I love this! Our pantry door is already coated with chalkboard paint - so this would go right along! I've been meaning to paint the cupboards for a while...

What an Great idea!

I like the idea, but I think it would feel very cluttered.

Haha, an entire upper cupboard for 'ashtrays?'

That's whole lot of ashtrays...otherwise, I like this idea. It would save me from the constant "Hey, honey! Where do we keep the ___?"

i can see how this would be useful if it's a communal kitchen or something like that, but in your own home? is it really that hard to memorize where the different stuff is?

I would hate this.

Looks horrible. And there is absolutely nothing "green" about this. Why is this green style?

"Green" seems to mean absolutely nothing these days.

the_doc, once again our Green Style feature is intended to be an eclectic mix of inspiration for what we think of overall as a "healthy home." Sometimes it's a home tour with solar panels and recycled blue jean insulation; other times, like this, it's just a creative reuse idea or a possible DIY, a way to make due with what you have.

Ashtrays, really? Green, how? If this is an example of 'green' design, why are they keeping their appliances like toasters and water kettles plgged in? This is just another snapshot of some hipster's apartment...

This is a great way to avoid the expense and headache of a kitchen remodel. Per the usual, the nasties need to spew their venom. I am tired of it.

Also, it is a fun conversation starter and a bit kitsch. These are all good things in my book. Thanks for sharing.

JamesG, thank you! Your thinking is right along with ours.

Though not my style, I really like this. So what if they have a cabinet filled with ashtrays -- I've got a whole drawer full of nutcrackers.

I have mixed feelings about this... I love the idea of repainting cabinets to be green, but my kitchen is hard enough to keep clean without chalk dust everywhere. I am not a fan of labeling where things go either. Maybe writing out some of your favorite recipes? Or what you are planning to make for the week? Hahahah that would get rid of the constant "what's for dinner?" question!
I would definitely take this idea into another room!

Ever see the chalk paint pens they use at restaurants? those always look so smooth & perfect & I bet they'd work great on this. I already know my kitchen's layout, so I'd do something like write recipes on the doors.

Yuck, yuck, yuck. Where does the chalk dust go? In your bowl of cereal?

hah, "Washing shit."

Living with a retired Marine, well, it makes me laugh if and when I read a shopping list that he'd write out...

"Shit-can liners" is my ultimate favorite.

Disaster. This is something I'd have done in my 20's when I didn't know any better.

#FAIL

I just bought a vintagy style cupboard off craigslist and replaced the tin front panel with chalkboard. It's hanging in my kitchen and I love it, but it definitely has that "fork on a chalkboard" energy to it. To much of it would have me wanting to pull my hair out.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36263456@N08/4306960343/

I've been debating whether or not to do this in my home. I live in an RV where 90% of my storage space is found in bulkhead cabinets. It's surprisingly hard to remember where stuff is when it's piled three high and four deep.

I thought of painting the insert panel in each door with chalkboard paint. This post warms me up further to the idea, but tells me that I need to paint the rest of the cabinets a softer colour and that I need to go with a less harsh colour for the chalkboard paint itself.

this looks fun minus the chalk dust.

for a more practical solution, how about using black glass and white-coloured markers? :)

To those worried about dusty, their are liquid chalk markers out there; that's what restaurants usually use on their boards. http://www.rainbowchalk.com/ (I am in no way affiliated with this link)

Thank you to the person who mentioned putting the recipes on them. I'm going to add my favourite and most-made recipes to the back of the cabinet doors in the kitchen!

I think this is cool. It would also come in handy if your house is a vacation rental. Neat post.

Incredible idea for homeowners with an abundance of Alzheimer's AND bad taste!

I just bought a house with these chalkboard cabinets. I wouldn't have chosen to do them and can't afford a remodel quite yet, but my friends really enjoy writing/drawing on them, and it's nice to leave that up.

I've been thinking about this too, but a little scaled down. I think this is a nicer version (I've been thinking about white cabinets with green chalkboard panels myself):
http://vintagesimplehome.blogspot.com/2009/06/kitchen.html

@lynnebee: I can definitely see incorporating the chalkboard panels in this scaled-down version. Very nice.

@lynnebee - I really like what you did with your kitchen. Just one or two cabinets is perfect.
The kitchen shown above feel dark and crowded, which in my mind negates the usefulness of the chalkboard cabinet doors.

@JamesG and CambriaNYAT - was there a comment that was deleted? nothing here seems inappropriate to me, just folks expressing their opinions. I'm surprised to continue reading comments indicating that only positive comments that agree with the poster are acceptable.

syrupandhoney, the_doc's post (the one I responded to earlier in the thread) was accidentally deleted. I have reinstated it. Thanks for catching it!

... Why would I forget? This is kind of up there with people who tattoo their own name on their body somewhere. Never really understood that, either.

But it would be really sweet for leaving notes!

scaled down and a little neater with the chalk pens as mentioned above would be super cute...

If I had an array of 7 upper cabinet doors (and were inclined to this casual approach -- say, at a vacation house?) I would use it as a weekly calendar. Shopping and Errand days might have lists with contributions from all members of the household.

A little too black and white for me color-wise, but I like the idea and, in addition to being green because it recycles cupboards, it also saves paper because you can leave messages for family members and housemates (reminders, phone messages, love notes). We are always leaving notes for each other in my house.

It's also a great idea because when you have friends and guests over, they can find stuff, which makes it easier to take them up on their offers to help...

No, no NO!!! Why would an adult want a kitchen like this??? I'm assuming there are no children, due to the note on second door from left under the sink.

Agree w/Joseph Warrren.

Idea is cute, but the representation in this picture is pretty horrible. The white knobs look terrible, the black walls are too much. The open cabinets are full of crap, there is junk everywhere, the counters are rediculouly cluttered, the stove is crappy...

I think the whole point of the labels is that you can be whimsical and funny... and change them - it's a chalkboard, after all.

I love it. We change our styes. This is definitely one I would have done. In fact, before we remodeled our kitchen, I did paint a panel and it made me laugh. It was my junk drawer.

Hated it...sorry.

I think this idea would be great in a child's room or perhaps, a work space. Or, even one board in the kitchen.

If this weren't an apt, I'd do this in a heartbeat.

For children only? O, I can't wait til those commenters get older. It's surprising how much stuff a person can forget even without Alzheimers.

I put post-its inside my cabinets, one at each shelf level. It helps after rearranging my cabinet innards and when friends help put away dishes and groceries.

and I didn't even notice the one that said "washing shit" til someone LOLed. Excellent!

I like the idea of writing my shopping list or recipes on such cupboards but i will absolutely hate the screeching made by chalks at times

Hudson Paint has erasable chalkboard paint in all kinds of colors, though their website doesn't say anything about VOCs.

http://www.hudsonpaint.com/chalkboard-paint-colors/

I love a chalkboard area as much as the next gal, I once even repainted a dresser with chalkboard paint because I had some leftover, but the notion of every surface being writeable isn't nifty to me, it just looks like a hot mess. Something is aesthetically pleasing or it is not. This to me, is not.

I think you could do something a little less "cluttered-looking" to label the cupboards...perhaps neat little label frames at the bottom of each door instead? I sort of like the look of this, but not quite for me. I especially like the one labled "washing $hit"

if i moved into a place and the cabinets were awful, but i didn't have enough money to do a full renovation - then i would consider this (sans ashtray cupboard).

I painted my kitchen backsplash with chalkboard paint in that the greenest thing is what you already own. Not to mention it's cheaper and less resource intensive than recycled glass tile (which my husband & I couldn't agree on.)

I don't have a problem with chalk dust getting everywhere or on my food. I use a slightly damp rag to erase the chalkboard and that's that. As for what's written on the cupboards, well, I know that we have a lot of fun writing things like "life itself" and a arrow pointing to the coffee maker and "Please dispose of body parts here" over the garbage disposal so I wouldn't take them too seriously if they say they have a cupboard full of ashtrays or other not so green things. Or maybe they just like to collect ash trays?

Clever! Not necessarily something I would incorporate into my ENTIRE kitchen - but what fun! I want to be friends with the person who lives there!

As it is, it's too much for my taste. But it might just get a person thinking more creatively about redoing their cabinets, so definitely worth a post.

I hope the chalkboard fad ends soon. Chalkboard dust, even with "dustless" chalk is a wicked mess and gets into your lungs. I made a great chalkboard/magnet board combo and stopped using the chalkboard within a few days because of the chalk dust issues. SO not worth it.

P.S. - chalk dust gets everywhere when you write as well as when you erase, so the only way to avoid it is to not use chalk.

I always seem to be attracted the chalk board motif.. but in moderation..plus, the black wall is too much as well.
This would work better in a commercial type space..
obviously, they have a sense of humor..hence, the astrays...love that... it's funny!