Make Fun DIY Signs And Chalkboards With Old Cabinet Doors

Turn old cabinet doors into a beautiful piece of Home Decor with these easy Painted & Chalkboard DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors.

Making DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors

Happy New Year, everyone! I’m so excited for a new year and have so many things on my to-do list already. Especially now that my youngest is at that great age where he’s becoming more independent and letting me get more done. Yea!

In fact, I’ve just wrapped up a little DIY project for my husband, in the laundry room. No, it wasn’t his laundry. That is a never-ending project. 😉

He has had little reminder notes taped to the wall in our small laundry room for years. Since the laundry leads to the garage and our cars, we use that door 99% of the time.

So it’s a great spot for any reminders we need before heading out. I finally realized that he really needed a chalkboard to write all of his little notes on. And, I needed to get rid of those little notes cluttering up the wall. Win win.

I also wanted to make a sweet painted quote sign to hang up too. Luckily I had 2 leftover cabinet doors from one of my DIY Home Remodeling projects that were the perfect size.

I used those to make these Painted and Chalkboard DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors and it was an easy and fun project, guys.

Keep scrolling to see how I made each of these DIY signs from old cabinet doors. 🙂

How to Get Old Cabinet Doors Ready to be a Sign

These cabinet doors were originally painted. But the old painted was chipping off and looked so rough.

If your old cabinet doors have chipping paint too, I recommend stripping off the old paint with Citristrip before painting.

But, you don’t have to strip old paint or stain if it’s still nice and smooth. Just clean the door with a degreaser like TSP to remove dirt and oils.

Then you can paint with chalkboard paint (I like this black chalkboard paint) over that cleaned old finish. Chalkboard paint will stick to almost any oil-free surface without a primer.

I also filled the cabinet pull holes with wood filler to get a smooth door ready to paint. You can also use Bondo to fix the wood.

Sand that cabinet door smooth, then dust off and they’re ready to turn into a chalkboard or painted sign art.

Easy DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors with Chalkboard Paint

You can make beautiful DIY signs on Old Cabinet Doors. Especially when they have a molding edge that already looks like a picture frame. But, even a flat cabinet door can make a pretty sign.

For this chalkboard paint sign, I used Benjamin Moore’s Hale Navy latex wall paint in eggshell sheen to make my own chalkboard paint.

Hale Navy is already the accent color on my DIY laundry table, so it ties in perfectly with the colors in my Laundry Room.

Making Homemade Chalkboard Paint

Because I wanted a special color of chalkboard paint, I painted the chalkboard sign with a homemade chalkboard paint mix.

To make the chalkboard paint, I used about 2 tablespoons of non-sanded grout mixed with 1 cup of latex paint.

That recipe works with acrylic wall paint too. Just be sure to mix it completely before using it.

I applied the first coat with a brush and allowed it to dry before adding a second coat. I usually allow the second coat a long time to dry and 2 or 3 days to cure.

After the second coat dries, if the chalkboard paint is a bit bumpy, you can give it a light sand with a 150 grit sandpaper and dust it off.

Then rub the entire chalkboard with a piece of white chalk and dust that off. The board is now ready to be used as a chalkboard!

You can find answers to common questions about how to make chalkboard paint with grout in another post.

I used a white permanent paint pen to add ‘Laundry 25¢’ in the corner. This just dressed this DIY Sign on an old cabinet door up a bit and gave it some vintage character.

How to Make Painted Quote DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors

For the Painted Quote DIY Sign on the second old cabinet door I made chalk paint using plaster of Paris and that same Hale Navy Latex Wall Paint.

To make chalk paint with latex or acrylic wall paint you mix 1 cup of it with a Plaster of Paris and warm water mixture. Click the link to the full chalk paint recipe details for how to make it and why I love chalk paint for furniture painting and home decor projects.

I applied 2 coats of that chalk paint. While that dried, I used MS Word to design the look I wanted for the painted quote on the sign.

After I picked the fonts, sizes, and layout for my quote; I printed it out on normal printer paper. Then I used my favorite transfer method to transfer text for signs.

I used a pencil to shade the text on the back of the paper, then flipped it over and traced the letters on the old cabinet door. Tracing the letters with pencil on the back transfers the letters onto the old cabinet door.

Pencil is kinda hard to see on dark paint like the blue I used. You can do the same trick with white chalk paint on the back of the paper too. Just be sure to use enough chalk to be able to see the outline of the letters.

When you pull the paper off, the quote will now be transferred onto the sign. Then you can use a Permanent Paint Pen or a paint brush dipped in paint to fill in your letters. Do a second coat on the letters, if necessary.

Hang Old Cabinet Door Signs

After they were finished, I decided to hang the chalkboard sign on the Laundry Room side of our garage door and the painted quote sign on the garage side of the garage door.

Since they’d be hanging on a door swinging open and shut all the time with my little guys underneath, I decided to be extra cautious when hanging those DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors.

I decided to use some of my trusty Command Picture & Frame Strips to hang the old cabinet door signs on both sides of the garage door.

And, I also decided to connect the 2 cabinet doors to each other using twine and eye hooks hung over the top of the door. That way, if the velcro fails when the door slams, the twine will keep it from falling to the floor.

These signs really dress up that door and I have to say, I don’t miss those notes one bit!

Be sure to check out my picks for the 20 Best DIY Projects Using Chalkboard Paint for some really AWESOME ideas.

UPDATE 2018: I gave my Laundry Room another new look by adding a mudroom to my Laundry Room, building an even better DIY Over Washer and Dryer Laundry Table, and going for a pretty teal on the cabinets in this colorful Laundry Room Makeover.

That mudroom was even featured in Better Homes and Gardens that year. I also added some extra pretty style to the colorful small Modern Farmhouse powder room in that Laundry Room.

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I also love this DIY for using Chalkboard Paint on Cabinet Doors to keep things organized.

You might also like this easy DIY Star Wars Wood Art Sign.

Or, my big printable guide for How to Paint Furniture for Beginners.

And, I love this easy step by step DIY for how to patina paint faux metal finishes.

While you are here, grab my Free Printable for 6 Essential Homemade Wood Finishing Recipes.

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Feeling inspired? Now that you know how to make your own DIY Signs on Old Cabinet Doors, get to it!

Have fun and let me know if you have questions. Don’t forget to sign up for the Abbotts At Home Email Newsletter to get the latest DIY projects emailed to you every week.