{burlap chore chart}

The summer arrived, and I knew I must get going on the chore chart I had been wanting to do forever. My love of burlap, clothespins, and ribbon came together in this project, and I am just thrilled about how it turned out. Hopefully my kids will be just as excited. :)

Burlap Chore Chart


Items you need:

• art canvas, desired size (Michael's is a great place to get these, because they are often on a 40%-50% sale, or you can use one of their 40% off coupons. I spent $5 for this 12x24 canvas. You could use wood (plywood or MDF) cut to size, but it will be much heavier.)

• burlap, cut to size, with an additional 2-3 inches overlap

• nail gun

• 7/8 inch ribbon
  

• cardstock

• 2 inch circle cutter

• distress ink

• clothespins

• 3/8 inch ribbon to cover clothespins

• double stick tape

• foam stamps

• craft paint
  

Directions:

1. Lay out your burlap flat, then place your canvas upside down on top of it. Fold over the edges of your burlap, and using the nail gun, nail the burlap to the canvas. It is really helpful to have two people doing this--one to use the nail gun, and the other to fold over the burlap and stretch it tightly. Be generous with your nails, making sure there are no gaps in the burlap. Fold the edges over neatly, and staple those in place.




2. Using a ruler, figure out how to space your ribbons evenly across the canvas. I needed three ribbons (one for each child), and my canvas was 24 inches wide. I placed the ribbons at 6 inches, 12 inches, and 18 inches, leaving 6 inches on either end and in between each other. Nail these in place. You want them to be fairly tight, and not too loose, but they do need to be loose enough that you can get the clothespins off and on.



3. Print the desired text on the cardstock, then cut them out with the circle cutter. I did circles for each chore, and then I also did more circles with "well done", "good job", etc. for the other side (to see when they completed the chore and turned the clothespin over). Distress all the edges.


4. I LOVE these ribbon covered clothespins! It is much, much, easier than cutting out paper and mod podging them on. I discovered that 3/8 inch ribbon fits perfectly on a clothespin, so I just attached it with double stick tape on each side, and cut the excess on the back side of the clothespin to get as close as possible. Using fray check on the ends will prevent your ends from fraying.


5. Using double stick tape, adhere the chore circles to one side of the clothespins, and your praise circles on the other side. Clip them to the ribbons on your board.





6. Stamp your desired text directly on to the burlap, using the foam stamps and craft paint. I have found that it's the easiest to just use my finger to apply the paint to the stamp--it lets you control the "gloppiness" that can sometimes happen. Remember--it's going to look cutest if it's not perfect--the charm comes with the imperfection.


And you're done! This method will also let you change the chores very easily, just removing the current chore circles and replacing them with new ones.