We're guest posting up a storm over here! First it was our Christmas tea towel for the Holiday Craft Along, and today we're at Brown Paper Packages with a back-to-school, "Back 2 Basics" project! I love the look of the chalkboard vinyl labels for organization that we're seeing on everything from food containers to playroom bins, but I didn't want to buy a whole roll of chalkboard vinyl. My crafty friend Kalli gave me a great secret to make my own chalkboard labels, and here it is, an easy faux chalkboard label tutorial! Love!
Head over to Brown Paper Packages to see this secret, and check out the rest of the great {Back 2 Basics} posts from some of your favorite bloggers!

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You may have seen our weekly menu board post a couple of months ago. . .


Well, we have a few new ideas and tips for you! See, Mandy is such a sweet friend that after she did this post, she went and bought me a frame and cut out some vinyl so I could make my own menu board. On top of that, when I visited her house last week so we could finish it and take pictures for this post, she basically did my whole menu board while I made sure my little guy didn't turn her house completely upside-down! True friendship at its finest.

So onto our new menu-board tips...

Our friend Shelley mentioned a great tip to us. To get your days of the week lined up on the board, use your cutting mat. Simply lay your glass part of the frame on the grid and you can measure exactly how far apart you want your words. It also helps you see if it is straight. Fabulous!


We also used the Silhouette Pick-Me-Up tool in order to stick the letter down to the glass since they tend to cling to the paper.



Another idea I had was to switch out different papers in your menu board to celebrate different holidays! There are so many fun and festive options that would be great for any holiday. I pulled out several papers from my stash and it seemed like all of them would fit with several different holidays.
Take a peak...












See, the menu board options are endless. And one final tip...If you don't have a good place to put a menu board, stick four of our super strong magnets on the back and you're ready to hang your board on your refrigerator where it's out of the way (but in the way enough that you notice it). Happy meal planning!

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For everyone who placed a pre-order for the pinless flower magnets, magnets have shipped! You should have them soon. There are still a few more left in the shop.

I found another great way to use these super strong magnets. Remember my original guest post over at Make and Takes? Well if you missed it, here it is again, with a twist. I added four of my magnets to the back (one on each corner) and hung it on the side of the refrigerator.

I'm much happier with it there. It just works better in my kitchen. So the pinless flower backs aren't just for flowers I guess! If you didn't get some yet, I have a few more listed in the shop (and more on hand if you need higher quantities), but get them quick--my store will be closed starting this weekend while I'm out of town for a while.

Wipe-Off Menu Board Tutorial

Supplies:

• Picture frame with glass front (I love these 12×12 frames I found at Ben Franklin for only $7!)
• Piece of patterned scrapbook paper to fit in your frame (mine’s also 12×12)
• Optional: Vinyl cut letters for each day of the week (you could always just hand write them)
• Dry-erase marker
• Optional: four heavy-duty magnets to hang it on your refrigerator
  

1. Put your patterned paper inside the frame. Replace the back. That’s pretty much it. :)

2. If you wanted to stop here, you could hand-write your days of the week on the glass, or use it as a message board / to-do list. I love that these frames can stand or hang on the wall so you can do whatever works best in your space!

3. Use a paper towel or cloth to easily erase dry-erase marker off the glass.

4. If you want to get fancy and go a step further, you can add vinyl lettering for the days of the week. I cut these letters with my Silhouette machine, using Creating Keepsakes “Woodbine Swashes” font. (Try not to notice how crooked “Sunday” is. I didn’t notice until after the picture was taken. Luckily, it’s easy to fix!)

Now everyone in the family knows what’s for dinner each week!

The best part about this project is that it is SO easy to change the paper if you decide to change your decor, or if you just get tired of it. So you’ll really use it for years to come!

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Okay, more Silhouette vinyl inspiration today. I just can't help myself. This stuff is so fun!

My boys have been making homemade "keep out" signs for their bedroom door for a while. They eventually get trashed from all the door slamming that goes on around here, and then my 6-year-old gets mad. So I told them I'd make them one that would really stay put. (No, the hubby wasn't too happy with this, but I told him it was better than all the tape they were using on their own signs!)

I let them choose the wording and pick out the image. They thought the spider was scary enough to make girls think twice before entering. But they wanted to make sure I knew that even though I am a girl, I'm allowed in their room, so we added that little bit (I love that they're little enough to still like me!). They actually ended up with a list of a few more girls who could come in, but I told them they'd just have to get a bouncer to hold that list--it's not going on the door.


You only have a few more days to enter our Silhouette giveaway! Your house, too, could be covered in vinyl very soon!

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It's more Silhouette fun today to celebrate our fabulous giveaway! My husband is not crazy about vinyl on the walls, even though I showed him how easily it can be removed with no damage to the paint. (He tends to have an opinion on our home decor, much to my chagrin.) Anyhoo, I decided to try out my new vinyl cutter to make a less permanent feeling piece of art for my boys' room.



How to Use Vinyl on Canvas

Start with a stretched artists canvas in the size of your choice. Mine was a 16"x24" canvas. Look for these at craft stores like JoAnn or Michaels on sale or with a 40% off coupon.

Paint the front and sides your canvas using acrylic paint. I decided to get a little help. Let your paint dry.


Cut your vinyl and adhere it to transfer tape (see tutorial here). Decide on placement. Place vinyl on canvas and rub with your scraper (or your fingernails if you don't have one!). Remove transfer tape.

At least that is how I imagined it would work. I don't know if it was the kind of paint I used or the Silhouette brand vinyl, but I couldn't get the vinyl to stick well to the painted canvas. So I improvised. Here's my tip.

Just before sticking my vinyl down, I brushed on a light coat of Brushstroke Mod Podge (regular Mod Podge would work, too). Then I immediately rubbed my vinyl on top and peeled off the transfer tape. I did have to help it out in a couple of spots that it didn't stay put (because of the wet Mod Podge), but when it was finally all on the Mod Podge covered surface, it stuck.


My letters were a little harder to keep straight, but you do have a few seconds to make adjustments while the Mod Podge is still wet.


Then I covered the rest of the canvas with the Mod Podge for good measure. I did not cover the vinyl with it however.

Our friend Vanessa over at VandCo. created a similar (but more girly and grown-up) piece over here. You'll notice that she didn't have any trouble adhering her vinyl, so maybe it's my cheap paint. Either way, this is a great project. I've got one in mind for my bedroom, next!


If you haven't entered our Silhouette giveaway yet, seriously, what are you waiting for? Go here now.

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