How to create craftsman door toppers
Craftsman toppers are a stylized choice for home decor, and can be easily purchased in various lengths prefinished at local hardware stores. However, if you need a long one, a unique length one, or just want to save money it is quite easy to build one yourself!
Supplies Needed:
- Top trim (0.5-0.75 inch tall, ~1 inch wide, desired length)
- Middle Board (3-4 inch tall, 0.5-0.75 inch wide, desired length)
- Bottom trim (0.25-0.5 inch tall, ~1 inch wide, desired length)
- Interior trim if desired (0.125-0.25 inch wide, 1-2 inch tall, desired length)
- Wood glue or mechanical fasteners.
- Paint if desired.
Step 1: Lay out pieces to ensure you have the correct length and dimensions needed. My top and bottom trim are 1 inch longer than the middle board to give it a 0.5 inch overhang on each side for aesthetics.
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| Left: Pieces laid out, top to bottom (top trim, middle board, bottom trim); Right: 0.5 inch overhang |
Step 2: Fastening the pieces, you can use either glue or fasteners, I chose fasteners for sake of time. Simply just clamp all the pieces together in place, then fasten with your method of choice. I used a 16 gauge nailer.
Step 3 (Optional): I wished to add a decorative trim in the middle to break up how long the header was. To make the simple design I took some thin trim wood and cut two 45deg angles twice to create a simple triangle. I then glued and clamped the pieces in the middle.
Step 4: Finished product, paint as desired and install! Simple as that!
