DIY chalkboard paint is an interesting thing. It’s fully versatile but has a simple, sleek look. It can add both a modern, matte black finish to your things or a classic green schoolroom charm. It can even be tinted almost any color you like. Did I mention it can be applied on top of magnetic primer to make almost anything into a magnetic chalkboard of any shape or curvature?

DIY chalkboard paint is the perfect thing to turn something drab into something awesome. Something old into something new. Or something “Ew” into something “Ooh-La-La!”

Best of all, it can be made for a few dollars more than the cost of cheap, flat-gloss, indoor paint. Cheap and versatile! That’s our favorite combination here at DailyPerk.

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How to Make DIY Chalkboard Paint

To get started, I wanted to touch on a really simple, really basic way to make your own DIY chalkboard paint. The big investment is a gallon of indoor house paint. (This can be dramatically reduced — down to a few dollars — if you make your DIY chalkboard paint in smaller batches.)

The following DIY chalkboard paint recipe makes it super easy to make this stuff in any color you like. Here’s what you’ll need:

Ingredients:

1 gallon of flat, interior paint, in any color you like
2 cups of non-sanded, white, powdered tile grout
1 package of fine grit sand paper sheets

Directions:

1. Mix or shake the paint until it’s homogenous.
2. Stir in the powdered grout into your paint a little bit at a time, until it’s mixed well.
3. Apply in multiple coats, painting in different directions each time.
4. Gently sand down your paint so its surface is fairly smooth.
5. Run a piece of chalk over it a few times to get some chalk dust on it, then wipe excess off.
6. GO CRAZY drawing on your new chalkboard fill-in-the-blank.

A Few Notes for You DIY Chalkboard Paint Enthusiasts

You can use way less paint and way less grout to make less DIY chalkboard paint. The trick is to mix in about 2 tablespoons of grout for every cup of flat interior paint. Don’t paint one wall in your room with the chalkboard paint and the other three using the same color paint that’s not mixed with the grout. Otherwise, you’ll end up confusing your kids and spending a lot of time touching up the walls that are not chalk-ready. Also, this stuff can wear out and chip off, so you might want to seal and hang on to any chalkboard paint you mix for touch-ups later.

You should also know that paint companies are now making chalkboard paint in a wide variety of colors. The Rust-Oleum stuff is supposed to be pretty durable. If you want to go white, the grout may tint your paint a little bit. Better to go with dry erase paint like the stuff made by IdeaPaint. It’s more expensive and takes a while to dry, but it is really fun when it’s done. The company makes a clear product that can also be applied over colored paint.

Looking for some great chalkboard paint ideas to put your new chalkboard paint to work? Click here.

What’s your favorite trick for making great DIY chalkboard paint? Have a favorite project you made and blogged about? Share tips and links below and help a fellow crafter out!