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How to Install Trim on a Double Window

double window - trim installation

My dining room makeover was done a couple of months ago.  It all started with a pair of painted chairs and ended up with a whole room face-lift.  The window trim was the second project to be tackled in the room, I wasn't thinking of doing a post about it, I had already done one for the two single windows in my bedroom and the whole process is very similar, but some readers noticed the added trim (yeah, some of you have sharp eyes), and asked me some questions about it. 

This post answers those questions, but I also share some new tricks I've learned after doing the whole process once again.

This picture below is how the window looked, two windows placed close together sharing the same sill.

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Tools you will need:
This next picture shows you the materials that were used.  I try to use stock material, stuff  I can find at the big home centers or lumber centers, most of the time I use poplar or pine, but you can use other materials like MDF, I just don't want to deal with the long cuts and rough edges.
I haven't been able to buy the stool piece (1 x 5) from any other place than Home Depot and they only carry those in pine.
Parts os window trim

The first step is to get rid of the stool and apron your window has, they are too short to cover the area for the side casings that will be added later on.
Using the utility knife cut the caulking all around the stool and apron, especially around the wall, to prevent damage to it.
using utility knife to score caulking all around

With the help of a pry bar and using a wood shim, again, to prevent damage to the wall, begin lifting the apron. Losing it all along and then taking it off.  Continue by lifting and getting rid of the stool.
Clean any remaining caulking around the wall and window area.


Your old stool is the perfect template to create the new one.

You have to add to the width of your window:
  1. The width of the side casings 3.5" 7" for both sides
  2. The "horn" which is the protruding lip or ledge that go beyond the outer edge of the vertical window casings,  1" → 2" both sides
  3. The reveal line, 1/4" →1/2" both sides


Then, use the jigsaw to cut the marked ends,
using the jig saw to trim sill


and the center area.

This time the apron was installed first while holding the stool in place and checking for the whole piece to be level.

With the apron and stool in place, now is the time to install the side casings. To determine their length, measure the distance from the stool to the top opening of the window, add 1/4" for reveal line.  Nail them in place. Don't forget to leave the 1/4" reveal line to the side of the window.
The reveal line helps not to end up with a seam where the edge of your window lines up with the edge of the boards, it's a better transition.

After both side casings are installed you can go ahead and measure the head casing.  A simple way to measure its length is by placing the 1 x 6 material on top of the side casings and aligning it to one side (picture below). I even placed a piece of tape for the material to stay in place while I went to make a mark on the other side ;)

Once marked, you can go ahead and cut it.
head casing made of 1 x 6 pine


One more thing I learned is that is way better to attach the crown molding to the head casing before the latter one it's installed in place.
Cut the crown molding upside down and at a 45° angle, remember that the short side of the crown molding has to be the same length as the head casing.  For more help on how to cut these outside crown corners, you can click HERE for a full tutorial.

Add a line of glue to the lower back edge of the crown molding and nail it to the top edge of the head casing.

Glue the crown returns in place.  -I went ahead and added a nail to this side return, and yep, it split it a bit :(  That's why I usually only use glue and place a piece of tape while the glue dries to set them in place.

With the crown in place, go ahead and install the head casing.  Only two more items remain for installation, the center casing and the decorative half round at the bottom of the head casing.

Again, the short side of the half-round is the same length as the head casing.  Cut it at a 45° angle.

Nail it at the bottom of the head casing.  Glue the half-round returns in place.

For the center casing, measure the distance from the stool to the bottom of the head casing, which will determine its length,  for the width simply leave the 1/4" reveal on both sides.

I was able to use the same 1 x 4 material, even though the reveal lines were about 1/3" they still look OK to me.

After filling all the gaps and holes with wood putty and caulking, a good sanding was done to smooth out all the surfaces and to round up all those sharp corners.

One coat of primer and two coats of semi-gloss Behr Swiss Coffee were then applied. The blue color on the walls is a custom color created by mixing remnants of paint.
summer vibes in the dining room


I think the trim makes a huge difference.

Don't you think so?

The old materials have been re-used.  The apron that was taken off is now part of those shallow shelves in the same room.

;)




54 comments :

  1. The trim looks amazing!! It really makes the windows stand out and look even larger. :) So beautiful.

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  2. Cristina, you are the 'Ana White' of my blogosphere life! AMAZING!!!!! It looks so professionally done!!!!! Love it, wish I'm as good as you with tools!!!!

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  3. This turned out beautiful! I was curious about the reveal on the sides of the window casing, but you solved the mystery, thanks! We're considering buying a newer home this next go round, and with our budget, I think we will end up with some millwork to DIY. That's good news for me, because I love working with molding and dressing up windows!

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  4. Cristina realmente ese ajusté que le diste a la ventana hace que luzca más grande . Me encantan tus tutoríales
    Cariños

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  5. Funny how one things ALWAYS leads to another :)

    Pow! What a difference. Now I feel like ripping mine off and redoing it. Thanks for the great Tutorial.

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  6. You, my dear girl, are simply AMAZING!!!! Great job and tutorial- xo Diana

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  7. Cristina, you are amazing! Such a beautiful difference the trim makes.

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  8. Nice job! It turned out great! I'm going to tackle this project once we've done some window replacement.

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  9. What a huge difference that makes!!! Wonderful work!!!

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  10. Preciosa ventana, qué diferencia del antes y después, me encanta como ha vestido ese frontal de pared, ahora la habitación tiene la importancia que merece!! Felicidades por ese trabajo espectacular!!
    Besitosss.

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  11. Beautiful room and excellent tutorial. I have been wanting to do some work like this but fear held me back. With your tutorial I think I can attempt it now. Thank you for sharing your work!

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  12. Another fine project Cristina! Great tutorial and I love the style of your trim. It looks so elegant.

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  13. Cristina, it's amazing! Completely changes the room! Thank you for sharing the tutorial and thank you for the visit and sweet comment at The Dedicated House. I would love if if you would share this great post at my Make it Pretty Monday which is currently live. Here is the link if you want to check it out. http://thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com/2013/08/make-it-pretty-monday-week-63.html Hope to see you at the bash! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

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  14. I love it! We finally finished trimming out all of our windows and doors and it makes such a huge difference. Everyone that comes over wants to know how we did it. I'll just refer them to your blog because our saw is officially retired, lol.

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  15. Esa ventana se ve mucho mas mejor y los detalles en el cambio son tan simples. Beautiful! :)

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  16. Wow, it looks amazing! I really love architectural details like beautiful trim. You did such a wonderful job on this! And also gave a great tutorial on the process :)

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  17. WOW! Cristina, you impress me! you did an excellent job! :-) love everything about this, now your dining room looks grand and so much more beautiful! :-) it also makes the space brighter! :-)
    thanks so much for the tutorial, I would love to ask my dad to do something like this for our basement! :-)
    hope you are having a lovely week too!

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  18. Trim is the finishing touch to a window like jewelry is to an outfit. Beautiful work as always. My hubby did all our trim in our house when we built it so I know how much work that is.

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  19. I love this post! I have windows exactly like that! Wow it looks so much better with trim! Great job!

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  20. You can never have too much trim work in the home! Your beautiful job makes your window a lovely focal point in your dining room!!
    Mary Alice

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  21. it definitely does show a fabulous difference cristina! and oh how i love that shallow shelves from the old materials :)

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  22. Wow, what a little trim can do! Night and day. What a great transformation.

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  23. Very nice! Any time you need something to do I have windows!

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  24. This looks really nice, esp with the new paint. White makes it stand out.

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  25. The trim is gorgeous. It makes all the difference in the world. Amazing. Hugs, Marty

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  26. Another great tutorial!!! It turned out fantastic!

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  27. What a difference the trim makes! I would love to do this to some of my windows. Great tutorial.
    Corey from tinysidekick.com

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  28. Popping by from Coastal Charm! I love your tute and your dining room is just completely gorgeous! You've completely rocked your dining room!! Heather

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  29. Amazing, and a great tutorial.

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  30. That looks really nice - I see a HUGE difference!

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  31. Christina, it's a night and day difference. Absolutely amazing! Great details add so much.
    Thanks,
    Helen

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  32. My goodness, what a great transformation. Thank you so much for the great tutorial. I definitely want to do this to all my windows...one day. ;)

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  33. Excellent! I love how big, bulky, and architectural it makes the window look. You did a really good job, thanks for the ideas!

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  34. Adding trim makes an incredible architectural difference, and it lays the foundation for the room itself. What a wonderful share this is - all the details of DIY. Very nice! I found this post on, "Our Home Away From Home," where you were featured this last week. I was also featured with my, "my new office space," post. Would love for you to stop by my blog if you have a second. Thanks so much for sharing this.
    Patty at Home and Lifestyle Design

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  35. Such a great tutorial! Thanks for showing all the details!

    Xo
    CorinnaAshley.com

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  36. Cristina, thank you for sharing! You are one of the features today at the Make it Pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House. Pop on in and grab a feature button. Here is the link to this week's party. http://thededicatedhouse.blogspot.com/2013/09/make-it-pretty-monday-week-65.html Hope to see your prettiness again at the bash! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

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  37. This is STUNNING. You did a beautiful job!

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  38. This looks great! Thanks for posting on Craft Frenzy Friday!

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  39. Great job, and you did it right instead of picture framing it. That always makes me cringe1 Beautiful.

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  40. Wow, it's really amazing what a big difference a little trim can make! Looks great!! Pinning this one. I have a big double window in my dining room to trim out soon, so this is definitely helpful to me!

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  41. Happy I found this post, I need to do this in the house!!!!

    Be Sweet~
    Christina at
    SWEET HAUTE

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  42. Isn't it funny how one little project can turn into an entire room makeover, lol?! I love how your window trim turned out! It makes such a statement! Love, love, love!

    ~Abby =)

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  43. I know I"m a little late here but I'm wondering what the year of your house is. My house was built in the 60's and my window sill is made of marble. Apparently this was standard at the time. I'd like to reframe my windows but I'm afraid that my window may be constructed differently with the marble "stool". Do you have any pointers?

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  44. This is beautiful! I love how simple you made it look. I think this is something I want to try with my giant windows in the living room. It may even give me an excuse to buy new curtains so I can showcase more of that beautiful molding!

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  45. Where did you get all your trim? We have had a difficulty trying to find the crown-molding piece. We love your design!!

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  46. I LOVE YOU!!!! did that sound weird? I don’t care, because I do!!!!!!! Thank you so so much for this post, you are amazing!

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  47. Thanks for sharing this tutorial! I have been working on a big window installation for the house I just bought, because it seriously needs a big update. One of the things that I am planning on doing is to use a lexan sheet because I have read that they are more durable than glass, especially since I'm in Florida where anything could happen.

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  48. This is beautiful! I need to do this is my home.

    Also, I absolutely LOVE that rug in the after photo. Where did you get it??

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  49. Thanks Stephanie! It is the Mohawk Home Simpatico Biscuit/Starch 8 ft x 10 ft Area Rug, you can buy it at The Home Depot.

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  50. I really like the dear information you offer in your articles. I'm able to bookmark your site and show the kids check out up here generally. Im fairly positive theyre likely to be informed a great deal of new stuff here than anyone else!
    Window Installation Company

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  51. Hi Cristina! I finally get to comment on this project that I finished today!! I did a triple window that had separate sills, got a 16ft primed sill from a local lumber store, and 1x3.5 primed MDF all around instead of the 1x6 head casing (that was by accident, wish I used the 1x6 on top!). Had to have 1/2' reveals because the center casing wall was nearly 4.5" but after painting it all white, you can hardly tell. It looks amazing - wish I could upload a photo!

    I also really admired your dining room rug, like so many others, so got the same from Home Depot in my tiled living room - love, love it. Keep up the blogs about your beautiful makeovers, I have a few bookmarked for future projects!!

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  52. Bridget, I'm so happy to tackled the trim on that monster of window! 16ft sill?! Wow, how did you bring that home? I usually ask them to cut them down. Anyways, as I said, I'm so glad you did it! Thanks for stopping by, I would love if you can send me a picture of the rug, trim and the whole living room! :)

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