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This is one of those projects that was overdue, way overdue! I live in a neighborhood where most all the mailboxes are brick or stucco, and then there was my falling down, cedar trimmed box. Yikes, I'm really surprised my Homeowners Associated never sent me notice to replace it!

​Since we have no bricklaying skills to build a brick mailbox, we set off to find a style we liked and could build with our skillset. On our weekly COVID-19 lockdown Sunday drives through the neighborhood, we spotted the perfect candidate. We took lots of pictures, but resisted the urge to actually get out of the car to take measurements. 

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Whenever we shop at Costco, we always take a look at the products for sale in the lighting/electrical aisle. It seems on every trip they have brand new and exciting LED lighting options! We are sold on LED for lighting in our homes and workspace!

Earlier, this year, we purchased a skylight fixture for Steph's garage to replace a fluorescent fixture that had seen better days. Once installed, the difference was remarkable! Clean, even looking light that actually does look like a skylight!

Well, I was sold and told Steph I wanted one for my very dark closet. The one where I choose my clothes and then realize later on when I'm in the sun, I'm actually wearing, what I thought were black pants, but they are actually blue! 

I loved that lighting solution so much in the closet that I talked Steph into installing one in my laundry room. My sad, dark mess of a laundry room. 

So here is that install! And like most DIY projects, there was a hiccup or two to figure out...

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While scrolling through Wall Control's website, Steph noticed they had vinyl used to make tool cutouts to create a "shadow board." The idea is to add the cutouts to the wall so you can easily return a tool to its proper place. Steph was intrigued, but she knew she did not want to trace around the tools and then cut them out.

So, she designed a way to make the process a little more seamless using the Cricut Maker and the vinyl from Wall Control.

I would suggest watching the video as it lays out the entire process step by step. 

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Steph needed a fence in her backyard for the dog. Unfortunately, her backyard does not lend itself to traditional fencing. She has a tiny, I mean tiny backyard, with no grass but has lots of trees and bushes. Two sides of the yard border the neighborhood green space which is overgrown with lots of bushes, weeds and huge trees! Putting in a traditional fence would mean taking out much of the landscaping and even then it would have been difficult with the trees and their root systems.

So, for many months she used a very temporary, makeshift fence that most of the time would not stay up! Fortunately Mac is a sighthound which means if she sees a barrier she doesn't try go over it or push it aside. 

But it was time for a more permanent, temporary fencing solution. 

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The beautiful spring weather and the CDC advice to stay home has us working in Steph's yard to make some much needed improvements. 

With the addition of Mac the greyhound a year ago, Steph has needed a more permanent solution to fencing her backyard, which included the need for a backyard gate.

For the gate, we decided to use PVC pipe since there is already a PVC privacy screen on the other side of her house and it would mirror that look. Take a look at how we put it together. (We'll tell you about the fencing in an upcoming post.)

​Take a few minutes to check out the video. This one includes an epilogue.