How to Make a Canvas Awning

Awning is an extended shelter attached to the wall that opens out into a balcony or an open space over a window or on camper vans from outside. Awning can also stand alone on a beach to give you shade and protection from UV rays of the sun. It is known as an overhang and can be made of acrylic, polyester or vinyl or the combination of the three. It is best for protecting the house from extreme weather conditions like heavy rain, snow, storm and summer heat. These are synthetic awnings as opposed to the popular canvas awning.

Nowadays, canvas awning is not the standard awning because of its susceptibility to mold and mildew. Yet, people continue to have canvas awning because of its low cost and design. To solve the problem of mold and mildew, you can attach a layer of synthetic fabric over the canvas layer. The awnings that are good sized and serve the purpose completely are pretty expensive and so, many people think of making it on their own. Let us see how to make a canvas awning at home.

Instructions to Make an Exterior Canvas Awning

Awnings are the wooden or aluminum frames covered with canvas or any other fabric. These awnings create awesome exterior to enjoy hot summer with a cool drink in hand, looking at the beautiful view. Following are the requirements and the steps to make a canvas awning.

Materials Required

• Canvas
• Industrial Strength Sewing Machine
• Measuring Tape
• Drill Machine
• Hooks and Grommets
• Metal Rings
• Poles
• Rope Stakes

Steps to Make an Exterior Canvas Awning

• Decide and measure the area that you want under your awning.
• Cut the piece of canvas as per your measurements. You need to hem the edges of the canvas to avoid fraying and to give it a finished look. Make use of an industrial strength sewing machine for this task.
• Hold the canvas along the wall and mark the two corners of the wall with a pencil from where the awning will be suspended.
• Drill two holes in the wall with a motor drill and insert two hooks into the two holes.
• Attach grommets on the two corners of the canvas that will be extended and two metal rings of 1-inch, on the other two corners that will be attached to the wall.
• Fix two metal or wooden poles in the ground, that will hold the extended awning, with a rope.
• Take two metal rings and place them over the poles through which the rope, attached to the grommets of the canvas, will pass. Stake the ropes into the ground. This will let the awning remain stable and prevent from falling or flying away.
• After completing all the attachments your awning is ready to hang.

Window Awning

An awning is a great way to shade your window from bad weather. The common types of awnings are the fabric ones, but, the new ones these days, are the aluminum window awnings. The process to make an awning is not very difficult once you have the necessary stuff for making it. I will give you a few points which will help in the making of a window awning:

• Determine the shape that you want your window awning to be, for example, semicircular, rectangular or square and take the measurements accordingly.
• Observe all your windows to know which one brings in the maximum sunlight and the heat.
• Decide, if you want to obstruct complete entry or just to cover the window slightly.
• You can paint the wooden or metal frame to match it with your house. Although it will be visible only from within, it will offer a better look and the feel.

In conclusion, following these easy steps, you will get a beautiful awning for your house at a very low expense. Also the satisfaction of doing it yourself will leave you overwhelmed and you can proudly show off, the piece created out of your efforts, to friends and relatives.