This is my freezer. What started out as a circa 1990 white freezer with rusted edges and a nifty (?) black and gray "racing stripe" down the left side has turned into one of my favorite things in our laundry room that was part of our garage remodel.
Not only is it much nicer to look at (and with a French door that we can see through, this is important), but it has become a time-saver for keeping track of our garden produce that I freeze for winter use.
Actually, it's become almost indispensable.
I keep chalk and an eraser in a magnetic holder on the side of the freezer which makes it easy to update the totals weather I'm putting something in or taking something out.
In June, a new season begins with as the strawberries ripen, so I start a new section on the bottom of everything I have left from the previous season that needs to be used up. So, this year I will move "2009" to the bottom along with anything left and their numbers, change the top to "2010" and erase all the category numbers (of anything that was left) making it ready for the new season's produce that I will be adding.
Can I just say I love, love, love this? I always struggled to keep track of the things I threw in the freezer, and especially using the things from the previous year that were buried under other things.
And of course I should also do this with the meat and frozen vegetables I buy, but haven't reached that pinnacle yet. :-)
It also serves as a nice art medium for anyone interested. Our daughter keeps our beautified.
Interested in doing this to a freezer you own? I've since heard some say you need to prep the surface first, but other than a light sanding, I just painted right over the top.
Here's what I did:
1. Sand the front of the freezer, just enough to dull the shine, with a medium-grit paper. Spend a little extra time on any rusty edges to smooth them out.
2. Paint a coat of chalkboard paint on front of freezer and let dry according to directions on the can.
3. Paint a second coat. I still looked a little scraggly, so I went ahead with a third coat after the second dried, but this is optional.
4. "Prime" the board according to directions. This involves using the edge of a piece of chalk to cover the entire surface and wiping it off.
5. Measure the edges (we used a 1" picture molding) and cut using a miter saw or box to make the corners. Paint the molding (a couple of coats), let dry and adhere to the edges with Liquid Nails, holding in place with clamps. We did one or two edges at a time, letting them dry before doing another edge. The clamps were tricky to keep in place because they didn't have much to hold onto, so that's why we did just one at a time to minimize any bumping.
That's it. For the cost of can of chalkboard paint ($7) and the molding (about another $7) we got a much better looking freezer and an organizational tool (we already had Liquid Nails).
That sure works for me.
-Jami
This is linked to Works for Me Wednesday.
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