How to Build a Bamboo Gazebo for a Beach Wedding

Use bamboo poles to build a gazebo.

The beach offers a stunning backdrop and exotic venue for weddings. Those getting married by the sea may want a gazebo to stand under during the ceremony to add an extra touch of elegance and to shade them from the sun. While you can buy or rent a gazebo, you can also create one at home using bamboo poles. You can build a simple cube-shaped gazebo in just a few steps that's custom made for your big day.

Things You'll Need

• Four 10-foot bamboo poles
• Four 8-foot bamboo poles
• Drill
• 1/16-inch drill bit
• 2 1/2 inch wood screws
• Ribbon
• Decorative fabric
• Shovel
• White florist tape

Instructions

1. Place two 10-foot bamboo poles down on a flat surface, about seven feet apart. These are the leg poles of the gazebo. Lay one 8-foot pole horizontally centered to connect the top of the two original poles. This will be your beam pole. The beam pole should be about one foot below the top of the leg poles.

2. Use a drill and a 1/16-inch bit to drill a guiding pilot hole through the front and back of the beam pole into the top of the leg pole underneath it. Screw a 2 1/2-inch wood screw into the pilot holes to connect the bamboo beam to the bamboo leg of the gazebo. Repeat the process on the other leg pole. You will have now created the front side of the bamboo gazebo.

3. Follow Steps 1 and 2 to build the back side of the gazebo. You will now have two three-sided pieces of the gazebo.

4. Turn one of the side pieces upside down, so that the beam pole is near the ground. Have a helper hold this piece upright, so that the leg poles are extending in the air. Prop up the other side piece the same way, situating it about seven feet away from the original side piece. Have another person hold this piece in place.

5. Place an 8-foot bamboo pole between the two side pieces. This pole, which will be called the side beam pole, should be put in the left corners where the beam and leg poles meet. Drill a pilot hole through the side beam pole into the top of the leg pole. Screw in a 2 1/2-inch wood screw through the pilot hole. Repeat the process where the side beam meets on the other side piece.

   Lay another 8-foot beam across the other side of the side pieces, this time resting in the right corners of the structure. Repeat the process of drilling a pilot hole and screwing the side beam into the leg poles.

6. Wrap a ribbon or decorative fabric around one corner of the bamboo gazebo, where the beam, side beam and leg poles all meet. Wrap this rope in an "X" pattern around the bunched beams to securely tie together the poles, then slip the end of the ribbon underneath itself to hold it in place. Repeat this process on the three other corners of the structure. Flip over the bamboo gazebo so it's standing upright.

7. Place the bamboo gazebo in the sand where you want it to be displayed during the wedding. Mark where each leg pole touches the ground. Dig a 2-foot-deep hole at each of these markings. Place the gazebo leg poles into these holes to secure the structure in place.

8. Drape a lightweight fabric over the top of the bamboo structure. This material should cover the top of the gazebo, and extend off the left and right sides of the structure. Connect a piece of white florist tape on the underside of the bamboo side beams and stick it to the underside of the fabric to hold it in place.

References

• Sunset Bamboo: How to Make a Bamboo Wedding Arch
• Favor Ideas: Top Ideas for Adding "Wow" to That Wedding Arch