In our home office, we have a handmade pine desk, that Nic made from some reclaimed wood. We wanted a desk that was large enough for us to work side by side, but that also matched our antique armoire from my grandfather’s house in Alabama. This armoire currently holds our printer, and lots of office supplies. We love it! With this large desk came an abundance of wall space that we did not know what to do with.
When I first posted this project from Fall 2012 on Instagram and Facebook, I got so many comments and questions about it. So, I decided it’s time to write a post about the door. Contrary to popular belief, this was not a Pinterest project, but something my sweet mom found on a blog. She just happened to have several old doors, and wanted to give me one, but not without something crafty and unique to do with it! We had no clear directions, only a photo for inspiration, but I am married to a contractor so of course we decided to go for it. We left Alabama with a door strapped to the top of our car, and safely made it home to Tennessee. We made a trip to Lowe’s and I was a little nervous about the paint color, but we decided to give it a try. We also bought magnetic primer and chalkboard paint.
The project started by sanding the door and stripping off as much of the old paint as we could. (All iPhone photos, likely taken while breathing in paint fumes… don’t judge)

Next, we did some more sanding, until we got most of it off. The good news is that you really only have to do this to one side of the door.

Then we painted it. We went with a soft turquoise or teal shade, and then magnetic primed and chalkboard painted the panels. At this point, I was really nervous because it looked like a 50’s refrigerator to me.

Next, I used some steel wool to take off some of the paint and give it an antique look. And then I did that again, and again, and again, until I was happy with the result.

Finally, Nic hung it on the wall, and this is the finished product! We aren’t really using many magnets, so I’m not really sure looking back if I would have done the magnetic paint. What do you think? Leave a comment and let us know!