What is it used for?
You can make a mailbox both for your private home and for a child’s play. Many child psychologists and teachers consider it very important to use objects from everyday life or professions in a child’s amusement. By coming into contact with such things and understanding their essence from early childhood, children will be more prepared for adulthood.
Using the example of a mailbox, you can explain to your child how letters get into our homes. If you approach the issue from a creative side, you can also come up with many interesting games. Making a mailbox with your own hands is quite simple. First you need to familiarize yourself with the items you will need for the job.
How to make a beautiful mailbox for a private home: first-hand master classes
Traditional options for mailboxes are rarely particularly original. Familiar blue metal boxes decorated with a miniature padlock may satisfy the unpretentious taste of their owner, but the eye of a creative owner will certainly see them as a fertile basis for creating an original exterior item. Ideas on how to make a mailbox can be borrowed from your neighbors, whose fences are decorated with original and at the same time functional containers, or you can take as a basis the arrangement options described in our article.
Necessary materials
First you need to choose the main material - the one from which you will make the frame of the product. If it will hang outside, it is better to use dense and waterproof materials. In the case of a children's mailbox, you will need:
- Paper, cardboard, wood or even foam.
- Scissors, glue, markers, pencil, ruler, paints.
- All kinds of decorative elements: beads, colored paper, stickers.
If you are making a mailbox out of wood, you will need varnish.
What kind of mailboxes are there?
When planning to make a mailbox for a private home, which will serve not only for its intended purpose, but also act as a harmonious addition to the architectural ensemble of a suburban area, you should first of all decide on its shape and size. According to the style of execution, boxes for receiving correspondence can be divided into three main types.
Option #1 – traditional box
The box for receiving correspondence is most often placed near the central entrance to the site, hanging on the wall of the house, gate or fence. An originally designed exterior element will always attract the attention of passers-by and guests.
Cardboard product
It is considered optimal for children's play. You can make your own mailbox out of cardboard using an ordinary shoe box. Its size can be anything. Next, you need to follow the following step-by-step instructions:
- Remove the lid from the box. Cut a rectangular hole in it, into which the envelope will fit.
- Use colored paper, stickers and markers to decorate your mailbox to make it look more colorful. This work should be entrusted to the child so that he develops his creative abilities. Ready!
There is another, more complex way to make a mailbox with your own hands from cardboard. For this you will also need a regular shoe box. The action plan will be as follows:
- Remove the lid from the box. Cut off the last wall to create a rectangle that can be glued to the empty side of the box.
- Next, you need to place the box vertically in front of you. And carefully cut out the top cover so that it only sticks on one side. This will be the top of the mailbox.
- The upper walls need to be cut obliquely so that they are lowered towards the front side of the box, which will be the front. This way we will get a slope, like in real mailboxes.
- In the cut out lid you need to make a rectangular hole into which the letters will be placed. And use tape to glue this lid to the empty side of the box.
- The lid should be glued so that it is tilted down.
- The last stage is decorating the product to your liking.
Ready!
General recommendations for making letter boxes
When planning to make a functional structure with your own hands, every owner wants it to last for more than one season without losing its attractiveness for as long as possible. Therefore, when creating a durable letter box, you should adhere to a number of basic recommendations:
- It is advisable to install a canopy over the slot for lowering correspondence, which will protect the contents of the container from rain and snow.
- The door for removing letters can be placed both on the front panel and in the bottom wall of the structure. With the first arrangement option, it is important to accurately calculate the dimensions of the hole and door in order to prevent the formation of cracks through which moisture will enter. When planning to place the door in the bottom wall, it is better to make this entire part of the box folding.
- When building a wooden box, it is better to fasten all structural elements using corners. This will increase the strength of the structure and greatly facilitate future repairs.
- Do not forget to provide a lock, the installation of which will prevent possible attacks by thieves on correspondence.
Some craftsmen equip their mailboxes with a simple alarm system. It is activated by contact plates, which can be taken from an old magnetic relay or telephone switch.
To equip a mailbox with an alarm system, you need to make an additional bottom in the container, which can be cut out of plywood or plastic, and then placed on springs.
The additional bottom is placed in such a way that the lower edge is attached directly to the box, and the upper edge rests on springs, between which contacts are placed that react to the box being filled with correspondence
As soon as the contacts are closed, a light bulb connected to them by wires, which is already installed in the house, lights up and thereby signals the arrival of new correspondence.
Paper product
Some people do not want to make a product out of cardboard, but also adhere to simplicity in manufacturing. For such people, another material is suitable - paper. It is very easy for any decorative and applied works. So how to make a mailbox out of paper? It is recommended to use thick paper so that it does not sag or wrinkle. We will make a mailbox similar to those that are widely used abroad. That is, semi-oval in shape. The algorithm of actions will be as follows:
- Lay out a sheet of thick paper in front of you. On it you need to measure two strips, 15 centimeters wide. The length of the blanks should be 30 centimeters.
- In the first strip, round the edges on both sides into a semi-oval.
- Place the first strip directly in front of you. Measure 8 centimeters from its two edges. And fold the two edges. This will be the back of the mailbox and its door.
- The second strip needs to be turned into an oval box lid. Glue all the parts to each other.
- If desired, you can cut out a lock for the door from cardboard and decorate the finished box in different ways.
The product is ready!
Design style: basic selection rules
To make a beautiful and practical decoration for your site, you should choose the type of mailbox design.
Most often it is placed at the entrance to private territory, which will provide convenience for the postman and the opportunity to always receive fresh mail; according to the generally accepted classification, such structures are divided into the following types:
- classic mailboxes have a simple design, without any special frills; they come in rectangular and square shapes;
- English mailboxes are characterized by a rather discreet design, built into a wall or gate door or installed separately;
- American mailboxes are quite colorful in design, installed on a special support and supplemented with an alarm.
Traditional boxes for received mail can be replaced with original and unusual designer designs.
For their manufacture, scrap or scrap materials are most often used, because a beautiful mailbox does not have to be constructed from valuable wood or made of plastic.
Interesting ideas
There are many ways to make your mailbox original. It all depends only on imagination, desire and the means at your disposal:
- The mailbox can be made as a gift. You will need to print out photos of the person you want to give it to. This idea for a present will be very original, especially if it is carried out by a small child. First, from the schemes proposed above, you need to make a mailbox with your own hands. Photos printed in advance just need to be carefully glued to it. If desired, you can put a letter inside the box that the child will write. Any person would be pleased to receive such an original congratulation.
- Sometimes a situation arises when you urgently need to help your child make a craft for kindergarten or school. In this case, there is an express option on how to make a mailbox as quickly as possible. You will need a cereal or breakfast box. You need to cut a hole in its top lid for letters, and cover the box itself with colored paper or decorate it in some other way. Making a mailbox with your own hands from cardboard for a kindergarten can be very time-consuming, but this option can save you time.
Everyone can come up with their own version of the original production of this or that craft. Especially when it comes to children. They themselves will be very happy to make a mailbox, decorating and decorating it; you can see ideas for this here: https://fb.ru/article/183401/originalnyie-pochtovyie-yaschiki-svoimi-rukami.
Types of mailboxes for outdoor use
Simple instructions on how to make a mailbox with your own hands begin with recommendations for choosing a general idea, focusing on landscape design.
To decorate the exterior of any type of housing located on a plot of land, you can not limit your flight of imagination and choose the most daring ideas from a design with all sorts of features and a method of removing and laying printed materials and notices:
- top tab of received mail;
- side bookmark with closing door;
- bottom tab with a special limiter.
The main requirement for the practical use of a homemade mailbox is its ease of use.
Such a design should ideally fit into the concept of landscape design and correspond to the design style of the house itself, other outbuildings and the local area.
