Adding Archways

Advanced DIY Skills Needed

Q: I would like to add Spanish-style archways to my home. Is there an easy, inexpensive way to do this?

A: Adding archways to your home is not expensive if you do it yourself (it requires plywood, 2x4s, and drywall), but most homeowners don't have the DIY skills to do it well. The first step is stripping the drywall or plaster back to the studs around the doorway, and then attaching an arch you have cut from plywood and reinforced with studs. Next, you fasten drywall cut to the same arch. However, cutting complex arches and taping and finishing the drywall without flaws is difficult for novices.

A new product, Easy-Arch, makes adding archways to your home somewhat easier. Easy-Arch is a precut and precurved strip of metal that snaps onto the existing wood framing. A preformed arch is handy when a wide doorway requires a more complex shape than a simple half-circle. But however easy the arch is to install, finishing the drywall smoothly still takes some talent.