Tuesday, May 05, 2020

DIY Small Pergola

Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
We built a (small) pergola!

This was one of those projects that I’ve been wanting to do forever & it finally happened!

Last year, we acquired some old posts & they just sat outside in the yard, waiting for something to be done with them.  Because of bugs, I didn’t want to bring them into the house, so an outdoor eyesore they became!

One day, I decided that they would make a good pergola.  There was a spot in our yard between our water well & our lilac tree that I thought would be perfect for a pergola.  I also hated mowing that tiny area so I wanted to get rid of it!

Finally, after months & months of wanting to build it, we finally did it! 
Here’s how it happened:

Before building our pergola, it took a lot of thought.  I wanted the posts in the ground & an open roof on top.  But, because of the height of the posts, putting them into the ground would have made them a lot shorter & I didn’t want that.  We also didn’t want to be digging in the ground because of the lilac tree & the water well.

Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
So we looked around at what supplies we already had.  We had a frame from an old chair glider that we never used.  It ended up being the perfect width for that area, so we decided to build off that.

We put a tarp down in the area where we were going to build.  Then we placed the frame on top of the tarp.  After that, my husband took some stone from the yard & filled in around the frame to create an even area.
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Once the frame was in place, we attached the posts to the frame.

When we were finished with the posts/frame, it was time to build the top!  We used some boards we already had to build the top pieces.
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
That’s when the project came to a stop.  We were out of lumber & it was a while before we could get any more.  The pergola sat for weeks in this state.  People driving by probably thought it was the ugliest thing ever.  I  thought it was the ugliest thing ever!

We were finally able to get boards & complete this project.  We bought pressure treated boards that were already cut in 4ft sections.  We finished applying the top boards to make a square around the top.  Then we added little trusses.  To make them, we screwed two boards together in an L shape.  My husband then cut off the excess so they would fit on the top of our pergola.  We also put two little boards between the trusses to give it some character.
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Then it was time to paint everything!
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
First, we primed the structure & then I used exterior paint in my favorite white to paint the entire pergola.  The paint covered well with just one coat. We'll most likely go back later & give it another coat.
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
Building a small DIY pergola | On The Creek Blog
I think it turned out super cute!  It has a lot of character & I love the open air look!  It’s super close to the greenhouse that Liz Marie has but smaller!  I also noticed she did something similar with her new shop expansion & I can’t wait to see more photos of them!





No comments:

Post a Comment

On the Creek blog is proud to be a part of the T&J Maintenance family - turning houses into homes.