I’m loving the chalkboard trend.  Whether it’s chalkboard paint on an empty wine bottle for decor or a chalkboard wall in a nursery or playroom for learning and creativity.  With its recent rise in popularity it seems as though Chalkboard could be in the running for Pantone of the Year. I love it – especially for kids.  Ironically, I realized that as the color emerges the actual substance of chalk is on the decline.  Chalk looks cool, but it’s messy, it’s hard to write with and it fades over time.

Recently I was given the opportunity to try Chalkola Chalk Markers.  These markers operate like a paint pen, but leave the look of a chalk marker.  They glide on fairly smoothly to any nonporous surface, which basically means any smooth surface that does not absorb liquid – windows, glass, marker boards, mirrors, even pumpkins for Halloween.  My daughter acted a though it was Christmas the day the Chalkola markers arrived.  She couldn’t wait to get the box open and to start creating.  I’m not going to lie – my enthusiasm was not far behind her!

The Chalkola markers actually contain a high density of chalk ink, so they do take a couple of minutes to get started.  After a little experimenting we found the best way to get them started was to shake vigorously for about 30 seconds and then to gently pump the tip of the marker against a hard surface for a minute or so until the ink starts to flow smoothly.

Once we got the ink flowing the markers worked great!  The colors were incredible and the fact that the markers work on basically any smooth, non porous surface completely opened the door to creativity.  My kids thought I was crazy, but fun, when I handed them a marker and told them to color the windows.  I’m not going to lie, I was a little nervous when it took only minutes for the kids to completely cover our dining room picture window.  I started to question what I had gotten myself into, but the markers cleaned up great with just a wet cloth.  Now I was game for trying them anywhere!  For fun I wrote the week’s menu on the refrigerator door and left the kids a gentle reminder to brush their teeth on the  bathroom mirror.  I even let my daughter practice her spelling words and math problems on the window, which added some much needed fun and excitement to homework time.

The markers came in 2 sizes, 6mm pens and 15mm markers.  After all the fun we had playing with the markers over the weekend, I took some of the pens to the office on Monday to test their resilience in the business world.  I started by using the chalk markers on my dry erase board – they worked great!  My desk is protected by a sheet of glass, so I thought, why not replace the sea of post it’s that generally covers my desk by writing with the chalk markers directly on the glass covering?  Again, the markers worked great & became quite the conversation piece around the office.  A few of my co-workers went online that day and purchased for the same use!  I also bought a pack in each size for my kids teachers.  I can only imagine the applications in the classroom!

The markers are available for purchase on Amazon by following the below links.

15mm Chalk Markers – Save 20% by using coupon code CHK20OFF

6mm Chalk Pens – Save 20% by using coupon code CHALK20A

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Where are you going to try Chalkola Chalk Markers?  I’d love to hear your applications!

As always, thanks for visiting ‘the pARTy planning.’