Chalkboard paint is a workhorse of the modern household, with a few obvious uses you may have seen on Pinterest: It’s ideal in the kitchen to keep track of the grocery list, it’s useful to paint on jar lids to identify what’s inside, and it’s a no-brainer in children’s rooms, where the kids can actually draw on the walls. But Gardenista editor Michelle Slatalla thought of a new use we hadn’t seen: She painted the interior of her garden shed with chalkboard paint and used a white chalk marker to create outlines of her garden tools so she’d remember where they go after a long day of work in the garden.
Above: Michelle created her tiny, 18-inch-deep garden shed by co-opting space from her garage behind her Mill Valley, California, home. (See Steal This Look: My Mini Garden Shed in a Garage for more.) But it was time to update the look: “I wanted to paint the shed a single color because a uniform backdrop makes it easier to organize all the tools and pots and accessories in a garden shed,” she says. Above: After painting the shed’s interior with chalkboard paint (she used Rust-Oleum Flat Black Chalkboard Paint; $9.97 for a 30-ounce can at The Home Depot), she used a white chalk marker to outline the shape of her hanging hand tools. “The outlines help me remember where the tools belong,” she says. Above: A Hori Hori Knife gets put in its place. Should Michelle buy new gardening tools or decide to rearrange them, the outlines can be wiped off and redrawn.
“I have a habit of leaving a trowel or pruners on the ground and forgetting it. But now I can see at a glance if a tool is missing from its spot on the pegboard,” said Michelle.
Above: A corner of the shed holds a flowerpot brush, a plant mister, and a jar of eggshells. (Why the eggshells? See Gardening 101: How to Use Eggshells in the Garden for more.) Above: The shelf itself is now multifunctional: Michelle can use it for potting and transplanting, and she can scribble notes and plans in chalk and easily erase them later. Above: After she pots this lemon balm, Michelle will know exactly where her bamboo trowel goes. Above: Long-handled tools like rakes and brooms hang on one side of the shed. Above: Michelle stores potting soil in a lidded trash bin beneath the shelf. Its scoop hangs on the pegboard when not in use. Above: A collection of vintage glassware looks lovely against the matte black backdrop.
For more projects featuring chalkboard paint, see our posts:
