Framed painting makeover

I had kept this grandma and grandpas old painting in the garage for a long time. I kind of hated it but I just didn’t have the heart to get rid of it. So, I decided to turn it into something I would treasure. I up-cycled this old painting into gorgeous framed chalkboard. And what’s extra cool is that the original painting is safely just hidden underneath.

To do this makeover you only need a couple hours of time and some affordable supplies. This project doesn’t require too much time or money either. So, with little effort you get awesome results. Isn’t that just perfect!

How to get started

First you need to take the frame of the painting as presented in the image on left. You do this step with caution. The nails on my painting were so loose that I didn’t need any tools. I just carefully lifted off the painting from the backside of the frame. If you need tools, I would go with pliers like these.

Let the makeover begin

To transform your frame and painting you need a few supplies. These supplies presented are all from amazon and you can easily shop right here just by clicking the product images (affiliate links).

You will also need a big enough piece of cardboard or similar. You probably have something suitable around the house already.

Follow the steps

Step 1.Take measurements of the removed painting and cut the cardboard to those measurements. The cut piece should be exactly the same size with the painting to fit the frames perfectly. Having that cardboard is quite important for two reasons. Firstly firm cardboard will provide an even surface to be covered with the vinyl chalkboard.  I can tell you that bumps on the surface will show through the vinyl and you would not be happy with the result like that.

Step 2. Cut the vinyl chalkboard to same measurements as the cardboard.

Step 3. Remove a couple inches of the protective layer  from one end and roll on the vinyl inch by inch on the cardboard. Make sure you get the vinyl straight right from the start and slowly proceed toward the other end. Get all bubbles out smoothly rubbing the vinyl with your hand from center to sides.

Second reason to have this extra cardboard layer is that you get to keep the original painting safe an untouched. Step 4. Place the vinyl covered cardboard on top of the unframed painting. 

Step 5. Put the frames back in as they were but with that extra layer going inside the frames, too.  Tap in the nails. Replace the nails with new similar ones if needed.

And that’s it, all done!