Sustainable Chalking on Found Surfaces-Pallets.

I wouldn’t consider myself a tree hugging crunchy granola kinda girl, but I do have concerns about the world my son will inherit and whether there will be room left but for the massive amount of trash. Why not take some of that trash and turn it into treasure? I know, trite phrases aside, there are so many ways to be creative with found objects, thrift shop items or yard sale finds. I’ve done a couple of pallet crafts- smaller projects on pallet boards, like these:

Recently, I took on the mother of pallet crafts- a full pallet project – by making an American flag for my front yard by my porch. Pallets are pretty easy to come by, but there are a few things to be aware of.

Don’t pay for a pallet. You probably know someone who works at a shipping/receiving warehouse or other store that might receive things on pallets. If not, keep an eye on your local craigslist, Freecycle or Free Facebook Marketplace. They are on there quite a bit.

PLEASE ASK FIRST before grabbing a pallet. Some stores actually are required to return their pallets. If you take it, that would be stealing. And that would make baby Jesus cry.

MAKE SURE your pallet has a stamp on it so you know if it was chemically treated or not. Some pallets are, so you don’t want to sand it or have it in your house. (That might just make you cry, or worse ? ) Here’s a handy reference so you know what you can use.

MOST of the time you’ll see HT, and that’s a good one, but just take a look for sure. If you can’t find a stamp, I’d leave it and find another one. We don’t need any toxic pallet crafts in our lives.

USE A RECIPROCATING SAW TO DISASSEMBLE. If you’re going to take your pallet apart, the easiest way is to use a reciprocating saw and cut the nails, rather than try and pry them apart, which usually results in split wood. PLEASE BE CAREFUL. The saw will jump around a little, so if you’re not confident with power tools, DO NOT try this. The safest thing to do is try to pry it off gently with a pry bar or, if you plan on doing this a lot, there is a special tool to pry stuff like this apart that you might invest in called a pallet buster. Truth be told, my assistant got the pallet boards for me, so I’ve never used the saw and frankly don’t think I would given my accident prone nature.

So back to my pallet flag. I had fun making it – a special challenge of a sizeable project. I also had technical issues with the video, so there are 3 different ones, sorry. (Technology is great when it works) I think it turned out great, don’t you?

I used the Home of the Brave Chalk Couture Transfer, along with Cadet Chalk Paste. I also used a Stir Stick and small squeegee.

Check out these videos to see how I did this fun pallet craft.

Whew. Silly internets. I will try and do more chalking on sustainable surfaces for you to see more possibilities.

Stay safe and chalk on!

 

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