Make It! An Eames-Inspired Trellis

Okay my fellow Curblians, today we embark on a month-long how-to extravaganza of the outdoor decor variety! First up is my original design for an Eames-inspired trellis. It’s super easy to make, which means you don’t have to be an experienced carpenter to get fantastic results. So, without further ado….let’s get started!

Materials:

5 – 4′ long 3/4″ wood doweling
1′ long 3/16″ doweling
1 – 6′ long 1″ x 2″ select pine
10 – wooden knobs/dolls heads with a 3/16″ hole at the bottom that are 1-1/4″ in diameter (I found mine at my local craft store)
saw (hand, miter…whatever you have on hand will do)
drill
3/4″ and 3/16″ drill bits
hammer
20 – 1″ brad nails
tape measure
sand paper – 120 grit OR an electric sander
pencil
water-proof glue
latex primer
white exterior paint
weather resistant acrylic gloss in red, pink, black, yellow and navy blue (I used craft acrylic gloss craft paint found at the craft store)
paint brush(es) etc.

Proceedure:

Step 1: Cut the 3/4″ doweling into the following lengths:

4 at 24″ long
2 at 36″ long
1 at 48″ long

Step 2: Cut the 1″ x 2″ select pine into four 18″ long pieces. (These will be the horizontals of your trellis.)

Step 3: Drill five 3/4″ holes four inches apart, equally spaced along the 2″ side of EACH 18″ piece you just cut and sanded.

Step 4: Round-over the 1″ ends with sand paper or electric sander.

Step 5: Prime the trellis and wooden knobs; then paint the trellis with the white exterior paint and the knobs with the acrylic gloss. (3 red, 3 blue, 2 pink, 2 yellow and 2 black)

Step 6: Slip the 3/4″ doweling into the holes you drilled in the last step. (You can refer to the final picture to estimate spacing. No need to get all OCD here; just make them even.)

….And then nail each into place using the 1″ brads.

Step 7: Mark the centers of the dowels and drill a 3/16″ hole into the marked spots 1/2″ deep. NOTE: Do not drill holes in the bottom two dowels as they will be touching the ground.