Make your own Notice Board

How often have you returned from shopping only to have forgetten an item. Well those days can now be a thing of the past with this noticeboard.

Project Guide:

Difficulty: Beginner/Novice
Estimated time: 6 hours (actual cutting and assembly time is much less than this; the hours given here include the time you have to leave the blackboard paint coats to dry [bear in mind that the cooler and more humid the air, the longer the paint will need to dry properly])
Cost: R50

Materials:

• Sheet of 3mm plywood (the size up to you but we made this board 500x610mm).
• 19mm Cornice to suit (this makes up the frame), plus about 300mm to make your chalk reservoir.
• 12mm Screws.
• Paint or varnish for the frame.
• Blackboard paint.
• Two hollow-door plugs and screws to attach the board to the door. (This is where we attached the board, but you can attach it to a cupboard door, side, or the wall, in which case you will need to use a different fastening method.

*All materials are available at Selected Mica Stores. To find your nearest Mica and to enquire about availability, please go to www.mica.co.za, to use our store locator. If your local Mica does not stock exactly what you need they will be able to order or suggest an alternative product or a reputable source.

Method:

1. Having cut your board to size, ensure that you select the front side for the front of the board. This is the reverse of the board, and is quite rough.



2. This is the veneered front side, which will make an ideal surface on which to write with chalk.



3. Measure off and mitre the ends of the 19mm cornice.



4. The pieces should meet like this – to make a very neat corner.



5. Now flip the board over and measure off where you will position the fixing screws. We positioned it at 30mm in from the corner and 8mm in from the edge of the board and then centred at about 100mm intervals.



6. You can save yourself some angst when painting the board if you paint the front of the board now, before attaching the frame. You will need to give it about three coats, with a light sanding between the first two – so allow a good couple of hours between each coat for the paint to dry.



7. Drill 2mm pilot holes through the board at each position and then tighten the screws, fixing the frame to the board.



8. Do not drive the screws in too far – make sure their heads are left flush with the surface of the back of the board.



9. The chalk reservoir is simply a length of the cornice glued to the front of the frame to form a channel.



10. Reinforce the chalk reservoir with a strip of screw and 3mm ply glued along the under-surface. It is unobtrusive, but very good in strengthening the join. Notice that the frame attachment screw is positioned so that its tip does not penetrate the surface.



11. And there you are – now there’s no excuse to make a mistake on your shopping list.