No-Smudge DIY Chalkboard Puzzles with Martha Stewart Crafts®

Turn wooden puzzles into no-smudge DIY chalkboard puzzles using Martha Stewart Crafts® Chalkboard paint, Erasable Liquid Chalk and new chalkboard-inspired stencils.

The liquid chalk design stays put on the chalkboard puzzle until you erase it with water. Fun, yes?

I wrote this post as part of a paid campaign with Martha Stewart Crafts® and Blueprint Social. All opinions in this post are mine. Martha Stewart Crafts® sent me a box of goodies to introduce Martha Stewart Crafts® Chalkboard Paint. These products are available at Michaels. Tell them about it, Martha…

Two preschoolers means that we have a whole bunch of wooden puzzles in our house. Elise and I painted the back sides of our favorite wooden puzzles using different colors of Martha Stewart Crafts® MultiSurface Chalkboard Paint which comes in 10 traditional and modern colors and turn any porous surface into a chalkboard.

Have you ever tried to clean up a pile of mixed up wooden puzzle pieces? Ugh, one of my least favorite things. Our new color-coded puzzles means easy clean-up, hooray! Painting the backs of your puzzles is a great way to keep them organized …all the pink Raspberry Ice pieces are Puzzle #1, all the blue Ink pieces are Puzzle #2, and so on.

I made one with Elise’s name…

I also made a fun baby announcement version for those new moms out there (don’t worry, Shane, I am not pregnant again, ha). Just create the announcement, take the puzzle apart, and box it up for your spouse or lucky grandparents. The baby can use the puzzle when he’s a toddler.

This liquid chalk stuff is super cool – it’s really simple to apply and is more durable and lasting than regular chalk. Erasable Liquid Chalk comes in a 2 oz bottle with a foam spouncer on the top that is applied like paint. You pounce it on in a light coat to avoid bubbles and seepage under the silkscreen.

Just wipe with a wet rag to erase it when you want to create a new puzzle (or if you mess up). Elise has already erased them and is creating her own masterpuzzles, I mean, masterpieces.

Supplies for making chalkboard puzzles:

• Wooden Puzzle Pieces – we recycled our existing puzzles
• Martha Stewart Crafts® Multi-Surface Chalkboard Paint
• Martha Stewart Crafts® Erasable Liquid Chalk
• Martha Stewart Crafts® chalkboard-inspired stencils and silkscreens
• Paintbrush
• Painter’s tape (optional)
• Wet rag for clean-up

How to make a chalkboard puzzles from recycled wooden puzzles:
Choose your Martha Stewart Crafts® Multisurface Chalkboard Paint from the 10 available colors. We chose Ink, Raspberry Ice, Arrowhead and Gray.

Grab some wooden puzzles.

Paint the wooden puzzle piece backs with three coats. You can paint the fronts and backs if you wish – we decided to just paint the backs.

Here’s a video with some great tips on working with Martha Stewart Crafts® Chalkboard Paint and Erasable Liquid Chalk:

If you decide to paint the puzzle piece sides, I recommend using only one coat to ensure the the puzzle pieces fit together well after painting.

Let the painted puzzle pieces dry completely. Assemble the puzzle and prime the chalkboard using chalk.

Cut out the stencils or silkscreens.

Adhere a stencil or silkscreen to the prepped chalkboard puzzle and pounce on the erasable liquid chalk. Let the liquid chalk dry. You can practice right on your chalkboard and erase it clean.

Keep adding to your design.

The cool thing about using the Erasable Liquid Chalk is you can use any stencil. I used my old favorite Martha Stewart flower silkscreens in addition to the new chalkboard-inspired alphabet.

Because the erasable liquid chalk ink is like paint, I decided to dip in a paintbrush and doodle a few stars on the baby announcement puzzle.

One thing: the lid doesn’t stay on well. Like at all. So I put a piece of painter’s tape around it to keep it from drying out.

Now it’s time to play! Mix up the puzzles pieces, put them back together and have fun!

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In addition to the new Martha Stewart Crafts® Chalkboard line, visit Michaels to learn about more new product, including Martha Stewart Crafts® Vintage Decor Paint.

I have bunch of ideas for more crafts to make with these Martha Stewart Crafts® Chalkboard products, from a kitchen weekly menu planner to magazine holders. Tell me in the comments below – what would you make with liquid chalk?

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Copyright stuff: You’re more than welcome to use this free project and tutorial for personal use. Contact me for commercial use and etsy sales.

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