Liquid Chalkers

by Ann

Our faithful readers know that one of my blog goals is to include reviews of new or cool products that we think our readers should know about or would enjoy.  It also provides post topics (hey, it's not as easy as you'd think to come up with something worthwhile to write about on a regular basis), and the fact that I get excited when free stuff arrives in the mail fuels my enthusiasm to seek out products to review!  

Along the lines of the thrill of getting stuff other than bills and ads in the mail --Liquid Chalkers, the product for this review can be purchased through Amazon.  I submitted the information about our blog with my request for a sample set, and honestly, two days later it was in my mailbox.  I thought that old age might be setting in with memory loss wondering what the heck I'd ordered from Amazon and had forgotten about.  Bottom line -- if you order these, they arrive in record time.  (Good thing I'm not losing my mind.  Not yet anyway....)

Even though the distributor of this product was looking for craft and "Mommy" bloggers to review the product, I saw a great application for them in school settings, which is what is illustrated in my photos. School starts for us in Arizona today (yikes!), so a lot of professional development for teachers (my job) happens a couple of weeks prior to students arriving in their classes.

Is this teacher smiling because of the vibrant red Chalker, or because he's being a good sport knowing his picture was being taken?  (My guess is the latter...)

I held a two day class focusing on active engagement strategies for a group of Career and Technical Education teachers in my district a week ago which provided me with the perfect opportunity to test out the Liquid Chalkers.  We provide teachers with classroom sets of mini whiteboards for students to write on which lets the teacher knows who "gets it," and who needs more instruction, so I use those whiteboards a lot to demonstrate what a quick and effective strategy it is.  Typically we use whiteboard markers, which are boring in comparison because the vast majority of those that we use are black, with an occasional red, green, or blue marker sneaking into the mix.  The colors of the Chalkers are very vibrant and a fun change of pace.

The "has" (nice green Chalker) and the "has-not" (black dry-erase marker).
Both do the trick, but fun color is "funner."

We used the Chalkers all day, so were even used on paper which is probably a waste of their potential, but it worked!

As I had the opportunity to read about the markers I found that they were developed by Louise Fox who states that through them the "creativity of her kids and husband was unlocked."  (Hmmm..... My guess is that the markers were the vehicle, and that they were already pretty creative...)  She shared stories about notes and drawings being left on windows, mirrors, and glass tables, which made it sound like a fun house to live in.  She did caution that not all surfaces are appropriate for this type of marker, and to be sure to test it out before doing anything big.  If the surface is too porous the markers will not come off easily.

Take a look at the blue marker tip in the upper left hand corner.  I had not yet gone through the steps for it to work yet.  Before it will write it must be shaken and pressed down until the ink penetrates the tip.

Since our blogging adventure began in November I am much more in tuned to all-things-online including reviews from customers (or those who have tried out recipes).  I was glad to see that out of 19 Amazon reviews, 17 gave a rating of 5/5 for the Liquid Chalkers.  I would agree -- these markers are multi-purpose, although the application that makes most sense is when you want something bright and vibrant to write with that will wipe right off with a paper towel or whiteboard eraser!

Note:  Even though I was given a sample set of the markers, my comments are a genuine reflection of my assessment of the product.  If you're looking for something snazzier than dry erase markers, check these out.

Tomorrow I will be doing a special Thursday-post for my eight-week follow up on the Ageless Derma Eye Cream and an additional great product to help reduce the appearance of dark under-eye circles!

Sheila will be doing the "Food Friday" post in exchange for me taking today's post.
As always, thanks to all of our friends and virtual friends who read what we're up to!