevieve Gail said...

Thanks so much, Amber! In retrospect, if this was a fridge I planned on keeping around for 5+ years down the line I might do a primer... But, this was a good quick fix for me and has held up fine so far... I do have a small jar of leftover paint that I store under the sink, so if I have any chips down the road I can touch them up pretty easy since it was a custom mix of paint that would be hard to match exactly again. Hope that helps and Good Luck!

dailey073 said...

Did you only paint the doors?

Unknown said...

I love this! What a cute and creative way to update a boring old fridge. I love how functional it is, too, since you can use it for meal planning, shopping lists, notes to family members, etc.

Genevieve Gail said...

dailey073 - I painted the doors and the sides, just not in between

Jenna - thank you!

Anonymous said...

Hi Genevieve! Thanks for sharing you're creation with all of us! I am truly inspired & just showed it to my hubby & informed him, that we are doing this to our refrigerator! We just moved into a cottage river home & would love a new stainless fridge, but ours is white and nothing wrong with it to justify spending $1,500~3,000 for a new one! I'm hoping they have a dark grey color that will become a close second. Here is a little tip/trick about using the chalkink markers: when they leave a ghosting behind. First wipe with a wet wipe & then follow with a dampened magic eraser (that's the secret weapon) Wipe gently & that's it! I would also recommend making sure that you might want to put a few more coats of the chalkboard paint on the part of the fridge that is going to be written upon. I create a lot of chalkboards & have much experience with these amazing chalkink markers! You can blend them to create little works of art, too!

Thanks again & keep up all your great creative ideas!!!

Anonymous said...

We use chalkboard markers at my work and to get it off after a long period of time we use Window cleaner which works great. Maybe try that!

Anonymous said...

How much in all did you spend on this?

Anonymous said...

How is the jute holding up? I want to do this to a fridge I painted but wanted to hear your thought first? Is it getting dirty?

JenniPip said...

What a great idea. I just bought a new fridge when we remodeled our kitchen, but we put the banged up older fridge from the previous owners in the garage as our "beer" fridge. It works great, it just looks awful and even though it's in the garage, I think this would brighten it up and make it look awesome! Great idea!!!!

Unknown said...

Did the jute on the handles hold up okay?

Chellie P. said...

Very Cute!!!! I'm wondering... this was done Oct 2013... it is now Aug 2014... how it the paint holding up? Do you think this is something you should redo ever year? 2 years? 5 years?

Anonymous said...

Are you using regular old school chalk to write with?

Thanks! Adrienne

Samantha said...

Hi Genevieve,

I have heard I am going to attempt this project soon, but I have heard that you need to clean the fridge first with white vinegar first, have you heard of this?

Thanks
Sam

Anonymous said...

You mentioned the counter top. I loved your picture and would love to try redoing my own countertop. Could you tell me how, mad how it went. Thanks so much

Anonymous said...

Love this idea. :-):-):-)

Anonymous said...

I think if you used a magnetic primer first it really wouldn't make a diference...you would still be putting the same amount of paint over the magneticness...right?

I'm thinking about just sanding the fridge first then painting without a primer. Do you think that would work well enough?

Jeni said...

Hi! I was curious...are your other appliances white? If so, do you think it looks weird with different color appliances?