Framed Blackboards Finished

Yesterday I showed how I made the frames (see tutorial here) for my blackboards and today I'll show how I finished them.

The first one I decided to stain with my rusty mixture.  I put a piece of steel wool in a jar and then  pour vinegar over it and let it sit at least overnight, sometimes longer.  Then I use it with an old brush, as a stain,which gives an orangey/brown colour to the wood.

This is just the base coat for this blackboard, as I am going to paint it white and distress it so that some of the stain colour shows through.

Once that is dried I use vaseline here and there on the frame. Wherever the vaseline is, the top coat will not stick.

Here's a close up of the vaseline dabbed on:

Then I topcoat with white craft paint:

Once that is dried, I wipe off the vaseline with a paper towel.  You get a peeling look as if the paint was old and chipped off:

Here's the finished product:

This blackboard is 10" x 10" and 3/4" thick, the chalk area is 5 1/2" x 5 1/2":

A second board I made doesn't have the white topcoat, but has a hand painted top piece.
It is 8 1/4" wide x 9 1/4" tall and the chalk area is 6 1/4" x 6 1/4":

Linking up at the following great blogs:
Funky Junk Interiors
My Repurposed Life
aka design
Beyond the Picket Fence
Sisters of the Wild West