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I really, really, love this idea of house numbers as a sculptural element. $185 per digit from curranonline.com. I don’t have an idea for making these suckers, but I’m open to suggestions!
Vinyl house numbers. Vinyl is NOT expensive to get custom-cut from a sign shop — and if you’re really feeling lazy you can totally get the sign shop to come install your new address, too. You could do any font, any size — it’s a super flexible medium.
Awesome industrial, hammered house numbers are easy to install.
Making threaded house numbers is simple, but looks complex. The thread might get ookie after a while, but then you just take it down and re-thread. Ooh! Ooh! OR you could use this rad fluorescent twine! Here’s how you make these house numbers.
Have a front porch? Make throw pillows with your address on them and multitask!
Another seasonal/temporary/no-damage solution to house numbers — use a wreath. You could use the same wreath over and over, or make one for each season.
Not gonna lie, I love an eco-friendly lighted number option that also collects your mail.
Speaking of eco-friendly, nature-lovers will adore these twig house numbers!
Cut metal house numbers. This one’s from Etsy and looks close to a lot of the high-design jobbies flying around. It’d be easy to reproduce with the help of your local iron working shop. What? Doesn’t everyone have one of those down the street?
We’ve got more house number ideas and products over on Pinterest. Check it.
As a delivery driver, I implore everyone who ever orders pizza to please utilize at least one visible-from-the-street-at-night house numbering system. My job would be so much easier if GIANT NUMBERS became popular!
Yeah. The point of house numbers is for your house to be found, especially in an emergency. I would be concerned about that with the pillows and wreath, if that was the only numbering. Are people who need to find your place going to know what those pillows or even the cute sculpture numbers mean?
I love the plate idea!
Oh thank you for this! We just bought a house and it doesn’t have numbers installed. I’m digging the twine number idea. You could use glow in the dark twine so it can be seen at night as well!
http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/6/Tools/ShopEquipment/StringTwine/PRDOVR~0618540P/Blueline+Glow-in-the-dark+Twine.jsp?locale=en
LOVE!!!!!!! The huge number 15 is my fave, but I love so many of these. Great collection… thanks!
as soon as I saw the pillows, I imagined some jokester rearranging them. way too tempting for kids – or mischievous friends.
I love the nails that is so cool! And the plates are cool too. I never thought of doing something and making my apt number as a decorative statement. Interesting…
Not the easiest, but supremely cheaper than $185 a pop.
http://poppytalk.blogspot.com/2010/08/diy-with-bookhou-plaster-letters.html
The purpose of house numbers is NOT looking cool. I’m in ambulance service and we hate overly-creative numbers. They could cost your life. PLEASE do install a number plate that is
1. visible from the street
2. good in contrast (black / white)
3. lit at night, and more important: lit all night
4. at least 20 x 20 cm
5. not overly ornamental, plain numbers should do.
Thank you.
I agree about safety first, but I see these decorative/fancy/creative ones as almost more of a secondary way of displaying your address. Ours is on our mailbox which is at the street. It’s numbers are bold, plain, reflective numbers so easy for the ambulance to see. Then maybe I could hang the numbered plates on my house, or have the cinder blocks painted with the numbers in my yard, or the pillows on my porch in addition to the safe, easy to read from the street ones.
The number of houses without numbers is amazing to me. It would be nice if people had house numbers period. I think at least a few of these would certainly work for being visible. Mainly the HUGE ones. And #5441. I also like the last one as it would be placed by the curb which would increase visibility. Maybe in a lighter/brighter color though.
I’m also in public safety…I really hate the houses where they bought the fancy scroll numbers that spell out, “Four Hundred and Seventy Seven”. Don’t do that! Use regular numbers!
As I was knocking on doors for a campaign, I was complaining about how some of the houses did have numbers (isn’t that illegal??) and couldn’t figure out if the house we were at was correct. Took a step back, and there was the number, on the 2nd floor in 4 or 5 foot numbers. If only all house were like that.
So true… that’s why we bought some fat 12″ numbers in black to stand out against light-coloured brick home.
I’m all for decorative numbers, and have considered the spray on moss ones for when we build our front wall, but I have to agree that for safety and ease, having standard, highly visible numbers on the letterbox is a very good idea!
I know when I’m looking for a friend’s house at night I look at the letterboxes for numbers, rather than anywhere else.
I do love these ideas though! I also love these ones from ThinkGeek: http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/gear/870f/
Dancing Dragon used to carry dragons in the shape of numbers, but now that they no longer exist I can’t find them anywhere. 🙁
I love the giant ones! As for the free-standing chunky number, what about those photography props they use for kid portraits with their age number? Would that be big enough?
This article came up as a “recommended for you” pop up while I was reading another article… unfortunately, none of the pictures/links are coming through, so all I can read is the text. (see screenshot of what I’m seeing at this link: http://screencast.com/t/CkeIdKyiv )
STUPID PINTEREST. They totally broke their own embed code, and my editors have spent months cleaning up posts from 2011 that all look like this. We’ll get this one cleaned up, too!
Glad you did! I enjoyed this!