• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Partner
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Southern Hospitality

Adventures in Decorating, Thrifting, Cooking, Fashion & Gardening

  • My Home
  • Categories
    • A+ Blogs
    • My Blog Story
    • Decorating
    • DIY/How-To
    • Family
    • Gardening
    • In the Kitchen
    • My Home Tours
    • Thrifting
    • Travel
  • DIY Gallery
  • Fashion
  • Feature Friday
  • Shop My Home
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Making an Easy Mailbox Swag

December 17, 2009 By Rhoda 31 Comments

132 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

IMG_7962

L

ast year, I showed you all how I love to put fresh greens on the mailbox.  They’re pretty, they are free, and they just look so much better to me than the fake ones do.  Besides, I love free!  I stopped by a local tree lot and picked up a few branches of their discarded spruce tree limbs, which are the perfect base for a mailbox swag.

Made myself a bow from 2 rolls of Dollar Tree gold ribbon ($2 total).  I had bought that set of 3 gold and silver plastic ornaments last year in the after Christmas sales (I think I paid $5 for them all), with plans of doing this on the mailbox this year.  The little gold/silver jingle bell garland came from Dollar Tree too.   Fresh cedar and magnolia from some nearby trees complete my greenery needs to mix it up here on the mailbox.  IMG_7963

Start by wedging in some foam on top of the mailbox.  I had to jam 2 pieces together to get it to stay, along with some added floral wire.IMG_3617

After adding in some branches, then go back with a few more strands of floral wire and loop them through the branches around the back of the mailbox post and that will help keep it all secure.   Do that in 2 or 3 spots and it should hold up through wind and rain.IMG_7964

Now, all you do is start cutting smaller branches and sticking them in the foam all up and around the mailbox, filling in and keeping it even all the way around.  I added in the cedar towards the front, along with the magnolia, that’s what I want to be seen the most.  The spruce branches are a good base and the other 2 greens  just add additional texture. IMG_7966

Then I wired in the gold bow to the top of my mailbox which  has some scrolly ironwork up there.   And I tied the gold and one silver pinecone on that iron piece too so that it would hang down on one side.  Did the same thing with the other silver pinecone on the other side.  IMG_7967

Then, I just strung the jingle bell garland across the whole thing, letting it hang down equally on either side.   You can see it in this pic.IMG_7968

And that’s it!  A mailbox swag, cheap and easy and I’ll keep everything for next year, except all the fresh greens, they will be tossed.  I love how pretty this looks and that it doesn’t look like every other mailbox on the street.

You know I have to be different! 🙂  Try it at your house and see what you come up with.  It’s a fun way to welcome Christmas for your neighbors, who will see it every day too.

Related


Don't Miss a Post, join my list!

Filed Under: Christmas 31 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Judy @ daily yarns says

    December 17, 2009 at 6:35 am

    That is darling!

    Reply
  2. Nancy says

    December 17, 2009 at 7:13 am

    Too Cute! Looks beautiful! I have been wanting to tell you this for a long time! I love your blog! BUT I like YOURS because you show us real pictures. Some of these blogs try to do the up close thing… which is nice but not for every photo! Photography is great but I also like to see real pictures from a distance! THANK YOU FOR BEING REAL! Nancy from OHIO!

    Reply
  3. Jess @ Frugal with a Flourish says

    December 17, 2009 at 7:17 am

    This is great! Bookmarking for once we finally get a house!! 🙂

    Reply
  4. [email protected] says

    December 17, 2009 at 7:47 am

    Rhoda! That is gorgeous! love the shiny magnolia leaves in there!

    I just did something kind of similar over our piano …no mantel (sniff) …using the oasis and leaves from the yard.

    Reply
  5. Wagonwife Designs says

    December 17, 2009 at 7:59 am

    I love the swag. Just gorgeous. I can not wait to live at my Savannah home and use the magnolia leaves in decorating.
    (And the snow banks will not bury the mail box so I can find and decorate it- Hey maybe the snowplow driver will think it is so beautiful they will not take it out this year -LOL)
    Thank you for sharing this wonderful idea.
    Debra

    Reply
  6. Bonita says

    December 17, 2009 at 8:24 am

    Oh my stars! That’s gorgeous, Rhoda!

    Reply
  7. Carol says

    December 17, 2009 at 9:17 am

    What a great and gorgeous idea! Rhoda, I forgot to mention this yesterday. Yes! I would love a tutorial on making bows. I’m hoping others have the same request. Thanks for all of the the great ideas.

    Reply
  8. [email protected] Home Expressions says

    December 17, 2009 at 9:30 am

    Very pretty, Rhoda! I like this idea because I think I have some left-over decorations and I’ve got greenery in my yard I can take. Everyone by me seems to either wrap garland around their mailbox post or red ribbon {we have our mailboxes at the street as well}.

    Reply
  9. Merrie says

    December 17, 2009 at 9:37 am

    Oh how lovely the swag is! How fortunate you are to live in the south where the magnolias bloom. You have a true gift for making things beautiful.

    Reply
  10. Shelia says

    December 17, 2009 at 9:44 am

    Rhoda! You’re so smart and this is so beautiful! Merry Christmas and be a sweetie,
    Shelia 😉

    Reply
  11. Sue says

    December 17, 2009 at 10:05 am

    After seeing this, I am so decorating my mailbox next year! It’s easy, peasy ( love that crazy word) and it just makes the mailbox stand out from all others. 🙂
    ~ Sue

    Reply
  12. Lou Cinda says

    December 17, 2009 at 10:57 am

    This is so pretty! LOVE the greens and magnolia leaves! my mailbox, sadly, is across the street from my house 🙁 I did decorage my lampost though! I will stick some magnolia in it next year!

    Have a great Christmas!

    Lou Cinda

    Reply
  13. Sheila says

    December 17, 2009 at 11:08 am

    Hi Rhoda,
    What a great looking mailbox. Wish I had one to decorate like yours. Those gold and silver pinecones are beauties. This will definitely be noticed by everyone who drives by and it will be interesting to see how many of your neighbors will start doing the same thing. TFS! Sheila

    Reply
  14. paintergal says

    December 17, 2009 at 11:57 am

    Rhoda, this is beautiful!
    Do you water the foam to keep the branches fresh?
    Wonder how this would hold up in below freezing temps.

    Reply
  15. cindy says

    December 17, 2009 at 11:59 am

    Beautiful! I’m going to try that…(if only it was warmer so I wouldnt freeze outside). If it turns out I’ll put a picture up…thanks for the tips! Love your blog! ~Cindy

    Reply
  16. deb says

    December 17, 2009 at 12:38 pm

    So cute!!
    *hugs*deb

    Reply
  17. Reynie says

    December 17, 2009 at 1:38 pm

    Looks great! Any way to water it to keep it fresh?

    Reply
  18. grannyann says

    December 17, 2009 at 5:22 pm

    How clever, I love it.

    Reply
  19. Beth says

    December 17, 2009 at 5:27 pm

    Oh how I love this swag and I have all the stuff for one…always wonder how to make one of these so now I do. Thanks for the help!

    Reply
  20. Rhoda says

    December 17, 2009 at 6:53 pm

    Hey, ya’ll! I’m glad you all got inspired to maybe try this, it really is easy. And no, I don’t worry about watering it at all. We have gotten plenty of rain lately, so it is getting plenty of water & with the cooler temps, it will stay fresh til the end of the month, I think. Last year’s greens still looked decent when I took them down.

    Reply
Newer Comments »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Thanks for stopping by! I’m Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn’t have to cost a fortune and I’ve spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yard sales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I’m here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won’t you join me?

Click Here

Click Here

Email Series
How to Decorate in
Classic Timeless Style
.....without breaking the bank!

House Renovation Journey!

Our Paint Colors

Archives

Categories

Footer Widget Header2

Featured here:

Better Homes and Gardens
Atlanta Magazine
Better Homes and Gardens

Footer

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Partner

Copyright © 2023 · Southern Hospitality · Blog Design by Little Blue Deer
Privacy Policy

Get my FREE Email Series How to Decorate in Classic Timeless Style....without breaking the bank!
After years of decorating my own homes, I've learned a few tricks on how to create a classic home on a budget. Hope you'll join me!
Your information will *never* be shared or sold to a 3rd party.