Trim for the Halfbath Window

We're rolling right along on the halfbath and mudroom and are ready to finish up the trim. Next up - finishing up the little window in the half bath. Quick background -  the contractors framed in this wall and installed the window, but left it unfinished. After a bit of googling around, I figured out how to trim it out. (This Old House tutorial here.) (Note: preemptive apology for crappy photos - it's really hard to take a pic of a window when it's light outside).

where the contractors left off

Step 1 - Clean it Up
Using a utility knife, I quickly cut out the excess spray-in insulation and sheetrock so that everything is flush, even and smooth.

cleaned up and ready for trim

getting inspected by our littlest family member

Step 2  - Window Jams
So, first up, we cut the jams for the sides and top of the window. Unfortunately, our window is just slightly too deep to use the standard jams, so I used a couple 1x8 boards. First I cut it down to length, and then put it in place, marked the overage, and then rip-cut the board down to the right width. With our brand new table saw, it was super easy to set up the guard thing to the right size, and then just woosh the boards through. I cut the two side boards first, nailed them on, and then cut the top board and nailed it on.

Step 3 - Window Sill
So, the next thing to go in is the window sill and it is by far the most difficult piece. Home Depot sells special molding boards for this (actually called a window stool), which are rounded over on one side and nice looking. Again, our window was slightly too deep for the board, which put me in a weird spot, so I decided to first cut and install this board, and then cut down a smaller filler board to cover the gap. So, first, you have to decide what kind of casing will go around the window, because the sill will be just a bit bigger than the finished and trimmed window. Since this window is right against the wall, we didn't have room for anything bigger than the standard 2 1/4" window trim. So, first, we cut the window sill down lengthwise, it should be the width of the window + 2x the width of the casing + 1" overhang. Next, we need to notch out the walls, which are the depth of the window by the width of the casing + 1/2". (just see my diagram below- this is hard to explain.) Once I had the sill cut, and a second skinny board of the same depth to fill the gap - I just nailed them down.

jams and sill

Step 4 - Casing
Now we add the casing, using 45 degree angles to frame around the top and sides of the window, resting on the window sill.

Step 5 - Apron
Last, the underside of the sill gets fitted out with more of the casing, turned upside down. I used 30 degree angles for the ends. Then, we didn't like how it looked because it seemed like too much molding for such a small window, and more importantly, the sill didn't overhang enough to cover my apron - so I ripped the apron in half, creating a much smaller little board that was small enough to fit under the sill's overhang.

casing and apron

So, I still need to caulk and paint everything - but I'm waiting until I can do all the trim at once - so hopefully that will happen shortly. The rest of the trim is almost done. Plus, I have an update on the personal shape-up plan - so stay tuned.