Does anyone know if you can get a nice smooth finish using a roller to apply chalkboard paint? My finish looks kind of textured. The man at the paint store said it is orange peel. I've read about many people applying it to walls with a roller and they say they love it. I wouldn't be happy with a wall that looks like my finished product. I am trying to make 2'X2' chalkboards. I started with masonite, but I finally found 2'X4' chalkboard material. The only problem is it is green and I need black. So, the man at the paint store said just paint them with the black - sounds easy enough. But no such luck. I've followed every tip I've been told - make sure you start with a clean, smooth surface, don't shake the paint, stir it for 5 minutes, don't press hard, let the roller do the work, use the right kind of roller, etc. I have tried different brands of paint, different rollers (1/4" nap for ultra smooth finish, foam) Oh, and some of the rollers I bought were not cheap.
I am on my third can of paint, so this is getting a bit expensive (for a so called cheap project). And I want to make several. I won't use spay paint without a paint booth, so that is out. I'm really not good at using a brush, but I thought a roller would be a cinch.
I am open to suggestions. At this point I am ready to cry, but I AM DETERMINED NOT TO GIVE UP.
Thanks in advance for any help!

I have been looking at chalkboard paint and I have to say I am so excited I found this it will save so much money.

As for the texture thing while I was looking at the Martha version it says to sand it with 150-grit sandpaper, and wipe off dust. Hope that helps :)

I did this over the weekend. It's really cool. I missed the part about white chalk board paint, and I just used white paint mixed with black chalk board paint — it worked fine.

Also, I started with the black paint, then added 1/2 cup of white, then another 1/2 cup, then another - it gave me four shades of gray without having to do the ratio thing as described in the artice.

I did the magnetic thing too.

I love chalkboard paint! It's the easiest and most affordable way to decorate a room! You can actually purchase premade color chalkboard paints now - they come in 10 different colors and are SO easy to use! You can see them at www.tilanofresco.com

Gina - I think that the restaurants use chalk marker. I've seen them at craft store and it says on their packaging that store and restaurants use them for vibrant color.

The chalk markers are awesome! Harder to erase and they dry so you can't 'blend' as easily (if you're making art) but still... nice and bold.

I recently found a different Martha Steward entry on how to make chalkboard paint:

http://www.marthastewart.com/article/make-custom-color-chalkboard-paint

it uses unsanded tile grout plus any flat latex paint, so it sounds simpler. Also appealing is the fact that the recipe starts with 1c paint.... larger qtys than the above recipe. Any thoughts (randi?) on which recipe yields a better surface? Cuz of course that's the important thing.

"Does anyone know where the chain restaurants get their chalks for their chalkboards?"

It's not chalk. Those are pre-PAINTED boards. It only looks like chalk for the cute factor.

Kookieann, you're going to have to sand it to get a really smooth finish. But I use a very fine sandpaper, anywhere from 400 to 600 grit. You can get it at the hardware store; it's black, not tan.

This is how I get a smooth paint finish: paint with a flat foam pad - pour a little paint on your surface and spread it with the foam pad - you'll figure out how much to pour as you go, maybe try it on a scrap board first.

When it's dry, wet-sand it with a very fine sandpaper, anywhere from 400 to 600 grit. The paper is black, not tan; every hardware store carries it. I tear the paper into smaller pieces that I can easily manage in one hand, dip the paper in a bowl of water, and sand carefully with my fingers flat - not my fingertips. You can use a sanding block, too, to make sure even pressure is being applied.

You'll want to do at least two coats, maybe three. But it will come out silky-smooth.

Rustoleum makes a chalkboard paint in which you can choose from 12 different colors; no more "just green and black" at all.

http://www.rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=168

Is there chalk that doesn't have too much dust? Where to buy?

also when I worked at a bar we used to wet the chalk before writing to make the color more vibrant

ALERT! I use chalk on a wall in my kitchen that isn't smooth and is neither flat nor chalkboard paint. It's just dark semi-gloss. I'd been procrastinating on a chalkboard project because I don't have any unsanded grout. I have a small chalkboard so I have chalk and I tried it on a dark wall of semi-gloss in the kitchen and it worked fine! I just use it for grocery lists and phone numbers so I guess if one was an artist one might want something else, but if I smoothed out the brush strokes with sand paper I suspect it would work just fine for any purpose.

Just tried wetting the end of my cheapo chalk and that makes it MUCH easier to write.

Is it strange to be so excited about such things?

I bought my colored chalkboard paint at www.tilano.net . They have 10 different colors and it works just like real paint. I have tried making it, but it just didn't work that well.

great colors, all set: http://www.hudsonpaint.com/

Hudson paint as 24 beautiful colors , self priming low voc
you can create a chalkboard on almost any smooth surface
we painted our mud room and fridge door and the result is a lot of fun

You can purchase Tilano Chalkboard Paint, which is also a great self priming low VOC paint through their website http://www.tilano.net

Their products were featured on Extreme Makeover Home Edition, so it must be good!

We always used wet chalk when I was kid. It's brighter and easier to blend.

My kindergartners discovered the fun of wet chalk during a field trip last school year, all on their own.

One girl came and tattled that other students had dumped paint on her. She was bright blue and purple from head to toe. We asked where they found paint and she said that they had made it. Turns out, they took the sidewalk chalk we had brought along and had ground it down on some rocks and mixed it with water from the fountains.

No more chalk for them!

My point is, wet chalk is a totally different animal. You might try that before you spend any extra money.