Tree Slice Projects and DIY Chalk Paint Recipe

As promised I have a couple of projects for you! When we moved into our home a year ago, we knew we wanted to do some landscaping but it got put on the back burner with Jackson being a newborn and me being a newly SAHM, Ben was picking up lots of extra shifts so there really wasn't a lot of extra time to attack any of the fitzers.

See?!? So ugly and it was taking up A LOT of room in our yard.

Fast forward - Ben took a chain saw to them and here's what we have now.

Look at that rock wall! We had no idea that was behind there. It still needs some tidying up and we're going to have to get someone to take out the stumps, we just couldn't get them out, but progress is progress right?!

When Ben cut the branches out, he also cut some small wood slices. That's what I used for my projects. The first is a monogrammed wood slice.

Supplies Needed:

Tree slice
Sandpaper or sand block
Cardstock (I used regular paper and then laminated it to make it more sturdy)
Paint
Foam brush
Box cutter
Tape
Polycrylic or other sealer

First thing, sand that sucker! I didn't worry about sanding it to a level plane but if you care about that, then go for it!

Once it's sanded, put the wood slices in the oven to kill any buggies that may be lurking and to dry it out. 170 degrees for 25 minutes.

While it's baking and cooling you can get your letters ready. Pick a font you like, I used Century Schoolbook, print it as large as you'll need for your wood slice. Mine ended up being about 4" tall.

Now, cut out the letter, being super careful to not slice into the white of the paper. If you do slice into the paper, you could probably tape it to make sure paint won't leak through where you don't want it.

Once the wood slices are cool, you can tape the letters and you're ready to paint.

TIP: Using the foam brush, apply the paint in a stippling up and down motion, this should help keep the paint from bleeding outside of the form.

While the paint is still wet, remove the letter and let dry. Once dry add a coat or two of sealer. I used polycrylic but any sealer would most likely work.

And here's the final result!

and here next to my "painted to look like granite" countertop and FREE printable.

For the other project I made a wood slice chalkboard, but first I needed to make chalkboard paint. There are several different recipes to make chalkboard paint. I reviewed THIS post before deciding to do baking soda chalkboard paint because I have baking soda.

Basically for each cup of paint, add 1/2 cup of baking soda and 3 tablespoons of water. Mix well. Super easy! and I was able to use the leftover paint for another project that I'll share later.

Your wood slice needs to be prepped the same way, sand and bake. TIP: If I do this again, I will sand the wood slice to an even plane because it allows for easier writing.

Paint the wood slice using your chalkboard paint. I left a ring of wood unpainted because I liked how it looked with some natural wood showing.

When the paint is dry, using chalk, rub the chalkboard up-and-down and back-and-forth to 'prime' the board. This should also prevent ghosting, you know, when what you wrote is still visible even after you erase it?