How to Make a Door Canopy

Need ideas to spruce up your doorway? Consider adding a canopy.

Installing a canopy to an exterior door can be a great way to add a little charm to the front or back of your house. A canopy provides cover from the rain and acts as a protective shield to prolong the life of a door. You can make a door canopy from various materials; choose those that will help you create the look you desire.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring tape
• Canvas
• Scissors
• Canvas sewing machine
• Iron
• 3 thread-binding aluminum poles
• Metal pole cutter
• Welder
• Mounting brackets

Instructions

1. Prepare the area. Think about different designs for your door canopy. Make sketches of the designs with a pencil on paper. If this is your first time building a canopy, a simple design is best.

2. Measure the area. Use your measuring tape to find the width of the doorway. Add a few inches to the width of each side of the doorway according to the length you desire for the canopy. The canopy needs to reach at least 6 inches on either side of the doorway for mounting. Mark the length on the wall with the pencil.

3. Cut the canvas according your measurements and the sketch of your design, using sharp scissors. Cut one piece of canvas for the main panel. It needs to be the width of the doorway plus the extra inches you added in the measurements. Cut another piece of canvas for the flap that attaches to the front part of the door canopy; make it four inches narrower than the first piece.

4. Make pockets on the canvas for the aluminum frame. Fold an inch of the canvas under and use your sewing machine to sew down the inside of the edge. This will produce an open pocket that runs along the length of the main panel. Repeat the process on the other side of the canvas.

5. Sew the binding around the two shorter ends and the front of the flap panel. Sew down any unfinished edges around the front panel to prevent fraying and to give it a neat look.

6. Attach the main and front panel canvases together with the sewing machine by putting the front panel on top of the main one so the exposed sides face outward. Turn the canvases over and iron them flat.

7. Cut three aluminum poles with the pole cutter: two poles the length of the main panel and one the width of that panel. Use the welder to bend the poles into a U shape to insert them into the side pockets of the panel. At a 90-degree angle, weld a 12-inch aluminum pole to each end of the U-shaped poles. The 12-inch poles allow you to mount the canopy. Let the poles cool and insert the frame into the canvas pockets.

References

• Doorcanopies.net: Door Canopies and Door Awnings: