DIY Gingerbread Door Trim from Kid's Blocks!
See the Video HERE!
© Stephie McCarthy
Watch our video on how to make wooden gingerbread house trim easily!
Video Link
This entry to the old porch now makes us happy even when skies are gray.
And it was an easy project … you'd be surprised how easy!
Here was the entry before the gingerbread update. What an eyesore, even with the fiberglass gable painted to hide the old stains. We've already nailed a 1" x 3" board across the top of the opening to support the new gingerbread.
This is after! We built this with bits and pieces and it was a lot like child's play!
This is the set of children's toy blocks we used as a short cut.
Here's a color coded diagram of the types of blocks and other items we used. Whatever design you make, be sure to leave room for nails to penetrate to your door frame.
A - Wooden brackets
B - 1" x 2" to fit between the brackets
C - Wooden doll's heads at base of brackets
D - Triangle block inside of bracket
E - Rectangle Block
F - Cylinder Block
G - Wooden doll's heads on rectangles and cylinders
H - Bridge Shaped Blocks
I - Rectangle Block
J - Square Block
K - Triangle Block
L - Half cylinder Block
M - Cylinder Block
N - Finial
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By making a small hole in a rectangle block, the finial was easily screwed onto the end. We found the finial on eBay (one of a pair).
Our favorite glue, Titebond, holds everything together.
When the glue was dry, we used a Senco 18 gauge nailer through each block for strength.
The brackets were hung first. We placed a nail in each post to support the bracket, but also added glue at the top and nailed through the thinner ends of the brackets.
Next, the crowning piece in the center was glued and nailed into place. We left an inch on both ends of the crown so that a nail gun would be able to fit between the pieces.
Next, the bottom trim was glued and nailed followed by two cylinder blocks to emphasize the curve of the bracket. The cylinders were taped into place until the glue could set. Then we nailed through the tape (and then removed the tape).
We dressed the old posts with these ready-made skirts we found at HomeDepot. The top trim is 11" fron the base, flipped to reflect the one on the bottom. The idea for this design came from watching the film Dr. Zhivago. The gingerbread in that film is a work of art in itself! We might not have thought of the 2nd skirt part way up the post unless we had watched that film!
We smoothed everything in this project with DAP DryDex Spackle with the wonderful trait of starting out pink and then drying white. You can really see what your doing with DryDex. We smoothed lots of cracks with a damp baby wipe.
The post trim was by far the hardest part of this upgrade, but well worth the effort we think. Lots of shims and spackle were needed for this old house!
Here's our choice of paint for this project.
Our old house is a Victorian era in much need of TLC. The porch on the back is a 'modern' 60-year-old addition that was a bit of an eyesore, until now. It's come a long way since the photo below.
Inch-by-inch we are beautifying the old house and we think you'll agree this gingerbread is now a beautiful step along the journey.
See how we made the matching fretwork here …
Here's our progress shot
Watch our video on how to make the door trim.
Video Link
See How we Made the Gingerbread Fretwork
VIDEO LINK
See How we Made Faux Green Marble
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#VictorianFarm #Victorianambience #Victorian #Victorianhouse #VictorianWay #VictorianMansion
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