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DIY Hand-Lettering Chalkboard Menu
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DIY Hand-Lettering Chalkboard Menu

November 4

Anna, the bride from this gorgeous Minnesota wedding is stopping by this afternoon to share one of her DIY projects. She whipped up a faux chalkboard menu the Thursday night before her wedding, so she wanted to save other brides from attempting the same feat so close to their wedding day. Also, how smart is to use vintage chair frames as easels? It’s everything.

DIY bar menu faux chalkboard

From Anna: I was so inspired by the chalk art of Dana Tanamachi as I was planning my wedding and wanted to incorporate some sort of chalkboard element into the wedding. However, not having that level of artistic skill, I struggled with how to make the chalkboard look polished and consistent with our other elements. Finally I remembered a technique from middle school art class. I printed out the “Drinks”, “Wine”, “Cocktails”, etc. in the same font (Goldsmith) as we used in our invitations, but in a very large size. Then I traced the back side of the paper with pencil, allowing me to do a carbon tracing when I put it back on the black foam board. Then I filled everything in with a white sharpie paint marker. I hand lettered the printing for the drinks and the leaf detail was added by my good friend Caroline, though to give it a little more of an organic hand-drawn look. In the end it looked like a chalkboard sign, but was more durable (lighter!) and much easier to complete than it would have been in chalk. It worked like a charm, I just wished I’d thought of how to do it weeks earlier!

chalkboard lettering wedding ideas

For her project, she purchased an old broken mirror for $25 (at a place called Optiz in Minneapolis), black foam board and a white sharpie. For around $30, she made a gorgeous, hand lettered chalkboard sign. The foam really did the trick for such quick project – it’s lightweight, so it’s easy to cut though rigid enough to stay put.

DIY hand lettering instructions signage

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She took out the broken mirror, used the backing to trace onto the black foam core with chalk and then cut to measure, replacing the mirror with black foam. With her foam board cut into shape, she then sprayed a coat of chalkboard paint and placed back in the frame. Using a x-acto knife, she created a stencil out of the lettering she wanted. She outlined with a pencil on the black foamboard, and filled the letters with chalk sharpie paint.

Top photo by Eric Lundgren Photography

View Comments (13)

  • LOVE THIS!
    My family had a bunch of antique chairs growing up – what a great idea to use one as an easel.
    Elegant and affordable – bonus!

  • Where can I find this font? I’ve searched everywhere. Any help would be much appreciated!

    Thanks,

    linda

  • I have read this a zillion times and cannot understand how it’s actually done. Could you clarify the steps? I understand you print out the large text, trace it on the back of the paper, but then how do you get it onto the board? Do you need carbon tracing paper?

    • Margaret, I am also confused as to how she actually got the lettering onto the board!

      It first says that she traced the lettering on the back of the paper- and my guess was that she traced very heavy and rubbed that onto the foam board, transferring the silver pencil lead, which she used as an outline to fill it in with white sharpie.

      Then later in the post it says that she cut out the letters, traced the outline with pencil directly onto the now described as a chalk sprayed foam board then filled it in with chalk paint.
      I think Ruffled needs to edit this post.- BUT THIS IS A LOVELY IDEA! XO

  • “She took out the broken mirror, used the backing to trace onto the black foam core with chalk and then cut it out. ” used what backing? I thought she said she used a white sharpie marker – not chalk? Then cut “it” out – what is it? I guess I’m slow. Ha!

    • Hi Margaret, I think it means she used the backing that was once holding the mirror in place to trace the same shape out of the black foam so that it fit perfectly inside the frame. Xo

  • Also, the last sentence says she sprayed the board with chalk paint. Does this mean she did all the hand lettering and then sprayed over the lettering with chalk paint?

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