Vine Trellis


Twisted iron vines with end leaves grow wild in the garden. This is the Muse for a five piece trellis.

As per my usual mo, I do all my layout on the floor.

After twisting the vines I forge leaves on all the ends.

Then I weave all the parts together and weld them.

This is one the most enjoyable things I do. Take the parts outside and photograph them against the blue and white sky.

The brackets that hold the straight vines need to be uniform so I built a jig.

The brackets will be bolted to the house above the windows and the vines will rest in the three “V” shaped slots.

After priming I delivered the trellis to their new home. The owner will finish painting them and mount them.

Courtyard Gate Installation

Two coats of paint make the flowers look very creamy

This is the rod that holds the smaller gate closed.

To complete the installation I filled the gap under the pads with epoxy grout. The hole will allow any water to drain out.

Well here it is. It makes a grand entrance to the courtyard.

On Site Work

Before I took the gate to the jobsite I had to make the latch. This is an example of how I use my drill press as a milling machine. Don’t try this at home.

I use UHMW for the latch catch because it’s self lubricating and won’t scratch the paint off.

There is one more thing to make before I go. The round stock with the fancy end will hold the smaller side of the gate in position while the bigger side is open.

Before I weld the base plates to the posts I use them for a template to drill holes in the concrete for the bolts.

That was fun now what?



The two brackets at the top of the posts took a while to figure out. There are many different angles because the buildings don’t line up and the siding is beveled.

I wish it was done, and so does my client, but off it goes to get powder coat paint. Just one more week to go before I’m finished.