{blackboards}

Pinterest is both a blessing and a curse.

It's great because there are so many great ideas out there, and Pinterest is the perfect place to find inspiration. It's also a great place to organize the awesome stuff I find on other people's blogs. A place to park my ideas for later when I'm ready to do something with them.

I also like that I can look through my boards on Pinterest and see a common thread. I'm totally drawn to lots of white with black accents. You'll see it on my Pinterest boards, and you'll see it in my home. It's a great way to figure out what your style is.

via Focus Jennie

I love the inspiration. Thanks to Pinterest and the blogs I read, I really want to make a blackboard for the top of my stairs.

I've seen them on Shawni's blog,  Jennie has one too, and Pinterest is full of them.

I know that a lot of people get discouraged by Pinterest - like they aren't ever going to measure up. They feel like they've got to do everything. I don't feel like that at all but I'm beginning to see a problem with Pinterest.

When I find a great idea, it seems like everyone else has already beaten me to it. Which is fine - I don't mind being the last to the party. It's just that when I am, it's really hard to find what I need at the thrift store to make my Pinterest inspiration a reality.

I have wanted to make a blackboard for ages - but do you think I could find anywhere a sufficiently ornate frame with a hideous picture and a low price tag? No way - all the other Pinners have already been to my go-to thrift stores. Nothing for months at MCC, Bibles for Missions and the little thrift store by the railway tracks that always take my donations (unlike the Sally Ann in my town where they go through your trunk and pick what they want and turn their noses up at the rest).

But today on my way to the gym, I dropped in on a thrift store and there it was.

Ornate frame: check
Hideous picture: it could be worse, but I'm not going to feel guilty when I paint over it with blackboard paint
Low price tag: $10 - and when I got to the cash desk, they told me all pictures are 50% off this week.

Woot!

This is where it's going to go (aren't my stairs nice? Quinn and I spent a lot of time staining all that wood).

Oh, let's get a little closer

Next up, I've got to spray the frame and paint the blackboard paint on. I'm trying to get out of my comfort zone and pick a punchy colour, but I have a feeling it'll end up white. Black won't work because it's a blackboard and the frame will blend in too much. A colour is tricky because it will be seen from both upstairs and downstairs. So white it is.

I plan on writing up quotes, little love notes to my kids (especially when Kyle's friends are coming over), scriptures, and birthday messages. Can't wait!