20 Sep How to Make a Chalkboard Activity Centre for Your Toddler

Before becoming a parent I use to think that my house wouldn’t change that much. I figured it would still be decorated the same and I would just ‘teach’ my kids not to touch stuff like the glass vase on a coffee table, or a low hanging picture. Then I had Avery and realized that I was an idiot; there is no reasoning with tiny humans. They are miniature versions of a more stubborn you, who like to touch and brake anything in their path.

After accepting that my house will be kid friendly for the rest of my life, I decided to make little areas in pretty much every corner for her to play in. This summer I made Avery a play tipi, for her boho birthday party but I’ve been wanting to create a space where everything was brought down to her level. So today we are working on ‘Avery’s Nook’, with a table her size topped with a chalkboard paint, along with a mirror and pictures low enough for her to look at them.

What you will need:

• Kid size table
• Mirror or picture frame
• Kid safe mirror
• Paint of your choice
• Chalk Board Paint

Step 1 -Finding your pieces- I took an old side table that my husband had in his ‘man room’ upstairs. Yes this kid is taking over our house, I think one day my husband will come home to find his man room has been transformed into a princess tower.

For my chalkboard above the table I found a vintage mirror with a decorative frame around it at a thrift store, and for the mirror at Avery’s height I bought a shatter proof mirror at Walmart. Also, as you can see in the picture below that there is a cat. This is Cleo and she just wanted to be a part of the project today. Warning: If your animal wants to help, do not paint them…it is difficult to get paint out of fur.

Step 2 -Paint- I wanted to use a coloured, chalky textured paint for all of the pieces, so I used the brand Fat Paint. I applied the colour Ocean Spray to all of my pieces with a foam brush and it went on nicely. It only took two coats on the legs and mirror to get a nice solid colour.

Step 3 -Chalk Board Paint- When my Fat Paint dried I did the whole top of my table, and my vintage mirror in chalk board paint. With this paint the more coats the better because you need a good base to write on. I did three coats on all of the pieces but might go back and do one or two more coats depending on how it holds up.

This area is now Avery’s favourite spot. I still need to add a couple of chairs, but she loves writing on the table and looking at herself in the mirror. I also found frames at Ikea with plastic in them instead of glass so I’ll slowly start adding a few pictures around her table as well.