Makeover Monday – DIY Flowerbox
It’s amazing how sometimes, the littlest things can make a huge difference. Jewelry, for example.
One of my sisters is really into jewelry. Whenever she visits, I always feel like I have to step up my game a bit. I trade in my mom flip-flops for sky high heels, and the girl who doesn’t even wear her wedding ring (I know! The shame!) finally feels obligated to wear jewelry.
And you know what? It makes a big difference! I feel better. I look better. And for those few weeks a year, I’m totally on top of my game.
Unfortunately then she leaves again, and it’s business as usual.
Around the Flawed front windows, it’s been business as usual for the past three-and-a-half years. I love landscaping, and I work tirelessly all spring and summer, planting flowers, mulching, making sure that everything is just right. The one thing I’ve never been able to get right is the front of the house. It was off balance, somehow.
Here’s the front while it was still under construction. Well, part of the front. A tiny, unrecognizable portion of the front. Feeding a healthy amount of paranoia that tells me not to post my exact location on the web, thankyouverymuch.
And we received the house looking not much better. Sure, we got grass (seed not sod – it was winter), but that’s about it. The porch didn’t even have a railing, which if you ask me, is just plain cheap on the builder’s part. Clearly he doesn’t watch Curb Appeal.
We rectified that situation (and by we, I mean my dad and myself. My husband? Probably inside vaccuming.)
And it was better, but not quite right. We did all the landscaping ouselves (still not where I want it, but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it?) Still not right. The ugly hunter green shutters? Promptly painted black. Still not enough. The house was unbalanced. There’s all this white porch on one side, and an unsightly expanse of brick on the other side.
This year, me and my Lowe’s gift card (Merry Christmas to me!) decided that a window box would go a long way toward improving that situation. The task was fairly simple – I wanted a flower box large enough to fit a double window, and I wanted it to be white.
If I do say so myself, I think this really improved the appearance of that wing of the homestead. Sort of old-fashioned traditional, cottage and comfortable. All I need is a warm pie, resting in the windowsill.
Would you like to build your own? It’s an easy, 1 hour project that should cost you around $30. Totally worth it considering the only other double-window flower box I found cost $200! Key here is the wood you use. Unlike most outdoor projects, inexpensive pressure-treated pine is not suitable. The chemical that the wood is soaked in contains a high amount of salt. So high, in fact, that it will alter the ph of your soil for years to come, making it darn near impossible for plants to flourish. Skip the pressure-treated and use cedar instead. Slightly more expensive, but it lasts longer, is lighter weight, and won’t kill your flowers.
I was building for 2 36-inch windows, so I wanted the box to be exactly 72 inches wide. Because of this width, I used 2 sets of brackets ($5 per set) to hold the weight of the long box. I also purchased 2 pieces of cedar, 1x6x8 (just under $7 each) and 1 piece 1x4x8 (just under $5). I used a circular saw to cut these to length, but you could also use a jigsaw or have them cut at your lumber store.
This is a really, really easy project – just screw them together. Promise! I wanted the front face to be all one board, so I screwed the front and back into the 1″ side of the 1×4, which served as the box’s bottom. Small pieces of the 1×4 filled in the ends of the box, and a bit of paintable exterior caulk nicely filled in the gaps. I recommend pre-drilling the holes to avoid any board splitting. Here is a picture of one end, so you can see how I pieced mine together:
uh-oh – I see a staple I forgot to pull!
Cedar is naturally fantastic for outdoors, but I chose to paint mine because I wanted the white color. If you paint as well, be sure to use an exterior paint that will hold up to the elements. After painting, I drilled several small holes in the bottom of the box for drainage. I did 2 lines of 1/4″ holes, staggered about every 3 inches or so. About 3 weeks in, this seems to be quite sufficient.
You can see where the dirt is coming through a bit – that’s a good sign!
The most important part of mounting the box is anchoring it into your house. Because our home is brick, I used lead anchors. In order to sink them, I used a concrete drill bit, and drilled into the mortar (which is easier to drill than brick). This is really easy as long as you have a concrete bit – don’t be intimidated! The most important thing you can do is to use a waterproof exterior caulk to seal up the gap between the lead anchor and the brick. You don’t want there to be any chance of water getting in there because it will start to bust your mortar. Because of this, and because I knew it would be hidden by the flower box, I was a little sloppy with my caulk.
whoops! But totally worth the end result, right?
In the winter I intend to park some faux poinsettias in that baby, which I think will look equally as smashing. I am really happy with this project, and in retrospect many of the [more expensive] things I’ve done to the front of our house haven’t added up to as much visual impact as this one small, easy, and inexpensive change.
Thumbs up for the budget-friendly makeover!
Next week – I need your help!
Tags: build your own window flower box, DIY flower box, DIY window box, double window flower box
Makeover Monday | Heather April 26, 2010
Facebook comments:
By Darcie - Such The Spot, April 26, 2010 @ 2:02 pm
If I was half as handy as you I’d be unstoppable. Unfortunately for me, though, my skills in the home improvement arena are seriously lacking. Are you for hire?
And PS. You’ve got some major curb appeal going on there my friend. The window box really does make a huge difference (as does the porch railing). So I’ll ask again: are you for hire?
.-= Darcie – Such The Spot´s last blog ..Homegrown =-.
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By Lisa, April 26, 2010 @ 6:02 pm
That looks SO CUTE! love it!
I am one of the suckers that bought my window boxes. And yes, they were overpriced. I never even think to make stuff myself until I see someone else do it.
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By Becca - Our Crazy Boys, April 26, 2010 @ 6:36 pm
It’s beautiful!! (the flowers AND the front of the house!)
When Darcie hires you, could you swing by and help me with some stuff ,too?
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By Amanda M., April 26, 2010 @ 8:35 pm
Oh my word, I have so many things to say about this post. First, I LOVE window boxes. I mean I BIG PINK PUFFY HEART them. I think I would put a window box on every single window we have if I could. Seriously, I just adore them. Second, you ROCK. Drilling into mortar? Caulking? Puhleeze. I am inside vacuuming like your husband.
(You’ll remember how he and I share that housecleaning disorder.) I do not do anything outdoors and I really wish I did. Your project is simply splendid and looks absolutely fabulous. Thumbs way up! Love it!
.-= Amanda M.´s last blog ..Happy Birthday, My Sweet Baby =-.
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By Jennifer, April 27, 2010 @ 10:00 am
You are so handy! Can you come do my house! I am so jealous of your craftiness and motivation!!
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By Jenny, April 28, 2010 @ 1:16 pm
I couldn’t believe my luck when I saw your post because I’m in the midst of trying to make my own window boxes! Yours look great and so easy! Our detached garage already has one so I just want to copy it.
Opinion needed: The front of our house is an enclosed porch. There are SEVEN windows. Basically the front of our house is all windows. So do you think I should do one looooong box or do two or three smallers ones spaced evenly?
.-= Jenny´s last blog ..Seven =-.
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By Soliloquy, April 29, 2010 @ 11:11 am
You? Are CRAZY.
(Which may or may not mean I’m a little jealous and a lot intimidated.)
.-= Soliloquy´s last blog ..Do You Dare Me? =-.
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