Looking through tons of bridal mags for reception ideas, ceremony ideas, details, flowers.. it all meshes together after a while. As I was going through the Ceremony publication for San Diego for ideas on my own wedding, I ran across a ceremony picture (above) that just stuck with me. Black straight-lined pillars with vase on top – great for a modern feel! To rent this would be a couple hundred $$. So, I decided this was something simple enough to DIY and save $$! Some calculation is needed before you go to Home Depot or Lowes. You will need to determine:
- dimensions of your desired pillars (based on what kind of floral arrangement on top)
- number of pillars you want
When you get to the hardware store, you will need to determine:
- type of wood; cost varies (will you paint on it, spray, fabric overlay?)
- how many pillars can be made from 1 wood panel;
- then have the store cut the wood panel to dimensions of pillar panels.
Remember that when you nail each pillar panel together, you are creating a “T”, so 2 panels should be one width (outside panels) while the other 2 pillar panels should be slightly smaller width (inside panels), so as to be accurate to your desired overall pillar dimensions (if exact dimensions are critical to you). There is a science to this simple looking project! =)
Here are some photos I took as Jayson and I built our pillars:
Materials: pre-cut panels, pre-cut 2x2s, wood glue, finishing nails, hammer, and a dog to supervise the project!
panels and 2x2s nailed together (missing 4th side and top)
4 pillars.. ready for a paint job!
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Great job! They look great. Love the class/modern look of your inspiration pictures.
nice job on the pillars!
Hello, I love your idea of building it yourself! I just have a few questions for you, When you painted the plywood did the scraps on the wood show when you painted it or did you use extra paint coating to cover that? Also another question is what are the exact dimensions that you had? I would really appreciate if you can help me with the questions!
Thank You,
Hi Tatyana! I’m glad you asked!
I actually used a lot of primer and paint (2 layers of grey primer and 3 layers of black paint) to smoothen out the scrap wood texture. It would have been much easier to buy a smooth finish wood, then you dont have to deal with the layers of paint, but the cost of the solid wood was about 4 times as much… so you have to weigh wood vs cost vs time. =) As for the demenstions, i wil get back to you because I actually loaned my pillars out and asked my friend to take the measurements for you.. but if i’m not mistaken, i think it’s 12″ X 12″ , height I will have to check. Thanks!
Hi Tatyana,
The height of the black pillars is 4 feet. the sides are 1 feet X 1 feet. If you have any other questions, let me know! – Kien