Here's a clever idea that is not just good for one occasion, but can be reused for many. It's a chalkboard-paint flag banner! Instead of making or buying celebration signage for every special day, you can easily make one sign for all your special days. I created this flag banner for my boyfriend's birthday party this past weekend and have repurposed it for Halloween.

To make a chalkboard flag banner, you need a few tools and materials: chalkboard paint, primed canvas, white rope, pinking shears, a foam brush, an iron, and a sewing machine.

I bought a roll of primed canvas and painted a large section of it with chalkboard paint using a foam brush.

While the paint was drying, I made a template for my flag shape. I determined how wide and long I wanted each triangle and reflected it on the short side so each could be folded over and double-sided—ultimately the template should look like an elongated diamond.

I traced the craft paper template onto the painted canvas and cut out 20 pieces with scissors.

Each piece was then folded at the diamond's center to make double-faced triangles. I ironed each triangle between a press cloth so each was super flat.

I set up the sewing machine with a contrasting white thread and sewed around each triangle, leaving a half-inch seam allowance along the two long sides and an inch on the folded short side.

When each flag was sewn, I pinked the two long sides with pinking shears.

Here's a picture of a single flag so you can see it close up.

Rope was fed through the top fold-over of each flag and the banner was basically done!

All that is left to do is write a message in chalk. "Happy 30th Ashley," "Happy Halloween," "Congratulations," "Just Married," "your message here"! I made sure to make some extra flags in case I wanted a longer word or phrase.

Another great thing about this banner—besides it being "green"—is that it's durable and great for the outdoors! Only rain will wash away your message!

Chalkboard paint is meant for displaying notes and messages, but is also fun to just draw on. I painted a set of nesting dolls with the paint as well, and have had some fun already doodling on them. A little skeleton family can work with my Halloween décor!

I love the matte black color and smooth, thick texture of the paint. It goes on very easily and dries opaque (two coats will do). I love it so much that I want to paint just about everything with it! I think you'd agree.

What other out-of-the-box chalkboard paint crafts can you come up with for Halloween?

Tags: birthday, chalk, chalkboard paint, craft, crafts, home decor, ideas, party
Posted by Kristin St. Clair on September 21st, 2010 in Make It