Over the past few months I have done several renovations around the house. Painting was by far the most time consuming and thorough job I completed, with nearly every space in the house getting a new coat of paint, trim and doors included. Our living room and dining room were all the same colour but as I was painting the boring but neutral beige on the living room wall, I decided the dining room wall would get a different colour. I didn’t go extreme. I used a blue that I already had on hand and it was exactly what the rooms needed, with one problem… the corner wall.
I painted this little angled wall in blue, but it just didn’t look right. Painting it beige wasn’t going to solve the problem, so I needed to be happy with the blue or come up with another option. I decided a chalkboard wall would work well in this space. When I went to the hardware store for chalkboard paint, I found some magnetic primer and decided to make a magnetic chalkboard wall.
My first step was to tape off the area I would be painting.
My magnetic primer sat for a couple of weeks before I got started and when I opened it and attempted to stir it, I found it was such a thick sludge that there was no way I could get it mixed on my own. I closed it up and took it to the hardware store to be shaken (along with the chalkboard paint) so I could get started.
I used the entire can of magnetic primer, which ended up being three heavy coats of paint. The coverage area listed on the can was equal to my wall size. The picture below is after the first coat of paint. I allowed it to dry for a day in between each coat. This does not go on very smoothly. It has a strong odour and is very difficult to wash off of anything. I applied it with a foam roller, which I threw away when I was finished.
I wasn’t pleased with the uneven appearance of the primer but hoped it would improve when I painted over it with the chalkboard paint. This went on much easier but I was still unhappy with the uneven appearance. In places, it looks like there are small bubbles on the wall. I ended up doing five coats of chalkboard paint before deciding enough was enough.
I purchased some trim and painted it with white trim/door paint before placing it around the wall. I am very happy with the end result.
I would not use the magnetic primer again, or would I recommend it to anyone. It was awful to work with and magnets only stick to some spots on the wall. I am doubtful that they would hold any of the kids’ drawings or school papers. Weaker magnets don’t work at all. However, the chalkboard paint works wonderfully. It’s easy to write on and wipes off beautifully. I like how the new wall not only provided the division between the two wall colours, but has also given us a new focal point in the room.
