The Hubby's Gift to Me: DIY Chalkboard!

Aw, he is so sweet! My dear husband saw this super cute and yet surprisingly expensive chalkboard ($80!)at World Market, one of my favorite home decour stores. He decided to recreate it, and it wasn't even a gift for any occasion, just a pleasant surprise :)
I think part of that comes from his desire to be engrossed in a project. He is a "project guy," if you will. You know you have a "project guy" if he:

a) becomes easily frustrated by boredom
b) usually does not allow himself to become bored
c) spends his down-time finding ways to make himself more busy
d)  becomes frustrated when a project is not brought to completion

Sound familiar? Maybe it's just a man thing, but I know my dad is this way too. It's like they have trouble relaxing because there are so many things in the world that they could create, alter, or even destroy and rebuild! They're right when they say that you marry a person similar to your family :)

ANYWAY, here is a photo of the model my husband was copying:

He knew I would love this basic chalkboard and decided he could easily make it himself, and with a few modifications, he succeeded! He also made one for his sister and mother (WHAT A HUNK!)

SO
He got some scrap plywood from the garage and measured it the size he thought appropriate, more square than the model. He then painted it, using one of my favorite colors that I plan on infusing into my kitchen (whenever we have a place to live). Click here to see Eucalyptus Leaf from Home Depot's Behr collection.

He bought some half round trim board that had a 1/4" radius and used it to outline where the actual chalkboard was going to be. He taped it off and used chalkboard paint to fill in the inside of the square. He actually used premade chalkboard paint, but I know it's all over Pinterest how to make your own (which I would recommend because the chalkboard paint is expensive to buy and cheap to make.)

 This is the product to date-- he plans on using some decorative hooks on the bottom (you can never have too many hooks!) And someday we'll find the perfect tray/ wire basket to hang directly beneath the chalk part.

I plan on hanging it above a table of treats and writing some cute and whitty catchphrase that means, "Help yourself," or "Eat your heart out," or something to that effect.

My husband is so sweet for knowing how much I love to decorate and even being willing to contribute to the vice :)