EASY STEPS TO YOUR HANGING WINDOW SHELVES

Pretty and practical, this window unit made of pine gives a glossy green outlook with plenty of sunlight for your plants.

Gather your supplies

• 30 x 18mm x 2.7m primed pine (6)

• 18 x 18mm x 2.7m primed pine (2)

• Suntuf 600 x 900 x 5mm clear acrylic sheet

• Plants of your choice

You’ll also need Mitre saw; PVA glue; nail gun and 30mm nails; circular saw fitted with fine-toothed blade; drill; countersinking bit; 40mm wood screws; quick-drying filler; 180-grit sandpaper; paintbrush; undercoat; water-based enamel paint in white

For you to note

• Materials given are for one hanging frame approx. 900mm wide.

• To make painting easier later, lightly sand uncut timber before cutting.

Here’s how

STEP 1 Plan your hanging frame, starting with the vertical rails closest to the window. These run from top of architrave at top of window to below a convenient horizontal window element, such as the window transom here. Make overall width to suit your window. STEP 2 Use mitre saw to cut 30 x 18mm pine to create frames for shelves. The shelves are 3 different

depths – 250mm, 190mm and 130mm. The width is to suit your window. Make pieces for the sides of the shelves full depth and the front and back 36mm less than the shelf width as they butt into the sides.

STEP 3 Cut 18 x 18mm pine to match length of front and back pieces. Glue and nail these to wide faces of these 5mm from the top edge.

STEP 4 Glue and nail sides onto ends of front and back to complete shelf frames. Make the battens on front and back (made in Step 3) on inside of the shelf.

STEP 5 Join shelves by nailing the vertical rails to their sides. Space out the shelves evenly and position the bottom shelf so that when it sits against the window transom, the rails will be plumb. Allow for the fact that the rails sit off the

architrave by 18mm for the split batten they hang off.

STEP 6 To mark first angled rail at front of shelves, hold it over the shelves so it joins all of them and overlaps vertical rail. Mark the angled rail with the line of the vertical rail so they will butt together neatly. Also mark angled rail with the bottom of the lowest shelf. Use circular saw to cut along these marks, check for fit and, when you're happy, use as a template to mark and cut a second angled rail for the other side.

STEP 7 Glue and nail angled rails to sides of shelves and into vertical rails at the top.

STEP 8 With your circular saw set on a 45° angle, cut a length of 30 x 18mm pine in half along its length to create a split batten, before cutting to suit width of your frame. Predrill using countersinking drill bit and screw 1 half to the back of the vertical rails at the top. Make the angled cut the bottom edge of the batten and facing the rail.

STEP 9 Fill all nail holes using quick-drying filler. Let dry and sand smooth. Also sand any exposed timber to smooth.

STEP 10 Spot-prime any filled areas and exposed timber with undercoat. Let dry, then apply 2 coats enamel paint. Allow to dry and sand lightly a er the first coat. Also paint other half of the split ba en.

STEP 11 Predrill and screw other half of split ba en to the architrave so the ba en on the back of the unit will interlock with it and be in the correct position on the window. Hang unit off split ba en on architrave.

STEP 12 Cut acrylic sheet to fit on inside of shelf frames using circular saw fi ed with fine-toothed blade. Lightly sand edges, then sit inside shelves. Fill shelves with your selection of po ed plants.