Mail Center

My husband has been bugging me to either buy or make a better mail sorter.

This is what we were working with...

See how it's WAY too small to fit our mail?

We both hated it.

I bought this amazing book at Menards a while back...

On page 20, it shows this amazing storage system.

It's made to house a lot of stuff, though.

The book even shows how to make it on page 187!

Now, of course, I don't need this large of storage for mail, plus it would block a doorway.

Look again at that wall.

See how I only have a little room to work with?

I have this cute little basket that I found at Walmart. This one here houses rolled-up washcloths in my spare bathroom.

It also happens to be the perfect size for mail =D

In the directions, it says to find an old potato crate. I didn't have that.

My husband used to work at a grocery store; in the produce section, actually.

What luck!

We happen to have a pear crate in our basement!

I wanted it to fit the basket perfectly, so I took some measurement and sent everything through my table saw.

I cut the sides in half so that I could have two crates instead of one.

I reattached everything using the original nails that I carefully took out.

The directions say to mount these baskets onto two tracks.

I went to Menards, picked out some decorative trim, painted and glazed it.

I went to mount it....

Wasn't going to happen.

Again, I'm going to show you this awful picture.

See that stupid white electrical receptacle?

I'm not a %&^$#$%^ electrician!!

(Sorry for the outburst, I just hate hangups!)

Heck, I don't even know if the wires are dead. I do know that the stupid receptacle is in the only place that I can mount a track. I know that our living room is an addition to the house, so that was probably a light switch on the back door at one point in time.

"I can figure this out....right?" -Me, actually thinking I should just give up.

Yep. It dawned on me.

I marked two points on my trim or where the receptacle would go.

I raised my table saw blade just barely above the table.

I made several passes through the trim with the blade, eventually getting this...

That wasn't so bad ;)

See how it goes seamlessly over the receptacle?

FINALLY, I stained and polyed the crates to give an older, rustic finish.

I mounted them to the tracks with black metal brackets that I found at Menards (though I would have LOVED vintage cast iron ones!)

My husband brought me home two baskets from Walmart. I plopped them in, and wala!

...and you can barely see that stupid white receptacle...

Features I love:

- Two baskets: one for mail, one for mailing supplies.

- The baskets are large enough to house everything

-The baskets are removable, so when I want to pay bills, I just take the two baskets out and sit at my desk, with everything I need!

Now I just need to figure out some kind of fun wall hook for my dog's leashes!

Anyways, I have another awesome project that I built from reclaimed wood. It's only a few days old, but it's already receiving much deserved attention! Come back for that soon!