DIY Outdoor Chalkboard for Backyards and Patios
My husband and I used to run a daycare in our home on a one-acre lot. We created a lot of outdoor play areas for the kids. One of the play spaces we created was a DIY outdoor chalkboard.
A couple of years later we made another DIY outdoor chalkboard for our daughter when we moved to a new house. You can find pictures of both versions and directions to how we made them below.
My husband and I made lots of other fun outdoor play spaces for the kids. We made water walls, sand and water tables, a backyard sandbox, and an outdoor art table and mud pie kitchen. Click on the links to learn how to make your own!
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DIY Outdoor Chalkboard for Backyards and Patios
DIY Outdoor Chalkboard for Backyards and Patios: Materials
- Hollow interior wooden door without a doorknob hole cut into it [We found ours used at ReStore by Habitat for Humanity — not affiliated.]
- Chalkboard Paint
- 6-Inch Foam Roller for Ultra-Smooth Surfaces
- Tarp
, Drop Cloth
, or old sheet
- Screw & Anchors or cinderblocks
- Drill/Driver
DIY Outdoor Chalkboard for Backyards and Patios: Tutorial
Step 1 – Paint the Door with Chalkboard Paint
Find an area to paint the door. Place a tarp or an old sheet underneath it to protect the area you will be working in. We found our hollow wooden door used at ReStore by Habitat for Humanity (not affiliated). Someone else had used it to paint a sign and donated it when they no longer needed it.
Use a paint roller with a smooth finish to paint a coat of chalkboard paint onto the door. We have learned that starting with one coat is fine. It’s better to save it and put on a fresh coat every few months.
Work quickly to keep it smooth – it gets tacky. Allow chalk paint to dry
Out little helper loves to do projects with daddy. For more info check out how to raise a helper.
Step 2 – Hang or Position DIY Outdoor Chalkboard
How to Hang DIY Outdoor Chalkboard:
We hung the first outdoor chalkboards we made in a long corridor between our house and garage. The walls were board and batten so we drilled right into the wood to hang it. No anchors needed.
It is possible to drill into all surfaces with the right screws and anchors. Ask your local hardware or home improvement store for help.
The photo below was taken after we hung the two chalkboards we made for our home daycare. Over time it turned into a wonderful alley with chalk all over the chalkboards and ground for the kids to enjoy. I wish I took more pictures of it to share, but it was made long before I started this blog.
How to Position DIY Outdoor Chalkboard
Our current landlord would not allow us to drill into the wall in order to hang our outdoor chalkboard. At first I thought this meant that we could not have one, and then I came up with the idea of propping it up on cinder blocks. It works great!
Update: We have had our DIY outdoor chalkboard propped up on cinder blocks for over 2 years now and it has never fallen down or become a hazard. It is exposed to the elements and has become a bit warped over time so we will be heading to restore for a new hollow wood door to replace it this summer.
The chalkboard you see below was one of the original boards we hung up at our home daycare over 4 years ago. It lasted for 4 years outside before we felt we needed to replace it.
My daughter drew her family in the picture above. From left to right: herself, mommy, daddy, grandma, and a big circle for all the doggies constantly running around — haha!
It’s really easy to make an outdoor chalkboard. You don’t even have to hang it to make it work. Propping it up on cinderblocks works great too!
Other awesome outdoor play areas for kids are sand and water tables, a backyard sandbox, and an outdoor art table and mud pie kitchen. Click on the links to learn how easy it is to make your own!
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What fun! Does it hold up well to being outside in the weather all the time?
We’ve been using the same boards for a few years now – just repainted – but I hear they can delaminate. I read the Martha Stewart has a trick for adding grout to paint to make chalkboard paint to make it better outdoors. I thought about including a link to it in this post. I will see if I can find it and add it later.