Shutters have been on my list for ages and ages. I built these shutters this summer. I stained them in early fall. And I am just now getting around to hanging them. The second we had them up and I stood back to have a good look I said to Shane "Why did we wait so long to do this?" It was such a simple project and yet it has such a big impact.
Because I waited so long to hang them, my flower beds are full of dead and half dead flowers. It snowed but then melted. Nobody wants to see that mess! So I promise to do a full on reveal when it snows and covers my flower beds.
They really are simple to build and easily customizable. I just measured my windows and decided how wide I wanted them to be. I bought some 1x4 boards and cut four (per shutter) the the same length as the height of the window. Then I cut a couple of cross pieces the width that I wanted. I decided to have the slits in between each board be thin but I have seen them much wider.
I screwed them together with deck screws (nails won't hold up in the weather over time in pine) from the back so you don't see all the screws.
Here is a little tip....
I attached the outside boards first to make sure they were right along the edge of the cross board and secured them with a screw. Then I eyeballed where the two in the middle should be and screwed them into place. I eyeballed it for two reasons. First, I was lazy. Second, because I knew some of the boards were a little warped and therefore slightly imperfect. If I had measured, it still would not have lined up perfectly so why add more stress. But I get it, you may have an inner need to measure. Go for it :) Each board ended up with two screws on either end.
I stained them the same color as the front door which is Dark Walnut from Minwax.
And just because a reveal is not quite complete without a before and after....
Tomorrow is the monthly linky party and I should have another post up later this week if all goes well. I can't wait to see what you have been up to!
Wow, those look GREAT!
How did you attach them to your house? I really want to add shutters to my brick house!
Last year we added shutters to the garage window to test this way out and it has worked great for a year and a half. So we tried it on the front. We pre-drilled a pilot hole using a masonry bit that was smaller around than the screw. Then we just screwed it directly into the brick. I had wanted to use the brick hooks I saw on Pinterest but our house is so old the brick size is different than the standard brick.
Here is the link to the brick clips. Maybe they could work for you!
http://www.leevalley.com/us/garden/page.aspx?c=&p=10437&cat=2,51520
They look great! I've had them on my list too...for a while :-)
Your shutters turned out great! It is amazing how a little accent can make a big change. I am hoping to start working on getting the outside of our house looking better next year. Maybe i will have to add some shutters!
-Shonee
Wow! I didn't think your house could get any cuter, but of course you found a way. You are amazing my friend!
Wow! You did a great job on these Stacy! I love how the shutters make the dark door pop AND the other way around! What a beautiful project to do and one in which you are so handy at accomplishing! Hang in there with balancing all your other projects! I am sure you will meet your goals!
A reader from Maine!
Danita