Affordable Upgrade to Your Kitchen Window Trim

Kelli
by Kelli
10 Materials
$20
2 Days
Medium

One of the easiest and most affordable ways to upgrade a room is to replace that builder grade window trim with some customized farmhouse trim.


We live in a 2001 manufactured home and every single window and door has the basic 1 inch trim work. For less than ten dollars we were able to give our kitchen some coastal farmhouse character just with window trim.


This post shows you how. In addition it includes an estimated cost break down to help you budget your own window trim upgrade.

Here's the BEFORE...

Step 1: remove the old trim. I used a hammer and a chisel.

Step 2: measure the left side top to bottom of your window. Note the measurement on a piece of paper or device for later reference. Then measure, mark and cut your 1x3 furring strip board. Attach trim board with some finishing nails. I used our nail gun. Repeat process on the right side.


Step 3: measure the top from the outside edge of your trim boards (note this measurement for step 4). Add two inches. Measure, mark and cut your 1x2 furring strip. From the end of your 1x2 measure 1 inch and make a mark. This is what you will use to align this piece to your outside trim boards. Place this on top of your outside window trim boards as seen below. Attach.


Step 4: with your first measurement in step 3, measure, mark and cut a 1x3 furring strip. This will be the top piece of your farmhouse trim work. Align with the side trim pieces and nail.


Step 5: for the bottom piece, repeat step 3. I actually modified this step due to the amount of space I was working with. Instead of attaching this piece like in step 3, I turned it like the 1x3 boards.

Step 6: you may not need to do this step. I had a gap between the 1x2 boards and the window so I added corner trim. To do this, measure from the inside of your outside trim pieces. Measure, mark and cut the corner trim. Nail into place. I also added corner trim to the bottom as well.


Step 7: use the caulk to fill in all gaps including where the nails are. You want a clean line so make sure you have a damp sponge to clean up the lines and filled nail holes.


Step 8: prime your trim work. Give it at least 2 coats—let dry between coats.


Step 9: once the primer is dry it’s ready for paint. Give it at least 2 coats of paint as well.


Here's the AFTER!

We had everything on the material list except for the ones marked with an asterisk (see the material list below).


Our total cost,—drum roll please—$8.60 . What?!


What might it cost for you? It really depends on what you already have on hand. Assuming you already have a caulking gun, nails, hammer, the paint, and a saw it would cost you less than $25 which is still pretty affordable. If you needed to purchase paint all you would need is 8 oz. which you can purchase for $3.48 at Home Depot. Still a pretty affordable home improvement project with a big impact.


Be sure to check out the full blog post (link below) that includes more pictures.


You might also be interested in seeing how you can upgrade your boring builder's grade kitchen peninsula HERE.


Materials needed


  • *2 > 1x3x6 Furring strip board @ $1.48 ea
  • *2 > 1x2x6 furring strip board @ .98 cents ea
  • *2> 3/8 in. x 3/8 in. x 48 in. Basswood Quarter Round Tiny trim Moulding @ $1.84 ea
  • 1 > DAP Alex Plus 10.1 oz. White Acrylic Latex Caulk Plus Silicone @ $2.38 ea
  • caulking gun
  • finishing nails & hammer
  • chisel
  • ALL PURPOSE 1 qt. White Interior/Exterior Multi-Surface Primer, Sealer, and Stain Blocker @$8.67
  • Interior satin enamel paint (I used Clark+Kensington Designer White from our cabinet makeover)
  • paint brush (my favorite: Wooster Softip 2 in. Angle Sash Brush @ 4.94 ea)
  • miter saw or a type of saw to cut your boards and corner trim
Resources for this project:
See all materials
Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Hometalk may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page.More info
Kelli
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Go
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
  2 questions
  • Judy Judy on Mar 03, 2021

    Could you show a picture of your back splash? I love it!

  • Debbie Debbie on Mar 05, 2021

    That turned out awesome ! Is there other trim in the room that you also did this to ? I would love to have this done in my house .

Comments
Join the conversation
2 of 25 comments
  • Dl.5660408 Dl.5660408 on Feb 27, 2024

    It looks very similar to the window trim in my 106 year old house, love it!

  • Katen Katen on Feb 27, 2024

    Frankly to get that much impact worth spending much more if you need to. You can buy “kits” but just builders grade trim you have to paint. This is customizable and your approach isn’t scary or beyond basic skill sets. Key ingredient? Patience to do correctly first time. Thanks for sharing and inspiration. Oh and if needed still worth renting a tool you might need and be way ahead on materials and enjoyment

Next