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Looking for a fun and easy way to label plastic storage containers and decorate them? One idea is to use chalkboard paint. If you are not familiar with chalkboard paint, it is incredibly useful stuff. You can apply it to pretty much any surface you can think of—wood, glass, plastic—and it will create a surface similar to a chalkboard. You can then write on it and erase as many times as you want. This allows you to label an opaque bin with its contents. If you repurpose the plastic storage bin later, you can simply erase what you wrote and write something new.

What if you don’t want your plastic bins to be black or green? You are in luck. You can buy chalkboard paint in any color! If you cannot find the color you want at the store, ask and they may order it for you, or you can order it online. You also can look up instructions for mixing colors on your own. The colorful paint is not only great for making your bins pretty, but is also especially fun if you are getting children involved.

How do you do it? Here are some quick and easy instructions!

1. Start by washing the plastic storage cube with soap and water. Wait for it to dry.
2. Grab some sandpaper and prime the surface by scuffing it; there is no need to overdo this step. Just scuff it a little.
3. Apply a bonding primer next which is formulated to adhere to plastic. The sanding step you took first will help it to adhere. You can use either a paintbrush or a roller. Wait for the primer to dry.
4. Open the container of chalkboard paint and stir it with a stick for a minute. Then apply two coats to the surface of the bin. Wait for the first to dry before you apply the second.
5. Wait for the paint to cure. This just means letting the bin sit overnight before you attempt to write on it.

If you want, you can also label the bin without painting the whole thing. You can just paint a section of it as a rectangular labeling area. If you want to make the edges nice and neat, an easy way to do it is to apply some tape first. Use the tape to section off a rectangle, and then paint the rectangle only. Once you are done, wait for it to dry, apply your second coat, and wait for that to dry too. When you peel off the tape, it will have nice straight edges.

This is a fun project to do on your own or with your family. Kids have a great time with chalkboard paint, and painting a whole bin is also a great incentive for getting children to accept your new storage solution. The bin itself becomes a toy after it has been painted, since they can not only label it, but also draw pictures and designs on it.