{ How to make your own exterior Shutters }

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

{ How to make your own exterior Shutters }

Yes, I made all of these shutters myself...In like, a half an hour.

When I tell you you'll spend more time talking to the guy who cuts the wood at Home Depot than you will actually making your shutters, I'm not kidding.

If you don't think you're handy, try this project, and then get back to me and tell me how amazed you are with yourself.

Here's the "before". blahh

What your about to make is a "board & batten" style exterior shutter.

Measure the shutters that you currently have on your house now (or your windows if your lacking shutters and want to add some).

Put on your cutest outfit and run over to Home Depot, or Lowes.

Purchase pre-primed lumber and have the man (or women, but I have yet to run into that situation) who cuts the wood, cut the lumber down to size (which would be the LENGTH of your shutters - the boards).

Have smaller cuts of the wood made equal to the WIDTH of your shutters - the batten, you'll need 2 of these pieces for each shutter that you are making.

Purchase a container of these exterior screws.

You'll also need your drill, and bits.

Have some other serious looking tools lying around too, so people will think you are

AMAZING.

You might even want to clip a measuring tape to you belt and put a pencil behind your ear.

You'll line up your boards.
I used 3 boards, side by side. face down.
Attach these boards using the smaller board you had cut, the batten (placed UNDER the boards while your drilling).
Use a piece of cardboard as a template to line up where the batten will sit, so it will be equal on all shutters.
Drilling from the back of the shutter eliminates the need to counter sink and fill with wood fill.