How to Build an Archway in a Kitchen

Cut a piece of cardboard to the same width as the doorway. Determine where along the doorway you want the arch slope to begin and cut the cardboard to this length. Lay the cardboard on a flat surface. Tie a string to a pencil. Ask a friend to hold the string taut below the cardboard so the pencil just touches the top edge. Keep the string taut as you arc the pencil over the cardboard. Cut out the arc with a scissors. This arc will be the arch's template.

Remove all door trim around the doorway using a pry bar. Cut off the drywall inside the doorway with a drywall saw. Remove it all the way down to the floor on the doorway's inside left and right side and along the top. Hold the template in the doorway and make any necessary adjustments until you have exactly what you want.

Lay the template on a piece of 1/2-inch plywood. Trace around the template. Cut out the tracing with a jigsaw. Repeat this step so you have two 1/2-inch plywood arches.

Measure the doorway's wall thickness (do not include the drywall in this measurement) and subtract 2 inches. Transfer this measurement to a 2-by-4-inch board in two locations. Hold a chalk line over the measurement marks and snap it. Rip the board along the chalk line with a circular saw. This board will be cut and mounted to the doorway to help support the arch framework and drywall.

Measure a plywood arch's length along one side. Transfer this measurement to the board you just ripped. Cut the board with a circular saw. Cut a second board to the same length with a circular saw. Measure the arch's length along the top edge and cut a third board to this length.

Position one of the short board's 2-inch edges against a plywood arch's side. The 4-inch edge must be flush with the arch's side. Drive 1 5/8-inch screws through the plywood arch and into the short board with a drill and Phillips driving bit. Repeat this step with the second short board on the arch's other side and the third board on the top edge. Flip the arch over and secure the second arch to the short boards' other side. Lift the arch into the doorway and secure it in place with drywall screws.

Measure the distance between the two plywood arches. Transfer this measurement to the same board you ripped in Step 3. Cut enough of these short boards so that you can position one every 6 inches along the arch to create support for the arch's curved edge. Set these boards in place within the frame and screw them in place.

Measure the distance from the floor to the beginning of the arch on both of the doorway's sides. Transfer these measurements to two strips of 1/8-inch hardboard. Cut the hardboard strips to the appropriate lengths with a jigsaw. Rip the strips to the same width as the wall that you measured in Step 3. Secure the hardboard to the doorway's sides with 1 5/8-inch screws. Run a piece of string from the top of one hardboard, along the arch and to the top of the second hardboard. Measure the string's length and cut a second hardboard strip to this length. Bend this strip along the arch and secure it to the boards you mounted within the frame.

Measure the arch's length and width. Transfer these measurements to a piece of 1/2-inch drywall to form a rectangle that will cover the arch frame. Hold a level along one of the rectangle's sides and cut along it with a utility knife. Break the drywall along this line and cut through the paper backing. Repeat with the rectangle's other side. Cut out a second rectangle with the same dimensions.

Place one of the rectangles against the wood frame. Secure it in place with drywall screws along the edges. Use a drywall saw to cut the drywall to follow the arch. Hang the second rectangle on the wood frame's other side. Secure it in place and cut it to follow the arch.

Cut a strip of drywall 12 inches longer than the arch's underside. Rip the drywall strip to the width of the arch, from front to back. Lay the strip face down across two sawhorses. Moisten a sponge and rub it over the drywall's paper backing. Allow the drywall to sag. Position the strip against the arch's underside, extending 6 inches down either side. Hammer nails through the drywall and into the wood frame.

Measure the distance from the curved drywall's edge to the floor on both of the doorway's sides. Cut drywall strips to fit these measurements and secure them along the sides with drywall screws.

Cut two flexible corner beads to the same length as the arch with tin snips. Place one corner bead on each of the arch's bottom corners. Drive drywall screws through the corner bead and into the drywall to hold them in place. Cut four straight corner beads for each of the two corners on either side of the doorway. Secure the corner beads in place with drywall screws.

Apply self-adhesive drywall tape over each drywall seam. Scoop up drywall mud with a 4-inch putty knife. Spread a thin layer of drywall mud over each drywall seam and along each corner bead. Wait two to three hours for the drywall mud to dry. Spread a second layer with a 6-inch putty knife. Once the second layer has dried, spread a third layer with a 10-inch putty knife. Allow this final layer to dry and sand it smooth with a sanding sponge.

Paint an interior primer over all the new drywall and drywall mud with a paintbrush. Wait one to two hours for the primer to dry before you paint the arch the color of your choosing. Wait one to two hours for the first paint coat to dry, then determine if you need a second coat.