How is everybody? Summer is flying by! My apologies for the lack of posting lately… life has been busy busy busy! I took today off from work and should have been installing flooring in my back room this afternoon, but decided to procrastinate with a fun and easy DIY project. My back patio has a section of mismatched siding that was begging for a decorative distraction. I had been eyeing a trellis that cost $60, but there way no way I was going to spend that much. So, this is my inexpensive creation!
You will need a few basic tools/supplies for this project:
- Staple/brad nail gun (I used 9/16″ brad nails) or a if you don’t have one, a hammer and some small nails
- Drill and drill bit (about the same diameter as the stake portion of the border fence panel you’ll also need)
- A saw of some sort (for cutting your 1×2’s and lath.
- A bundle of wood lath
- Two 1×2 6-ft. furring strips
- Metal decorative border fence panel
- Stain or paint (optional)
If you’re not familiar with furring strips, they are typically used as support in construction. They’re a bit more unfinished than a standard piece of lumber… not always perfectly straight, a bit more rounded on the edges, and a bit rough in some spots. However, they are very inexpensive, and are perfect for this project.
When choosing a fence border panel, make sure to choose one that has two ‘legs’ on the bottom sides (they would normally be stuck into the ground – we will stick them into our furring strips).
You won’t need the entire bundle of lath; 15 pieces that 4ft. long should suffice, though you may wish to grab a few extra since it can split on occasion.
The How-to:
(Sorry for the lack of photos! Feel free to ask questions if this gets confusing!)
- Take your drill bit (make sure it about the same size as the legs/stakes on your border fence panel), and drill a hole centered in the top of each of your 1×2’s. I ended up drilling about 3-4 inches down, which was far enough to stabilize the panel once the legs are inserted.
- Insert legs into the holes you’ve drilled into your 1×2’s. The legs should fit snugly, and you may even have to twist a bit to get them in far enough. If they don’t fit snugly, you may want to use a bit of wood glue to help hold them in place.
- Measure the width between your two 1×2’s, now that they are attached to the border fence panel (mine measured 19″).
- Cut 28 pieces of lath, according to your measurement.
- Starting from the top (just below your border fence panel), begin attaching lath to your 1×2’s (horizontally and evenly spaced) using brad nails or other small nails – 9/16″ worked fine, though you could go slightly longer. Stop after attaching 9 pieces.
- You will now attach 8 more pieces of lath, vertically – but first, attach one more piece of lath (horizontally) down about 19″ from the last one you placed. The vertical pieces will attach to the 9th horizontal piece of lath you placed, and the lower lath piece you are now placing. Before securing this lower piece, you can double-check that the distance is correct by resting one of your cut pieces of lath on top, vertically.
- Because the vertical lath pieces are attached to lath rather than 1×2’s, your nails will likely poke through on the back side. To remedy this, you will flip your trellis over and attach a second piece of lath on top of both pieces where nails poke through. The nails poking through are on the back side, and because they sit between the 1×2’s, they’ll need to be cut just a couple inches shorter so they can sit directly on top of the piece of lath with nails poking through. Cut and attach these two pieces of lath with nails (these piece were accounted for in the 28 you cut – so use 2 of the pieces you previously cut).
- You will now turn your trellis back over and attach the last 8 pieces of lath, horizontally, continuing below the vertically laid pieces.
- **For more of a privacy screen, you could choose to use more lath and lay all of it horizontally, with less spacing between pieces.
- Optional: Stain or paint your trellis/screen.
all done! (I used Fuhr heritage wiping stain in Venetian Oak – a great low VOC stain.)
I am digging this idea–thinking of making several and attaching them with hinges to use as a privacty screen on our deck.
I love that idea – you’ll have to let me know how it turns out if you give it a try! They’re pretty lightweight, so make sure to secure them (or maybe set up accordian-style) if you live where it’s windy. :)
This looks great, and right at my skill level! I am going to use leftover wood for as much of it as I can, so should be even less cost. Thank you so much for sharing this.
Perfect- scrap wood will be great for this. Hope it turns out well for you! :)
Hi Heather, I completed two trellisses today. I couldn’t upload to wordpress, but thought you might like to see them. Couldn’t find a topper I liked. I will be planting flowering vines under them to increase the shade on my front window. It gets so hot in the summers. Thanks again for your inspiration. Dianne
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Hi Dianne, I’m so happy to hear you were able to make a couple trellises for your space! Unfortunately the photo didn’t show, but I’m imagining and love the idea of planting vines to climb them. Thanks for taking time to tell me how they turned out! -heather