New Mailbox

Over the weekend the hubby and I did some spring cleaning. I had ordered a vinyl mailbox number cut out off of etsy. I thought this would help me to decide if I wanted the silhouettesd or not. I did order the silhouettesd, and it came in Friday. Just in time for spring cleaning. ;-) Funny how that works, right?! Anyway, back to the subject. When we got to the work outside I wanted to give the mailbox a makeover. I will have to take a picture of the only other mailbox on our block that was in as bad a shape as ours to let you see just what a face lift this thing got! I started by taking off the box. All I need was a hammer to remove the nails that held it to the wooden post. I cleaned up the box and used some "goo gone" to remove the old letters that were baked on from that hot southern sun. Next I took off the flag so I could spray paint the box black. Black is the original color but it had really faded. Then I proceeded to the road to paint the old wooden mailbox post. Somewhere in blog land I saw another DIY-er paint a very dilapidated looking rocking chair. It looked great when they finished. The secret? KILZ! So the hubby was going to Lowe's anyway for new mulch and he picked me up some kilz. I painted two thick coats and then spray painted the mailbox with the left over antique white spray paint I had. I originally wanted to use my heirloom white which is a little more creamish but I had run out of it when I spray painted the birdbath. =) Anyway, after it all dried I applied the new vinyl lettering. The hubby re-attached the mailbox to its post and here is the result (disclaimer: took this pic with my phone and it was so sunny I could hardly see):

Later in the afternoon we ran out for errands. On the drive back to the house the hubby said, "Hmmm...the makeover on the mailbox really does look good doesn't it?" My thoughts exactly. And what did it cost me? $6.50 for the vinyl decal, a small bottle of goo gone which can be used again for sure, two cans of spray paint(both of which I had on hand from other projects), and a minimal amount of kilz. Not near as much as the new mailbox I priced at the home improvement stores! I love DIY for that reason. =) And now my mind is reeling with ideas for that new silhouettesd! All I need is time. =)