Craft Night: Chalkboard Celebration Sign with Buhler Public Library
Last night I led my first ever Craft Night... and loved every minute of it!
As a member of the public library board, I help with planning some of our big events. When the librarian asked me to lead a Craft Night I was 100% nervous about teaching adults, but couldn't turn down the opportunity! It's always been a little dream of mine.
After much deliberation, I decided on a celebration board for families to collect their most important dates like birthdays and anniversaries. Adding the chalkboard element provided for further creativity and uniqueness to the projects. Here was my sample:
Before Craft Night, I did some major prepping with the help of my parents. (Thanks, Mom and Dad!) The board that was used was 1x6x10 and was cut down to be 30 inches long. We created a template of where each hook would go and my dad pre-drilled the holes, since I'm "not allowed" to use power tools... ha! Then came the priming so the boards would be ready for the ladies to use chalkboard paint. Finally, mom and I cut out 2" circles in cardstock and punched 1/16" holes in the top and bottoms so they can later be linked with jump rings.
To start us off, I went through the instructions (listed below the pictures) with the whole group. I then set the ladies loose and they got creating! Of course I was available for questions and helping out in the tough spots. It took a little over 2 hours from start to finish for most of our crafters.
Check out the process:
1. Paint your board. It must set for one hour.
2. Plan! Get all those birthdays and anniversaries together.
3. Figure out what color scheme you want to use. Each family could be a color or you could organize the colors by month.
4. Write your names and dates on each circle.
5. Screw 12 hooks in at the bottom of the board to hang each month's celebrations. (This was the toughest part!)
6. Prep the chalkboard by running chalk along the board lengthwise and wiping off.
7. Get creative with your writing! Add the months first and then your choice of words above.
8. Add on the cardboard circles with jump rings.
9. Celebrate your masterpiece!
I hope the ladies had just as much fun as I did! Can't wait for the next Craft Night.
Creatively Yours,
Audra