Never misplace your keys again! This useful chalkboard key holder will not only keep your keys accessible, but it will also serve as a handy home message center.

If you've ever searched frantically for your misplaced keys or a pad of paper to write a note, you'll rejoice at the sight of this handy chalkboard key holder. This simple device not only keeps keys organized and accessible but also serves as a message center where you can leave and retrieve notes with ease.

While we chose to leave our chalkboard frame in its natural, unfinished state, you can also paint the frame to complement the decor of your home. Whether you hang your chalkboard by your front door, in your front hallway or on a wall in your kitchen, this chalkboard key holder will help keep both your keys and notes neatly corralled.

TECHNIQUE

Making a Twine Chalkboard Key Holder

Materials:

• 7-by-10-inch chalkboard with unfinished wood frame
• Five 3/4-inch cup hooks
• Ruler
• Awl
• Drill with a 1/8-inch bit
• 18-inch length of natural twine
• Chalk
• Small screw-eye
• Foam-handled eraser
• Binder clips

Directions:

1. On the front of the chalkboard, measure half an inch in from the edge of the chalkboard frame. Beginning with this point, use an awl to make five holes, spaced evenly about 1 1/4 inches apart, along the bottom of the chalkboard. Screw in the cup hooks into these holes.
2. On the top of the chalkboard frame, measure 2 1/4 inches in from the left and right sides of the edges of the frame. Make 2 holes (one at each spot) with an awl. Using a drill with a 1/8-inch drill bit attachment, create 2 holes where the wood is marked with the awl.
3. Pull the twine through the holes, and create a knot at the back of the chalkboard. This will make a loop for hanging the chalkboard.
4. Determine the location for hanging the chalkboard; measure a spot 8 inches above it. When you hang the chalkboard, the hanger will be visible, so select a decorative picture hanger, hook or nail, attach the hardware to the wall and hang the chalkboard.
5. Tie a length of twine around a piece of chalk; attach the chalk to one of the cup hooks. Insert a small screw-eye into one end of a foam-handled eraser, allowing it to be hung on one of the cup hooks. To hang grocery lists or a pad of paper from one of the hooks, use binder clips.

SOURCES

Chalkboard

Sunshine Discount Crafts

12335 62 Street N

Largo, FL 33773

800-729-2878

Untreated, natural twine

The Cook's Garden

P.O. Box C5030

Warminster, PA 18974-0574

800-457-9703

Binder Clips

Staples

800-333-3330

Ornamental nails

BZI Distributors

105 Eldridge Street

New York, NY 10002

212-966-6690

Brass pushpin hanger

Antique brass pushpin hanger

Small gold picture hanger

Fleur de lis pushpin hanger

Ornamental hooks

Cup hooks

Key rings

Available at hardware stores