DIY plant labels

All year round I have all sort of pots and jars with potting soil in it. I try to grow my own herbs and honestly I am not really good at it. But I am persistent, I have to get it right someday. Not everything dies or never even starts living. Parsley and mint are doing great here. The more delicate herbs like coriander and basil are having a hard time with me. These pots can show nothing but plain soil for weeks and weeks, until I forget what seeds I put in. I used to write the name of the plant on the pot with a black marker. That's pretty permanent. I now have pots that say basil parsley bell pepper. So it was time to make some reusable plant labels.

I love it when you have an idea and you have everything you need right there. I made these plant labels from stir sticks you get when you buy paint. You could also use one half of a big wooden cloth pin. Also doesn't cost a thing.

You will need: wooden (flat) sticks of any sort // sand paper // saw // masking tape // paint brush or roller // cloth pins to hang them to dry the paint // chalkboard paint & any other color paint

If you use stir sticks, saw them at the length you want and make them smooth with sand paper. I rounded all the edges a little. Tape them so you cover the part you don't want to paint. Use chalkboard paint for the part you want to write on. Paint both sides. Hang it to dry, using the cloth pin. When they're all dry you can paint the other half. Tape the chalkboard side, so you don't get any color on there.

This time I took the tape off before the paint was dry. I don't know what's the best way to do that... Hang them again to dry. That's really all there is to it. All you need now is a piece of chalk to write on it.

You can change the pattern of course, make the whole middle part chalkboard paint and just dip the tip in a different color.