The old white picket fence around our corner lot had rotted away and though we considered just removing it, we ultimately decided we wanted a new fence.
We looked at some cheap fencing ideas
and we decided to build it ourselves.I designed and constructed the new one around a supply of salvaged redwood fence boards and posts, as well as some miscellaneous lengths of salvaged, full-dimension redwood lumber.
I wanted a fun and inviting look, so I incorporated a long wave that spans two sections (16 ft./~4.8 meters). Because I needed to trim, plane and route various parts (as well as removing any stray nails and screws), it took much longer than if I had simply purchased new lumber, but I was very pleased by the result.
Several years on, I’m now constructing the matching gates we initially omitted — though with mostly new materials for the gate frames since I wasn’t able to locate enough old 2x4s.
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In my post, I didn't say how I accomplished the long waves, but my solution was to measure and mark the pickets with the tops and bottoms of each wave. I then clamped 2 or 3 10' lengths of 3/4" PVC irrigation tubing to the fence at a low point, then force the tubing bow enough to get a smooth curve as I clamped at the high point. With the pipe in place, then it was a simple matter to trace the curve across all the pickets, remove the tubing and follow my markings to trim the tops of the pickets.
Beautiful fence, I love the waves. I just installed a new fence myself (we went with vinyl) and it's amazing how much it can change the look of a yard.