I made my son a no-sew felt loft bed the other day, but because his goes under his desk there really wasn’t room to add a mailbox like I did for my daughters. But he REALLY wanted one and said, “Mom, can’t we just make one to put on my desk?” How could I say no to that challenge?
I had plastic canvas and felt and a trusty glue gun, so in about 10 minutes we came up with this:
Not the prettiest, but it does its job and he is super happy with it!
I cut out a bottom piece of plastic canvas, a back piece, a front piece, a large top piece that bends to create the top portion and a small flag. I cut out felt and sandwiched it inside the felt pieces and glued shut. I then glued the top to the bottom and glued the back onto both pieces. For the front piece I added an extra inch of felt along the bottom and I glued that to the bottom of the mailbox so that the front could flip up and down. A small piece of velcro holds it shut.
I also used a snap closure to make the flag movable. I glued one piece to the mailbox and the other to the flag and then snapped them together. Works perfectly! We then created some small envelopes my cutting a #10 envelope in half, licking the flap and sealing it. This leaves one of the shorter sides open and fits perfectly in the mailbox.
We placed his bucket of markers and a notepad nearby so anyone can leave a note.
Not too bad for a 10 minute project!
Of course AFTER I did this project and typed up this post I searched for felt mailboxes and came across this tutorial (a sewing version). My son requested I make a second one for his friend RJ, so I went ahead and used the idea from this tutorial and just glued where they sewed! So if you don’t want to sew it, take my idea and follow The Giverslog’s tutorial!
RJ’s Mailbox (I was running low on plastic canvas, so his isn’t quite as tall…):
His felt tent took about 20 minutes. He really liked his sisters and I decided I couldn’t just leave him without one for his bat cave! I didn’t take nearly as much time as I did for my daughters, but he is happy with it and that is what matters!
Not bad for three days of projects – two no-sew felt loft bed tents and two no-sew mailboxes!
And check out this mail bag that Mason put together at daycare:
Kim is a Marketing Specialist with Inspiration Media Solutions by day and Creative Blogger by night. She's a wife, mom of three beautiful children and two fur-babies, a Goldendoodle and a rescued Pibble. For even more Inspiration Made Simple, like her on Facebook and Instagram+.
My name is Kim, founder of Inspiration Made Simple, and I'm really glad you have stopped by!
I'm a mom, wife, DIY and fitness enthusiast. I love sharing simple and affordable ideas that help make your busy life easier, including craft tutorials, printables, recipes, party ideas, and fun family activities. Learn more about Kim...
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I think this is great! I love No Sew Projects…here is a No Sew Number Flashcard I did if your interested:
http://fabulouslysmitten.blogspot.com/2012/03/mommy-adventures-in-crafts.html