Slate Cheese Board / Slate Cheese Tray

If your backyard get togethers are more wine-and-cheese than hot dogs-and-lemonade, this project will fit the bill.  This slate cheese board / slate cheese tray was made from an old roof tile and some etching cream!

Supplies:

• roof slate – can usually be found on Kijiji or Craig’s List – the more rustic, the better.
• two handles
• stencil of your wording and/or image
• glass etching cream and applicator brush
• sandpaper
• drill and concrete drill bit
• food-safe mineral oil (optional)

(Note – the glass etching cream is an acid and as such can burn your skin. Please remember to wear protective gloves while working with the etching cream)

I picked up these slate roofing tiles from a farm just outside of town.  The woman there let me have them for $2 each (bird poop was free), so I had to pick up a few.  (Not because the bird poop was free, but because they were two bucks.)  I thought they’d make cute hostess gifts – sans poop of course.

Start by sanding your slate tiles down thoroughly. While they will chip away over time, you do want to remove as many frayed pieces as possible before you start etching.  It sucks to go through the work of etching them only to have a layer of slate peel off and remove half of your wording (guess how I know this?)

Follow that by washing your tiles down to remove any dust and/or residue and let dry for at least and hour – the stone absorbs water, so even after it feels dry to the touch, let it sit a bit longer.

Prepare your stencil by cutting it out of adhesive vinyl – by hand or with your Silhouette/Cricut cutter.  Apply the stencil to the stone (keeping in mind handle placement) and press all of the edges firmly to avoid any bleeding underneath.

Paint on your glass etching cream in a thick layer and let sit for 20 minutes.

Carefully wipe off the etching cream with a clean, dry cloth, but DON’T remove your stencil.  Repeat another coating and let sit again for 20 minutes.  For an even more pronounced image, repeat a third time.

Remove your stencil and wash your slate cheese board / tile thoroughly.

Drill holes in either end of the slate cheese board to coincide with your handle placement and attach handles.

My ‘Brie’ quote should have been inset a tad more – but overall, I think they turned out well.

Optional: you can wipe down your slate cheese board with a coating of food-safe/appropriate mineral oil to help seal the stone. This step isn’t necessary, and will turn your lettering from light to dark as above.

Because these are slate, you can also chalk them up with the types of cheeses you are serving, wash with soap and water and start again!

Supplies:  (LOVE those fish handles!)

I’m ready for patio weather – Mother Nature just hasn’t been ready to host it yet.  (UGH!)

Have a great one!

Linked to:

• Between Naps on the Porch