I’m getting ready for some visitors in early November. November 1st and 2nd to be exact. These aren’t your normal run of the day visitors, these are my dearly departed. I’m getting ready for visitors from the other side in honor of Day of the Dead/ Día de los Muertos. I’ll be setting up an entire altar for them soon, but right now I wanted to make something a little extra special to hold the cempasúchitl (marigold) flowers I will placing on the altar.
Last year was the very first year that I ever truly celebrated Día de los Muertos and it was a wonderful way to talk to my daughters about death and also a way to introduce them to people and relatives they never had a chance to meet. We set up and decorate the altar together and every year I hope to add a special new element. This year, I’m adding DIY chalkboard vases that I made and decorated with hand-drawn calacas.
The vases were super easy to make. All I did was buy square ceramic vases, chalkboard paint, and a sponge brush at my local Lowe’s. The ceramic vases/potholders were originally a deep red color and I added two coats of chalkboard paint to them.
I really like the red color so I let it show through in areas, I wasn’t going for perfect coverage. Once the paint had dried, I used liquid chalk pens that I already owned to hand-draw calacas on them.
I love the way the DIY chalkboard vases turned out and the best part is that I can wipe off the calacas that are on there right now and decorate them with new ones every year or different designs throughout the year.
Do you celebrate Día de los Muertos?
Disclosure: I am a member of the Lowe’s Creative Ideas Blogger Network. I was provided with a gift card that I used to complete this project. All statements and opinions are mine. You can connect with Lowe’s on…
Facebook * Lowe’s Creative Ideas Website * Pinterest * Instagram
aww, I love it. You can actually reuse the vases for every holiday. That’s cool.
Love them! Que bonitas y reciclables, Saludos!
Wow, I was just thinking about you! Saludos, amiga. It was so nice to see you even though I didn’t get to spend much time with you. I love your spirit and enthusiasm.
You are a riot. You don’t do a lot of crafts but when you do they are great and the pictures are boss! I lived in Santa Fe for 2 years during college and celebrated
Well, thank you VERY much.
Love what you made. I was at World Market today and they had a few decorations for Day of the Dead and I thought of you.
These are really cute! I celebrate Dia de los Muertos, but it’s evolved over time… I’ve been thinking about what to do this year… Thanks for the inspiration!
I am going to find out where I can get some chalkboard paint tomorrow. Love your art – those calacas look cute!
They are beautiful! what a lovely tribute.
These are awesome!! I really love the idea making different designs throughout the year. Xo, Elba
My kids love them.
oooh! these are so happy! the colors of the pens really pop! i want to make some now. thank you for sharing!
I’ll tell you a little secret, the intent was to do different designs on them seasonally, but I liked them so much I still have the skulls on them.
Hee-hee! I too lean towards a Day of the Dead motif year round. Chalk it up to being from L.A., an infusion of all things Melrose Blvd in my teens, and a young love for Oingo Boingo.
Oingo Boingo was the first concert I ever went too and I grew up in L.A. Ha!
Mine too (1986 at the forum)! I actually grew up in North Hollywood but the SFV is pretty L.A.
Dude, San Fernando Valley is totally part of L.A. no matter what anyone says. I graduated from Van Nuys High. Valley girl all the way.
Deja-vu! Have we had this conversation before? I graduated from Grant! I am a true Valley Girl 80s all the way.
It’s possible we’ve had the conversation before, but I don’t remember. One of my best friends from the 80s graduated from Grant in ’89. We had gone to Sepulveda Junior High together.
crazy! i’m class of 89 too! (i was labeled a bit of a weirdo)
Get out of town. Her name is Gayle Isa, did you know her by any chance?
holy moly! i remember Gayle. we had classes together. she was really nice. how cool is this?!
It’s a small internet after all.
i love when that happens. actually met the mister that way and it turned out we had the same kindergarten teacher two years apart…made even cooler since I had moved away from that area 25 years ago!
Kismet!