Marie, Author at DIY Adulation

A DIY debt payoff chalkboard keeps your debt payoff in your face so that you will not only be reminded of them constantly but also so that you can see your progress visually. That will help you keep your momentum up and propel you forward during the days when the last thing you want to do is cook dinner.

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[bctt tweet=”Keep your debt payoff momentum with a DIY debt payoff chalkboard! #diy #chalkboard #debtfree” username=”diyadulation”]

Getting out of debt takes discipline and dedication. It sucks but the truth is, it takes a lot of work. At this point you’ve set your budget, created goals to propel you forward, and you’re starting to chip away.

When we started this journey it was sobering to see how much debt we truly had. It was additionally shocking to me to see what those original loan amounts were for my student loans.

I have been deferring them for 8 years and while that kept us from having to make payments, it also meant that they continued accruing interested on the initial loan amount. Yikes!

Even though our income has actually gone down (my husband became salaried and lost all of the overtime pay we used to count on), we’ve finally had enough. We paid off our credit cards this month and now only have the student loans remaining.

Because this is such a huge chunk of our debt, I needed to be able to see what we are working towards. We need to see the progress we are making or it will feel like we’re stuck under this mountain. With this DIY debt payoff chalkboard I can see the progress grow with each payment.

DIY Debt Payoff Chalkboard Materials

8×10 Thrift Store Frame (Or bigger if you want)
White Acrylic Paint
1-inch Foam Brush
Acrylic Sealant
Chalkboard Contact Paper
Colorful Chalk (If you get the Contact Paper above it comes with it)
Ruler

Step 1

First, flip your frame over and begin disassembling it.

Step 2

After everything is out of your frame, set the glass and inserts aside for now.

Step 3

Next, flip your empty frame back over and add a coat of white acrylic paint to it. Allow your paint to dry completely.

Step 4

After your first coat has dried, add a second coat of white acrylic paint to the frame and let dry.

Step 5 (Optional)

If needed, add a third coat of paint to your frame. Mine required this but lighter woods and unfinished woods will not.

Step 6

As your paint dries, pull out the glass insert from your frame.

Step 7

Thoroughly clean your glass insert. If yours has the price written on the glass and Windex doesn’t remove it, try a little rubbing alcohol.

Tip:

Do not skip this step. You may think it is unnecessary since we are covering it but the contact paper will not stick securely if it isn’t clean.

Step 8

Next, cut a piece of chalkboard contact paper slightly larger than your glass insert. You want at least an inch of overlap on every side.

Step 9

Begin attaching your contact paper by peeling back a small piece of the backing and firmly pressing it to your glass insert. Smooth out any air bubbles as you go.

Step 10

Continue attaching your contact paper, smoothing out the bubbles, until your glass is completely covered.

Step 11

Now, carefully turn your covered glass insert over.

Step 12

Fold up the overages on the sides as pictured above.

Step 13

Again, flip your glass insert back over and be sure that all of the air bubbles are removed.

Step 14

After you have finished covering the glass insert, set it to the side and seal your dry frame with acrylic sealant. All the sealant to dry completely.

Tip:

Be sure to do this in a well-ventilated area.

Step 15

Next, flip your dry frame over and place your glass insert back in with the chalkboard side facing out.

Step 16

Then return your cardboard backing to your frame.

Step 17

Re-secure the backing of your frame according to its design.

Step 18

Now turn your chalkboard over and pullout your chalk and ruler.

Note:

You also want to have your debt snowball list in front of you. Don’t know what a debt snowball is? Read all about it in The Total Money Makeover.

Step 19

Use your ruler to create horizontal lines across the bottom of your chalkboard. You need one line for every debt.

Step 20

Begin creating your bar graph starting on the far right of your chalkboard. This should represent the largest debt you have. Each line on my graph represents $500.

Step 21

Continue creating your bar graph from right to left, working your way down to the smallest debt. The rectangles at the top of some of my bars represent an uneven amount that is less that $500. I tried to keep the representational of the extra amount but did it by hand.

Step 22

Next, fill in the name of the corresponding debts at the bottom of each bar graph. Add the total debt amount to the top of each bar graph.

Step 23

Lastly, hang your DIY debt payoff chalkboard somewhere prominent in your house. We hung ours by the front door so we will see it daily.

Now that we have this visual representation of our remaining debt the next little goal I’m looking forward to is erasing one of these paid off loans from the board. Even better, when you are finally debt free this chalkboard can be used for reminders or love notes to each other. No use creating something that can’t become a permanent piece of useful decor. How does it feel seeing all of your debt laid out? Is it shocking or better than you expected? Let me know in the comments and soon we’ll dive into lifestyle changes that will keep you from ever being in this place again.

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More Ideas You’ll Love:

DIY Credit Card Keychains for Debt-Free Living
5 Ways to Earn Extra Income
Beautiful and Functional Stash Frame
How to Set Big Goals (and Actually Achieve Them) – Domestically Creative

We are back again with the Movie Monday Challenge and I have to admit, this one was trickier for me. In honor of St. Patrick’s Day coming up we decided to go with the theme “Luck” and I really struggled to think of movies. Even Google searches didn’t pull up a lot of results. Finally, I landed on Freaky Friday (the newer one) and from there that led to this awesome Freaky Friday date night lantern.

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In case you haven’t seen it, Freaky Friday is about a mother and daughter who switch bodies. They cannot switch back until they are selfless for the other person. Of course, hijinks ensue which are hilarious but the concept got me thinking. When is the last time you did something with your husband simply because he liked it (even though you don’t) and vice-versa?

Think about how much your relationship would grow if you both did things for each other on a regular basis that the other person knew was exclusively for them. That would be pretty powerful.

That is where this Freaky Friday date night lantern comes in. After you’ve made it, fill it with date night ideas that you each love even if the other person doesn’t. Not only will this bring the two of you closer, it will also make weekly date nights at home easier.

Materials

Small Empty Red Coffee Can
Hot Glue Gun and Glue
Gold Glittery Ribbon (Similar)
Red and Yellow DMC Floss
Scissors
Small Rectangle of Cardboard

Step 1

Start by removing the label from your coffee can and cleaning the can thoroughly.

Tip:

The label will come off easier if you fill the can with hot water first and shake it with the lid on. This loosens the glue that holds the label on.

Step 2

Next, begin gluing strips of gold ribbon to the sides of the can with hot glue.

Step 3

Continue until the can has a strip of ribbon every 1 inch or so.

Step 4

Then add another strip of ribbon around the base of the can with hot glue. Make sure to overlap the ends to make it more secure.

Step 5

Repeat step four at the top of your coffee can. Be sure to do this on the bumped out part and not on the very top. You still need to be able to attach the lid.

Step 6

Now, unwrap your DMC floss and lay it out so that you can pull from it easily.

Step 7

Begin wrapping your floss around the piece of cardboard as pictured. Continue until you think you have enough for your tassel. I lost count of how many times I wrapped it. That is how many layers I made.

Step 8

After you have finished wrapping your floss, wrap the excess around the top to secure it temporarily.

Tip:

You can bend the cardboard if needed to get the floss through the center.

Step 9

Next, cut the bottom end of your wrapped floss.

Step 10

Carefully pull the floss off of the cardboard and permanently secure the folded end with a long piece of yellow floss. Knot it multiple times for best results.

Step 11

Next, wrap a piece of red floss around the top as pictured and secured with a double knot.

Step 12

Trim any excess red floss from the knots.

Step 13

Now trim the loose ends of the tassel to make them even.

Step 14

Then cut a hole in the center of your coffee can lid with scissors. I simply poked mine through. I didn’t try to get a perfect hole.

Step 15

Next, thread the long yellow floss through the hole in the lid from the top down.

Step 16

Tie a small piece of floss to the end of your threaded yellow floss. It doesn’t matter what color it is. Mine is red because I used the excess I trimmed from the knot around the tassel.

Step 17

Finally, tie the new piece of floss in a bow with the yellow floss and double knot. This will keep it from pulling out. Be sure to check the length at which you want your tassel to hang before committing to the knots. The knot placement will determine this.

Date Nights

Now that your Freaky Friday date night lantern is finished, it is time to fill it with date nights. We are currently trying to have one date night a week so we need a lot of ideas. Each of you should try to come up with at least 10-15 date night ideas. The catch is that you should pick things that you love that your spouse has maybe never tried or doesn’t enjoy quite as much. For example, I love Scattergories but my husband doesn’t really enjoy playing it. On the flip side of that, he loves playing video games and I have never really been a big gamer. These would both make perfect date night ideas for the lantern.

Fill It Up

Cut a piece of white printer paper into small strips (like fortunes from the movie) and fill them out with date ideas. Then toss them into the lantern and take turns blindly drawing one on date nights each week. Keep in mind that these should be dates that can be completed at home and in 1-2 hours ideally. You want to be able to whip them out after the kids go to bed and enjoy a fun date without being up until the wee hours of the morning.

If you want to add even more suspense to your Freaky Friday date night lantern don’t share your date ideas with each other. Let it be a complete surprise when you pull them out each week. If your husband isn’t a big chick flick or family movie guy, then you could totally put Freaky Friday movie night on one of the dates. Now it’s time to see what other lucky ideas the girls came up with for this month’s Movie Monday Challenge. I expect to feel lucky and inspired in no time!

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On the last (or fourth) Monday of each month, a group of bloggers participate in a #MovieMondayChallenge, hosted by C’mon Get Crafty! We decide on a topic, genre, or specific movie to use for inspiration and everyone gets free reign to create something wonderful!

This month’s challenge was. . . . “LUCK! Everyone was allowed to choose their own favorite film so long as it was inspired by the challenge word.

Now let’s see what everyone else was inspired to create for this month’s #MovieMondayChallenge!! If you’d like to join our Facebook group, you can request an invite here.

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