PVC Window Frames

Window frames are one of the easiest ways to create a clean, professional-looking display while dramatically reducing yearly installation time. This project uses lightweight PVC pipe to create durable, reusable frames that can be installed in just a few minutes each season while remaining nearly invisible during daylight hours.

Here's how to build long-lasting, low maintenance window frames that can be almost invisible on the house during the daytime.

These frames were constructed using 1/2" PVC pipe, T-connectors, and corner connectors, then painted flat black to match the window shutters. The paint serves several purposes: it helps the frames blend into the shutters during daylight hours, provides additional UV protection for the PVC, and creates a slightly rougher surface that helps prevent zip ties from slipping while securing the light strings. Because the lights could not be installed without a small amount of overlap, they were routed to make the overlap as inconspicuous as possible. In practice, unless you know where to look, it is hardly noticeable.

The frames are mounted onto the shutters with a pair of hand-formed aluminum brackets. The brackets can be easily formed in a vice using a hammer and a wooden dowel for the shape, then hand-clamped around the PVC. Slip the brackets over and behind the shutters to hang the frame.

The frames are secured against wind with a pair of zip ties passed through small holes drilled in the shutter corners. Each frame uses its own four-channel wireless controller to independently control the four light strings while requiring only a single A/C power connection. This makes installation extremely quick—each window takes less than two minutes to hang and secure. Although this project originally used wireless AC controllers, the same frame design can easily be adapted for incandescent lights, LED strings, or modern smart pixel controllers.

PVC makes it easy to form curved shapes using a heat gun, as we did for the arch window above the front door. Since there were no shutters on this window, we used four simple pipe clamps (painted flat black) to attach the frame to the house: two clamps support the weight at the bottom and one clamp on either side to hold it against the house.

Storage is simple—hang the frames on a couple of wall brackets in the garage during the off-season. At the time this article was originally written, the frames had already been in service for approximately 25 years. Aside from periodically replacing aging incandescent light strings, repairing one frame that was accidentally dropped during takedown, and upgrading to quality LED strings in 2010, the PVC frames themselves have required essentially no maintenance.