I f you want to build a useful, long-lasting item in just a few hours, this mailbox is the project for you. Replace that impersonal metal mailbox you bought at the hardware store with a distinctive cedar mailbox that's a lot of fun to build. The lines and design are so simple on this project that it suits nearly any home entrance. The mailbox features a hinged lid and a convenient lower shelf that is sized to hold magazines and newspapers.
We used select cedar to build our mailbox, then applied a clear, protective finish. Plain brass house numbers dress up the flat surface of the lid, which also features a decorative scallop that doubles as a handgrip.
If you are ambitious and economy-minded, you can build this entire mailbox using just one 8'-long piece of 1 × 10 cedar. That means, however, that you'll have to do quite a bit of rip-cutting to make the parts. If you have a good straightedge and some patience, rip-cutting is not difficult. But you may prefer to simply purchase dimensional lumber that matches the widths of the pieces.
If your house is sided with wood siding, you can hang the mailbox by screwing the back directly to the siding. If you have vinyl or metal siding, be sure that the screws make it all the way through the siding and into wood sheathing or wood wall studs. If you have masonry siding, like brick or stucco, use masonry anchors to hang the mailbox.