How to make your own window boxes

[homealone]

Window boxes are great if you live in an apartment or if you live in a house with limited yard like I do. Not only do they add beauty to your home but also are useful for planting your own herbs. Fresh herbs when ever you need them, you just cant beat it.

Here is how to build your own window boxes, to save yourself some money on having to purchase them.

1. The depth and width of the window box is up to you. Think of what you will be planting in them and see how far down the roots will go. This will give you an idea of how deep it will need to be. The window box is usally the same length of your window, though of course you can make them smaller or a little longer, this is up to you. Though it will be alot easier to build if you choose to make the depth as well as the width the same as the width of the wood you will be using to make the window box.

2. Choose what wood you will be making your box out of, and make sure you have enough to complete the project. If your box is about 30 to 36 inches in length then a ten foot long either 1x6 or 1x8 board is needed.

3. Now it is time to start cutting your wood. you will need 2 pieces of wood the same size to use as the front and back of your window box. These will be about the same length of your windows, and of course the width and the depth as well are up to you. You will now need to cut the pieces for the sides and this will reflect the depth and width of your window box. Now you will need 1 piece of wood which should be the same size as the pieces you cut for the front and back and two inches wider than the two side pieces.

4. Next drill holes in the back and front pieces, two in each end. Also do the same on the bottem, but also add in a one inch hole in the center for drainage.

5. Using some wood glue, glue the back and front peices to the side pieces. Allow it to dry a little and then using galvanized screws, screw the pieces together in the holes which you earlier drilled. Then glue on the bottem piece and after a bit of drying time screw it in place as well.

6. Now it is time to sand down the window box and get it ready for some primer. The best primer to use is an oil based primer.

7. Once the primer is dried, there are many things you can do to make your window boxes really decorative. You can use stencils, on glue on some craft decorations, hand paint some flowers on them, the possibilities are almost endless.

[missmanors]

I love window boxes, and they can be a great decorative accent for your home throughout the year.

My elderly neighbor had a couple of "window" boxes on her porch rail that she didn't know what to do with after the summer growing season was over........she asked if I could help her move them for the winter, but I told her I had a better idea for them.

For the fall season, I put a few mums in, then filled the extra spaces in with autumn leaves that I hot-glued onto some small branches, and a few small scarecrows which were attached to dowel rods, and pumpkins.....the for Halloween I added a few witches.

Then as the different holidays came, I simply took out the old decorations, and redecorated them accordingly.

My neighbor loved the way her windowboxes looked, and her porch was always decorated for the different holidays, the cost of doing this is very minimal......these small witches, scarecrows, santas, etc. only cost about $1 each, and the rest I either made or just had lying around the house. It was a very small price to pay to see the joy that the decorated window boxes brought to my neighbor.

[homealone]

Very creative ideas Missmannors.
I know that alot of people have small decorative items just laying around collecting dust, hopefully this will give them some ideas of how to brighten up window boxes during the off season of planting.