The Chalkboard Table in Our Playhouse

I’ve gotten quite a few questions in regards to the chalkboard table in our playhouse, so I thought it would be a good time to explain it in a little more depth. 

Basically, we wanted the option to have a table in our playhouse so our kids could have a place to enjoy a snack or play games. It’s a little tricky to do when you have such a small footprint to work with, so we opted for a table that folds down from the wall. And why not make it look cute and function as a chalkboard when the table is not in use? Here’s a breakdown of how we created the chalkboard table.

THE SUPPLIES

• Pressure treated plywood
• Pressure treated 1×4 boards 
• 3-inch hinges 
• Chalkboard paint 
• Hook and eye latch 

THE CHALKBOARD

You can really adjust these plans to any dimensions to meet your needs, but I’ll share what we did. 

I cut down a sheet of pressure treated plywood to 33″ wide by 24″ high. After cutting, I painted both sides with the chalkboard paint. Once your chalkboard paint is completely dry you can add some trim (1×4 boards) around the perimeter to create a frame. The frame is made up of 1×4 pressure treated boards, stained to match our playhouse, and attached with either screws or nails.

THE TABLE

So now that the chalkboard is complete, we will be attaching the table legs. The table legs are simply 1×4 pressure treated boards cut to 22 1/2″ in length. They sit on top of the right and left sides of the chalkboard frame.

Start by adding hinges to the top of the 1×4 table leg boards. Then you can attach them to the actual chalkboard frame. They will need to be slightly offset from the top of the chalkboard frame. I offset them 1 1/2″ from the top of the chalkboard frame. This will make more sense when you see how they pop out to hold the table.

MOUNTING THE CHALKBOARD TABLE

Finally, time to hang your chalkboard table! Flip your chalkboard over, so it is face down, and add 3 or 4 hinges along the bottom side. Now get ready to mount this onto your wall. 

The bottom of our chalkboard sits 24″ off the floor of our playhouse. Hold the chalkboard in place horizontally (as if it were in table mode) and adjust it to the correct height. Once you have it positioned correctly, screw the hinges directly onto your wall. Be sure they go into a few studs and they are securely attached to the wall, or in our case the 2×4 framing. The last step is to add a hook and eye latch so the table stays put when folded up. 

THE RESULTS

With a few accessories, it’s the perfect spot for dining alfresco!

We actually ended up using mostly scrap wood for this project (save your scraps!) and had most of the supplies on hand. So for a couple of dollars in hinges and a latch, it’s an incredibly budget-friendly project!

SOURCES

White Outdoor Curtains from Home Goods (Similar Option) | Solar Powered LED Outdoor String Lights | 3’x5’ Black and White Rug (Similar Option) | Outdoor Throw Pillows | Natural Square Pouf Ottoman (Similar Option) | Gold Cutlery | Galvanized Trough Planter (local, Cocalico Creek) | Galvanized Bucket | Climbing Rope and Swing

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