Chalk Techniques You Never Knew Before!

We looooooove chalkboard projects here at CAGW–turning something into a chalkboard is one of the quickest, easiest refurbs that exist, and the results are always fun and useful.

But what about when you’ve got your new chalkboard piece in hand? How do you make sure that your chalk art is as cute as your finished chalkboard?

Even if you don’t count yourself as an artist (although you totally are!), there are some easy ways to make your chalk art look creative and professional. Here are the surprising techniques that you probably didn’t know before:

1. chalk dust. The pastels that the artist refers to in this tute are chalk pastels, a kind of high-pigment chalk that’s awesome for chalkboard illustrations.

2. chalk ink. Although chalk ink itself is less eco-friendly than plain chalk, it gives a look that’s far cleaner and more professional-looking, and since it wipes off with water, chalk ink IS more eco-friendly than markers, which offer a similar look.

3. chalk on a stamp. Here’s how to use chalk with a rubber stamp.

4. dye fabric with chalk paint. If you’ve got some leftover homemade chalk paint, this is definitely worth experimenting with!

5. floating chalk prints. This isn’t a chalkboard project, but instead a really cool chalk art idea. Kids, especially, would love this! Although the technique is presented with paper, I think it’s definitely worth experimenting with for other surfaces.

6. ink from chalk. This isn’t “chalk ink,” but rather actual ink that you can create using grated chalk. If you’re working on a small scale, this is a great way to get a lot of custom colors on the cheap.

7. lettering. If you’re freehanding your word art, here is an excellent guide to chalk lettering for amateurs.

8. sharp chalk. Get a lot of good detail into your art by sharpening your chalk.

9. sidewalk chalk. If you’ve made yourself a giant outdoor chalkboard (and you totally should!), then you need a ton of sidewalk chalk! This is the recipe for homemade sidewalk chalk.

10. transfer. This is a handy way to transfer a chalk outline of a detailed design, one that you don’t want to have to cut out as a stencil.

11. watercolor technique. If you’re working on paper, here’s a way to play with ink and chalk to get a watercolor effect (that’s much more controlled than using actual watercolors!).

Do you have any secret techniques for making chalk art look especially cool? Share them in the Comments below!

Photo credit: chalkboard image via Shutterstock