Q&A With Woman Who Installed 2-Foot-Tall Address Numbers on Her House
January 1, 2022 9:34 PM Subscribe
"I found this company, Woodland Manufacturing—you tell them how big to make them. I went out and measured and thought, Well, I think I can get some really big numbers." In the early days of the pandemic, I went on a quixotic quest to walk every one of the 1,114 blocks in my Arlington, Virginia, ZIP code, cataloging the styles of the address numbers on every house along the way. Not only did I learn a lot about how my neighborhood has evolved over the years and is changing even now, I also got to see some really spectacular and creative home design.
That is charming, and I think it looks great too!
posted by lepus at 10:09 PM on January 1, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by lepus at 10:09 PM on January 1, 2022 [5 favorites]
Those numbers look sharp to me. So does the one in Houston. Why should office parks have all the big number fun?
posted by Superilla at 10:14 PM on January 1, 2022 [11 favorites]
posted by Superilla at 10:14 PM on January 1, 2022 [11 favorites]
I go in and out of my house every day, and I see my great big numbers, and that makes me happy.
Such simple, pragmatic joy! I love it!
posted by lock robster at 10:25 PM on January 1, 2022 [13 favorites]
Such simple, pragmatic joy! I love it!
posted by lock robster at 10:25 PM on January 1, 2022 [13 favorites]
Aw, missed my mom's zip code by two numbers and two blocks.
posted by tavella at 10:38 PM on January 1, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by tavella at 10:38 PM on January 1, 2022 [1 favorite]
God, I wish. Usually house numbers are tiny, match the background of their sign exactly, and have no lights pointing at them but extremely bright lights shining straight out into the eyes of a driver who is trying desperately to find the place to drop the damn Uber Eats order.
posted by Scattercat at 10:45 PM on January 1, 2022 [19 favorites]
posted by Scattercat at 10:45 PM on January 1, 2022 [19 favorites]
This is strangely lovely! "a utilitarian piece of art". I don't know why, but I somehow feel I would get neighbours complaining to the council if I did something similar, which is clearly stupid as my road is notable for its randomness (a friend once said that planning permission must not apply here).
Now I'm starting to think about Very Large text on houses. House names. Optimistic yet slightly worrying phrases.
posted by paduasoy at 10:51 PM on January 1, 2022 [9 favorites]
Now I'm starting to think about Very Large text on houses. House names. Optimistic yet slightly worrying phrases.
posted by paduasoy at 10:51 PM on January 1, 2022 [9 favorites]
What's a Tuesday Morning sun, by the way? Link goes to a retailer called that but not to a specific product - is it a thing? I can see there is a song of that name.
posted by paduasoy at 10:54 PM on January 1, 2022
posted by paduasoy at 10:54 PM on January 1, 2022
I think it literally means she bought the sun decoration at Tuesday Morning? and possibly, given that TM is a discount overstock retailer, with a slight subtext of "ha-ha yeah it's a bit naff but it was cheap."
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 11:49 PM on January 1, 2022 [16 favorites]
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 11:49 PM on January 1, 2022 [16 favorites]
As a former delivery grunt, I really appreciate PROPERLY READABLE house numbers. Some of the WORST examples I've seen includes:
Metal numbers with NO LIGHT so they are invisible at night unless you just HAPPEN to shine the light on it.
Fancy metal numbers... on dirty bricks... perfectly camouflaged.
Numbers obscured by overgrown bush / plants / etc.
Cars parked so the curbside number is not visible (some places paint the house number on the sidewalk curb)
Non-progressive number (numbers not in order)
Apartment complex that you need a MAP to decipher which units are where
Worse if they are spread over multiple levels.
----
Though the 2 ft tall house numbers are a bit of an overkill. :D
posted by kschang at 2:44 AM on January 2, 2022 [14 favorites]
Metal numbers with NO LIGHT so they are invisible at night unless you just HAPPEN to shine the light on it.
Fancy metal numbers... on dirty bricks... perfectly camouflaged.
Numbers obscured by overgrown bush / plants / etc.
Cars parked so the curbside number is not visible (some places paint the house number on the sidewalk curb)
Non-progressive number (numbers not in order)
Apartment complex that you need a MAP to decipher which units are where
Worse if they are spread over multiple levels.
----
Though the 2 ft tall house numbers are a bit of an overkill. :D
posted by kschang at 2:44 AM on January 2, 2022 [14 favorites]
What's a Tuesday Morning sun, by the way?
The sun is visible in the pre-numbers photo, but not obvious.
I like the numbers, but I find the whole composition cramped! The numbers feel squished between the bay window and garage. I’d have put the numbers vertically stacked to the left of the garage (but not rotated like 2101 above).
posted by ejs at 5:00 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
The sun is visible in the pre-numbers photo, but not obvious.
I like the numbers, but I find the whole composition cramped! The numbers feel squished between the bay window and garage. I’d have put the numbers vertically stacked to the left of the garage (but not rotated like 2101 above).
posted by ejs at 5:00 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
Tuesday Morning is, improbably, the name of a retail store chain. I guess they are only open a few hours a week? I don’t get it.
I think the numbers look great and I wouldn’t change the blue either. Cool!
posted by freecellwizard at 5:08 AM on January 2, 2022
I think the numbers look great and I wouldn’t change the blue either. Cool!
posted by freecellwizard at 5:08 AM on January 2, 2022
and then I won’t have to tell the Uber driver where my house is.
GrubHub drivers have been having trouble figuring out which house is ours, and in one case, actually delivering to the wrong house. The house number is in fairly large black numbers on a white wall over the garage but the light above them has never worked and we don't want to hire an electrician to figure it out. I put house numbers next to our door, but because of the slope of the tiered garden in our front yard it's not really visible from the street.
So we got a solar-powered light-up house number sign and stuck it right down in the lowest tier at street level. It is unmistakable. But ever since then... we have had MORE trouble with GrubHub drivers not being able to find the house.
The guy last night stopped his car three houses up the street. He said that's where Google Maps said we are. When I look at Google Maps on the web, searching for our address does point to the right house... but the map has the wrong house number. But the house up the street where they keep going doesn't have our number either.
posted by Foosnark at 5:45 AM on January 2, 2022 [4 favorites]
GrubHub drivers have been having trouble figuring out which house is ours, and in one case, actually delivering to the wrong house. The house number is in fairly large black numbers on a white wall over the garage but the light above them has never worked and we don't want to hire an electrician to figure it out. I put house numbers next to our door, but because of the slope of the tiered garden in our front yard it's not really visible from the street.
So we got a solar-powered light-up house number sign and stuck it right down in the lowest tier at street level. It is unmistakable. But ever since then... we have had MORE trouble with GrubHub drivers not being able to find the house.
The guy last night stopped his car three houses up the street. He said that's where Google Maps said we are. When I look at Google Maps on the web, searching for our address does point to the right house... but the map has the wrong house number. But the house up the street where they keep going doesn't have our number either.
posted by Foosnark at 5:45 AM on January 2, 2022 [4 favorites]
Tuesday Morning is just a discount shop, it's like if you took all the clothes out of a TJ Maxx and also made it less good. It's open during normal hours. I don't know if they still do but back about 25-30 years ago they had a section with random teaching supplies (bulletin board boarders and such) and my mom would drag us in there to dig around for good stuff in the teacher bins any time we were out shopping on the south side. They always seem to locate them in the strangest places. I've only been in the Tuesday Morning in Chicago once, and it's crammed into a narrow, second storey L-shaped warren between two "real" stores in that shopping area at North and Clybourn.
If you've been to a Tuesday Morning, you know exactly the vibe of the "crappy Tuesday Morning sun." It's probably something like this or this. They even have a crappy Tuesday Morning sun to decorate your home in the Sims.
I think the tacky metal sun is the coastal elite version of the ubiquitous barn star you see on every house in the midwest.
posted by phunniemee at 5:58 AM on January 2, 2022 [17 favorites]
If you've been to a Tuesday Morning, you know exactly the vibe of the "crappy Tuesday Morning sun." It's probably something like this or this. They even have a crappy Tuesday Morning sun to decorate your home in the Sims.
I think the tacky metal sun is the coastal elite version of the ubiquitous barn star you see on every house in the midwest.
posted by phunniemee at 5:58 AM on January 2, 2022 [17 favorites]
A house somewhat close to me put up similar huge numbers (except vertical) a few months ago. I wonder if they read the article?
When I started delivering mail (decades ago), it seemed like none of the houses on my route had easily readable numbers. If I put the wrong mail in one box, all the boxes after that would have the wrong mail, because none of the houses had prominent house numbers. One day I went through and wrote the house numbers of every house inside the box lid so I wouldn't have to guess. Then one day it occurred to me to put those stick on numbers on the outside of the lid of my own mail box. No one else in town had done this. Trust me, I delivered mail, I know this for a fact. (I think there was some kind of crazy notion at the time that if you put your address on the mailbox, it would make it easier for your kids to be kidnapped.) Afterwards, I started to see a few other people on my street do this, then almost overnight everyone had done this. I like to claim credit for that improvement, but it was probably a spiritus mundi thing.
posted by jabah at 6:00 AM on January 2, 2022 [15 favorites]
When I started delivering mail (decades ago), it seemed like none of the houses on my route had easily readable numbers. If I put the wrong mail in one box, all the boxes after that would have the wrong mail, because none of the houses had prominent house numbers. One day I went through and wrote the house numbers of every house inside the box lid so I wouldn't have to guess. Then one day it occurred to me to put those stick on numbers on the outside of the lid of my own mail box. No one else in town had done this. Trust me, I delivered mail, I know this for a fact. (I think there was some kind of crazy notion at the time that if you put your address on the mailbox, it would make it easier for your kids to be kidnapped.) Afterwards, I started to see a few other people on my street do this, then almost overnight everyone had done this. I like to claim credit for that improvement, but it was probably a spiritus mundi thing.
posted by jabah at 6:00 AM on January 2, 2022 [15 favorites]
Now I'm starting to think about Very Large text on houses. House names. Optimistic yet slightly worrying phrases.
I've always wanted to own a place with a ghost sign. It would make directions easy. "Just look for the house with BOVIL painted on it in 10 foot high letters."
posted by fight or flight at 6:07 AM on January 2, 2022 [11 favorites]
I've always wanted to own a place with a ghost sign. It would make directions easy. "Just look for the house with BOVIL painted on it in 10 foot high letters."
posted by fight or flight at 6:07 AM on January 2, 2022 [11 favorites]
We live on a corner. Our actual house number faces the street listed on the mortgage, but because the neighbourhood used to be a bit dodgy a few years ago, the former owners constructed a high privacy fence and infuriatingly latching lock gate near where the front door is. So we use the side entrance because the driveway is around the corner facing another street.
Deliveries are a crapshoot, despite a sign indicating that deliveries should be made around the corner where the doorbell is, and yes delivery person we know that there is a huge fence surrounding the proper front door. We are annoyed but the neighbourhood is still just dodgy enough where we have had clothes stolen off the clothesline, tomato plants nicked, and honestly, I am surprised my cannabis plants made it through their growing season without someone jumping the chain link fence facing our next door neighbour's driveway to get them.
What I am saying is: I would fucking love giant ass numbers where our house address faces street because goddamn I am tired of delivery people yeeting shit over the fence or just not bothering to read the sign at all about coming around to deliver stuff to the side door entrance.
posted by Kitteh at 6:18 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
Deliveries are a crapshoot, despite a sign indicating that deliveries should be made around the corner where the doorbell is, and yes delivery person we know that there is a huge fence surrounding the proper front door. We are annoyed but the neighbourhood is still just dodgy enough where we have had clothes stolen off the clothesline, tomato plants nicked, and honestly, I am surprised my cannabis plants made it through their growing season without someone jumping the chain link fence facing our next door neighbour's driveway to get them.
What I am saying is: I would fucking love giant ass numbers where our house address faces street because goddamn I am tired of delivery people yeeting shit over the fence or just not bothering to read the sign at all about coming around to deliver stuff to the side door entrance.
posted by Kitteh at 6:18 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
In the late 90s/early 2000s, I delivered newspapers on weekends as a second job (remember actual physical newspapers?). This was in Minneapolis, which is generally a very organized grid-based system with regular numbering that starts over every block (unlike our neighbor St. Paul, where house numbers just keep increasing linearly, meaning the house number gives you almost no clue where on the miles of street the house may be).
It took me a few years to really figure out the numbering system; it was pretty regular, in that all of the numbers went up by four, odd was on the west, etc., but there was always something that would throw me off.
Then one time I was helping out someone on vacation (we were all "Independent Contractors", my first brush with that dubious concept, which meant we needed to find our own substitutes) and their route was in a somewhat more expensive part of town and the numbers all went up by six. That really threw me.
Obviously bigger lots meant bigger number jumps, but why? Then I finally figured out that each 10 feet of lot width equaled a number increment--40 foot lots, 4 digit jumps; 60 foot lots, 6 digit jumps. That worked out perfectly with the fact that blocks in Minneapolis are 600 feet long. Huzzah!
There were still some inconsistencies that bothered me though; on most blocks, the mid-low numbers would always be a little off. 01, 05, 09, 11, 17, or 01, 05, 09, 15, 17--always something that didn't fit with what I thought I'd figured out about the numbering system.
Finally, I realized that for stupid reasons of superstition, the number 13 was almost always skipped and replaced with either 11 or 15.
Once I knew all of that, I could pretty much do deliveries anywhere on the grid without needing to see house numbers.
All of this is so obvious in retrospect, but no one I've ever shared this (overlong) story with has ever figured out the system, so I don't feel too bad about how long it took to figure it out for myself.
posted by Ickster at 6:39 AM on January 2, 2022 [25 favorites]
It took me a few years to really figure out the numbering system; it was pretty regular, in that all of the numbers went up by four, odd was on the west, etc., but there was always something that would throw me off.
Then one time I was helping out someone on vacation (we were all "Independent Contractors", my first brush with that dubious concept, which meant we needed to find our own substitutes) and their route was in a somewhat more expensive part of town and the numbers all went up by six. That really threw me.
Obviously bigger lots meant bigger number jumps, but why? Then I finally figured out that each 10 feet of lot width equaled a number increment--40 foot lots, 4 digit jumps; 60 foot lots, 6 digit jumps. That worked out perfectly with the fact that blocks in Minneapolis are 600 feet long. Huzzah!
There were still some inconsistencies that bothered me though; on most blocks, the mid-low numbers would always be a little off. 01, 05, 09, 11, 17, or 01, 05, 09, 15, 17--always something that didn't fit with what I thought I'd figured out about the numbering system.
Finally, I realized that for stupid reasons of superstition, the number 13 was almost always skipped and replaced with either 11 or 15.
Once I knew all of that, I could pretty much do deliveries anywhere on the grid without needing to see house numbers.
All of this is so obvious in retrospect, but no one I've ever shared this (overlong) story with has ever figured out the system, so I don't feel too bad about how long it took to figure it out for myself.
posted by Ickster at 6:39 AM on January 2, 2022 [25 favorites]
I love the big numbers, though I too would have stacked them vertically. Removing the fakey shutters from either side of the “bay window” was also a good call. One of my pet peeves is shutters that are undersized or located somewhere non-sensical and these, visible in the Google Earth “before” photo, were both.
posted by carmicha at 6:44 AM on January 2, 2022
posted by carmicha at 6:44 AM on January 2, 2022
One of the minor reasons I never want to have a house is all the people who apparently want to hate on your for every asthetic decision you might make to said house. I think this looks really cool and have literally no idea why anyone would care.
posted by tiny frying pan at 6:45 AM on January 2, 2022 [8 favorites]
posted by tiny frying pan at 6:45 AM on January 2, 2022 [8 favorites]
I really should put bigger numbers on my house. As best as I can tell, the numbers on the front, on a porch column, have been there since the house was built in 1972. However, in the 16 years that I've lived in this house I've only come in the front door maybe twice. I use the door from the garage to the kitchen to enter.
One fun fact that can complicate deliveries or getting service techs to the house is that I'm the corner house, and while my street address is on one street, my driveway is on the other street. So whenever someone is coming out, I always make sure to say "...your GPS is going to tell you to turn down X street. Don't do that. My driveway is on Y street, brown house on the corner..."
Back in 2013 I had to replace the entire HVAC system, and that required the county to come out and inspect the work after it was done. The county inspector spent about 5 minutes lecturing me about how it was wrong to have my mailbox and address on one street, and my driveway on the other. I was like..."dude, this place has been here since 1972, and it was obviously built this way with the garage and driveway on this side. What do you expect me to do 40 years later..."
Now I kind of want huge numbers on the garage side of the house...
posted by ralan at 6:49 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
One fun fact that can complicate deliveries or getting service techs to the house is that I'm the corner house, and while my street address is on one street, my driveway is on the other street. So whenever someone is coming out, I always make sure to say "...your GPS is going to tell you to turn down X street. Don't do that. My driveway is on Y street, brown house on the corner..."
Back in 2013 I had to replace the entire HVAC system, and that required the county to come out and inspect the work after it was done. The county inspector spent about 5 minutes lecturing me about how it was wrong to have my mailbox and address on one street, and my driveway on the other. I was like..."dude, this place has been here since 1972, and it was obviously built this way with the garage and driveway on this side. What do you expect me to do 40 years later..."
Now I kind of want huge numbers on the garage side of the house...
posted by ralan at 6:49 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
one day it occurred to me to put those stick on numbers on the outside of the lid of my own mail box
In the neighborhood where I grew up all the houses that still had their original mailboxes had the house number and street name in 1/8th inch thick metal letterforms mounted on top of the mailbox. Looking back, it was some overly fancy shit, but it also meant (almost) every house was well marked, at least for the purposes of mail delivery.
The funny thing is that there was wide variations in the floor plans, styles, and basic footprints of the houses themselves, but the mailboxes were all identical save for the color. Thankfully, they were not the brick kind that I find hideous for some reason.
Related to Ickster's discovery, Tulsa was super easy to find places in for the same reason. The consistency in addressing was so strongly enforced there that individual addresses had to be correctly stated on the planning docs and if you got it wrong, staff would notice, provide detailed nitpicks, often explaining why the address had to be x and not y, and make the developer resubmit the proposed plat and anything else where street addresses appeared.
In a couple of cases I saw where a house didn't get built exactly where it was proposed or with a different building envelope (and thus a different centroid), but still within all the relevant setbacks, they fined the developer and made the homeowner change their damn house number after the fact. They did not play around.
posted by wierdo at 6:53 AM on January 2, 2022 [5 favorites]
In the neighborhood where I grew up all the houses that still had their original mailboxes had the house number and street name in 1/8th inch thick metal letterforms mounted on top of the mailbox. Looking back, it was some overly fancy shit, but it also meant (almost) every house was well marked, at least for the purposes of mail delivery.
The funny thing is that there was wide variations in the floor plans, styles, and basic footprints of the houses themselves, but the mailboxes were all identical save for the color. Thankfully, they were not the brick kind that I find hideous for some reason.
Related to Ickster's discovery, Tulsa was super easy to find places in for the same reason. The consistency in addressing was so strongly enforced there that individual addresses had to be correctly stated on the planning docs and if you got it wrong, staff would notice, provide detailed nitpicks, often explaining why the address had to be x and not y, and make the developer resubmit the proposed plat and anything else where street addresses appeared.
In a couple of cases I saw where a house didn't get built exactly where it was proposed or with a different building envelope (and thus a different centroid), but still within all the relevant setbacks, they fined the developer and made the homeowner change their damn house number after the fact. They did not play around.
posted by wierdo at 6:53 AM on January 2, 2022 [5 favorites]
On my old house, I had enameled numbers that I got in Paris. Not perfect for that house, but I loved them; they're still there, very legible. This house has faded numbers on a post holding up a deck, and crappy numbers on the mailbox at the street, and I finally got a nice reflective sign on Etsy; the mail carrier complimented it.
My house I was built as summer cottage; they were pretty much built for returning veterans of WWII. I'd like to name it, but fear it would be twee. For a while, we had our last names on small oars on the deck.
I love the numbers, would have left-justified them, maybe. I love the blue trim, but I think the green could be grayed-down a bit, more dull olive. I like the owner and the writer and this thread a great deal.
posted by theora55 at 7:28 AM on January 2, 2022 [5 favorites]
My house I was built as summer cottage; they were pretty much built for returning veterans of WWII. I'd like to name it, but fear it would be twee. For a while, we had our last names on small oars on the deck.
I love the numbers, would have left-justified them, maybe. I love the blue trim, but I think the green could be grayed-down a bit, more dull olive. I like the owner and the writer and this thread a great deal.
posted by theora55 at 7:28 AM on January 2, 2022 [5 favorites]
I think the tacky metal sun is the coastal elite version of the ubiquitous barn star you see on every house in the midwest.
Ahem, we've all moved on to massive wall clocks in useless places. Those goons in Waco sent down the decree a long time ago.
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:35 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
Ahem, we've all moved on to massive wall clocks in useless places. Those goons in Waco sent down the decree a long time ago.
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:35 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
I've been considering putting big comic sans numbers on the side of my house, to take the piss out of the gentrifying giant sans-serif numbers trend, but I don't think many people would get the joke.
posted by Flashman at 8:07 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by Flashman at 8:07 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
ThNk you for this delightful discovery and thread. And eventually today I need to put on pants and go out and look at our house numbers from the street. I’m afraid ours aren’t nearly visible enough.
posted by purenitrous at 8:08 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by purenitrous at 8:08 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
Tulsa was super easy to find places in for the same reason.
Oh my word, yes! The streets are numbered numerically North-South and arranged alphabetically going East-West. Made it real easy to find things in the days before google maps.
posted by jabah at 8:10 AM on January 2, 2022
Oh my word, yes! The streets are numbered numerically North-South and arranged alphabetically going East-West. Made it real easy to find things in the days before google maps.
posted by jabah at 8:10 AM on January 2, 2022
Smart move by the journalist. This article is doing big numbers.
posted by zamboni at 8:40 AM on January 2, 2022 [13 favorites]
posted by zamboni at 8:40 AM on January 2, 2022 [13 favorites]
Utah was extremely consistent in its street naming (more accurately numbering) system. I feel like almost every single town followed the same convention where main and center were the two baseline roads and then every other road was a number. So you'd have addresses like 350 W 1450 North. At the time gps stuff did not like parsing them.
posted by Ferreous at 9:09 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Ferreous at 9:09 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
Where I grew up, the city had a program where they went around and painted house numbers on the curb in front of every home. It was, if I recall correctly, black block letters stenciled on a rectangular white reflective back ground. It was primarily to aid emergency vehicles in finding the right house. The city would come around every couple of years and touch them up, too. I don't think they do it anymore, though.
Also, the entire city was laid-out with the conceit that odd-numbered homes were always on the east side of the street, and even numbers on the west. Similarly, the south side had the odds, and the north had the evens. Knowing that really helps finding places a bit.
I love big numbers on homes. It's a keen design statement that is also highly functional. Sadly, most HOAs will have exactly the opposite opinion of big numbers.
posted by Thorzdad at 9:09 AM on January 2, 2022
Also, the entire city was laid-out with the conceit that odd-numbered homes were always on the east side of the street, and even numbers on the west. Similarly, the south side had the odds, and the north had the evens. Knowing that really helps finding places a bit.
I love big numbers on homes. It's a keen design statement that is also highly functional. Sadly, most HOAs will have exactly the opposite opinion of big numbers.
posted by Thorzdad at 9:09 AM on January 2, 2022
One of the minor reasons I never want to have a house is all the people who apparently want to hate on your for every asthetic decision you might make to said house. I think this looks really cool and have literally no idea why anyone would care.
I once read an article about a house that was painted bright purple. And out on the lawn was an elegant sign with fancy lettering that said, "We don't like the color of your house either."
I thought it was a good solution.
posted by mochapickle at 9:26 AM on January 2, 2022 [22 favorites]
I once read an article about a house that was painted bright purple. And out on the lawn was an elegant sign with fancy lettering that said, "We don't like the color of your house either."
I thought it was a good solution.
posted by mochapickle at 9:26 AM on January 2, 2022 [22 favorites]
Ooh, I should get these for my house. The numbers are over the garage, which is set quite far back from the street, and this seems to confuse delivery people on the regular.
Thanks so much for this post, which embodies the best of what I enjoy here on Metafilter: something interesting that I would never have thought was interesting even if I'd managed to come across it myself.
posted by rpfields at 9:43 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
Thanks so much for this post, which embodies the best of what I enjoy here on Metafilter: something interesting that I would never have thought was interesting even if I'd managed to come across it myself.
posted by rpfields at 9:43 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
Not quite the same thing but the comment about utilitarian art reminded me. And the BIG, of course.
BUS stop shelter in Baltimore.
posted by zoinks at 9:56 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
BUS stop shelter in Baltimore.
posted by zoinks at 9:56 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
Removing the fakey shutters from either side of the “bay window” was also a good call. One of my pet peeves is shutters that are undersized or located somewhere non-sensical
Then you better avoid the DC suburbs, where those faux shutters decorate most of the red-brick single-family housing.
posted by Rash at 10:26 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
Then you better avoid the DC suburbs, where those faux shutters decorate most of the red-brick single-family housing.
posted by Rash at 10:26 AM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
There are a lot of midcentury houses where I live, and one of my favorite things is, when a house number has a zero in it, like 209 or whatever, for it to be styled 'Two O Nine.'
Which doesn't really have anything to do with giant house numbers, but, short of us walking around some neighborhood, or I suppose maybe an antiques store, together, this will probably be the best chance I get to make this observation.
posted by box at 10:47 AM on January 2, 2022 [4 favorites]
Which doesn't really have anything to do with giant house numbers, but, short of us walking around some neighborhood, or I suppose maybe an antiques store, together, this will probably be the best chance I get to make this observation.
posted by box at 10:47 AM on January 2, 2022 [4 favorites]
We have house numbers on:
Mailbox post (both sides)
Mailbox front
Curb
By the front door
Upper right corner of the house facing the street, lit.
Additionally, we live on a corner, properly numbered xxx00.
Finally, there are no other houses on the other corners because we are surrounded by a park.
At least once a month we get some kind of delivery failure because the driver ‘couldn’t find’ or ‘no such address’.
I’ve seen delivery trucks drive by our house multiple times before receiving such messages and I’ve come to the conclusion that we have failed to teach people how street numbers are arranged. It’s the most charitable I can be about this.
posted by Revvy at 10:55 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
Mailbox post (both sides)
Mailbox front
Curb
By the front door
Upper right corner of the house facing the street, lit.
Additionally, we live on a corner, properly numbered xxx00.
Finally, there are no other houses on the other corners because we are surrounded by a park.
At least once a month we get some kind of delivery failure because the driver ‘couldn’t find’ or ‘no such address’.
I’ve seen delivery trucks drive by our house multiple times before receiving such messages and I’ve come to the conclusion that we have failed to teach people how street numbers are arranged. It’s the most charitable I can be about this.
posted by Revvy at 10:55 AM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
I've started documenting some of the interesting rural mailboxes I see on my bike rides.
My own house has a very distinctive paint job that would surely annoy our homeowner's association…if we lived in a place with an HOA. Which we don't, since we wouldn't be able to give our house a very distinctive paint job.
posted by adamrice at 10:59 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
My own house has a very distinctive paint job that would surely annoy our homeowner's association…if we lived in a place with an HOA. Which we don't, since we wouldn't be able to give our house a very distinctive paint job.
posted by adamrice at 10:59 AM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
I like the big numbers, but damn that house needs more windows.
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:02 AM on January 2, 2022
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:02 AM on January 2, 2022
I love this!
My house is probably impossible to find, save for the fact that the numbering is orderly on my street plus the wonderful Chicago grid.
The entrance is on the side of the house (no front door) and the numbers are the original enameled 1921 numbers - small enough to fit 4 digits on the face of a single brick. You can see them on the right corner of the front of the house here. They are adorable, but we have no lights out there so they're basically invisible at night.
I feel bad, but like add it to the list of things that need to be improved in a 100-year old bungalow and maybe I'll get to it eventually.
posted by misskaz at 11:06 AM on January 2, 2022
My house is probably impossible to find, save for the fact that the numbering is orderly on my street plus the wonderful Chicago grid.
The entrance is on the side of the house (no front door) and the numbers are the original enameled 1921 numbers - small enough to fit 4 digits on the face of a single brick. You can see them on the right corner of the front of the house here. They are adorable, but we have no lights out there so they're basically invisible at night.
I feel bad, but like add it to the list of things that need to be improved in a 100-year old bungalow and maybe I'll get to it eventually.
posted by misskaz at 11:06 AM on January 2, 2022
I was SO waiting for this to end up being a reverse Stonehenge.
posted by hwyengr at 11:25 AM on January 2, 2022
posted by hwyengr at 11:25 AM on January 2, 2022
Thanks for the sun clarifications. The house also makes me think of the hidden numbers game Mysteriez - one of the easier challenges of course.
posted by paduasoy at 2:42 PM on January 2, 2022
posted by paduasoy at 2:42 PM on January 2, 2022
I've had our house numbers leaning up in the front window for (checks notes) about 3 1/2 years. I had to take them down when we repainted and I really liked them but they were just stick on things and the place that sold 'em to me doesn't sell them and I've been trying to figure out how to fix them but then feeling like stickon? naw...I should buy some proper screw on ones and then I shop proper numbers and either everything I like is too expensive or too big or too small and then I remember that I was supposed to be working or picking up my kid from somewhere or feeding her or myself and.... time passes. You can see them from the street, though. I should really fix these numbers....
posted by amanda at 2:44 PM on January 2, 2022 [5 favorites]
posted by amanda at 2:44 PM on January 2, 2022 [5 favorites]
I have a relationship with the city I live in where I don’t like it because I don’t know much about it and I refuse to learn anything about it because I don’t like it.
Hence I’ve lived in the same neighborhood for seven years because the east-west streets are in alphabetical order and the north-west streets are in numerical order and I’m less likely to get lost.
posted by bendy at 4:03 PM on January 2, 2022
Hence I’ve lived in the same neighborhood for seven years because the east-west streets are in alphabetical order and the north-west streets are in numerical order and I’m less likely to get lost.
posted by bendy at 4:03 PM on January 2, 2022
The Tuesday Morning near Arlington was sadly(?) a victim of the pandemic, but just imagine a TJ Maxx crossed with a Goodwill and an antiques store, but somehow dustier, less organized, and with worse lighting.
posted by schmod at 7:13 PM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by schmod at 7:13 PM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
Just this evening I encountered a house with no (0) numbers on the mailbox, and the house number was pale gold on a white siding garage, over which they had hung dangling lighted icicles that required me to park, walk up around three cars, and peer up from directly below while shading my eyes to confirm that yes, this was the house. There were no other markings, such as near the door.
posted by Scattercat at 7:19 PM on January 2, 2022
posted by Scattercat at 7:19 PM on January 2, 2022
and with worse lighting.
My theory for this is someone came in and said are the light bulbs for sale and the store manager said hold on let me get my ladder
posted by phunniemee at 7:44 PM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
My theory for this is someone came in and said are the light bulbs for sale and the store manager said hold on let me get my ladder
posted by phunniemee at 7:44 PM on January 2, 2022 [3 favorites]
There was a Tuesday Morning near my office 20 years ago. I went in once, and was befuddled to find half-empty shelves of semi-related things, like kind of home décor, I guess, but only for decorating patios and barns? I assumed it was a mob front, I didn't know it was chain. Prolly both.
posted by team lowkey at 8:06 PM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by team lowkey at 8:06 PM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
There was one in a strip mall near me, but I never had any reason to go inside. It faded away during the lockdown and is now a retail operation actually useful to me, an Asian supermarket.
posted by Rash at 9:09 PM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Rash at 9:09 PM on January 2, 2022 [1 favorite]
Tuesday Morning is just a discount shop
It’s also a perfectly serviceable post-Shane Pogues song, which is considerably funnier if you pretend Spider is singing about the discount store.
posted by zamboni at 9:40 PM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
It’s also a perfectly serviceable post-Shane Pogues song, which is considerably funnier if you pretend Spider is singing about the discount store.
posted by zamboni at 9:40 PM on January 2, 2022 [2 favorites]
The big house numbers are the best thing on that house architecturally. And that one side hits every single McMansionhell exterior no-no just within the garage space, the rest of the front is fine. Wow.
posted by The_Vegetables at 2:53 PM on January 3, 2022
posted by The_Vegetables at 2:53 PM on January 3, 2022
My house only has a number on the mailbox. I really should put a number up elsewhere but that's another thing to choose and I am done with choosing stuff for the house. I like the big numbers though!
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 12:59 PM on January 4, 2022
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 12:59 PM on January 4, 2022
Imagine if you will, in 8-inch black metal handwriting-script-font letters on a faded light green awning nearby:
"Six Forty Five
Hillview Terrace"
YEP, mid-century. These big numbers in the post look more like they belong in the nouveau riche biotech city next door, like on a 1970s-style ski chalet condominium. But they don't look "OMGWTFLOL" to me. Just goofy homeowners.
posted by not_on_display at 4:37 PM on January 5, 2022
"Six Forty Five
Hillview Terrace"
YEP, mid-century. These big numbers in the post look more like they belong in the nouveau riche biotech city next door, like on a 1970s-style ski chalet condominium. But they don't look "OMGWTFLOL" to me. Just goofy homeowners.
posted by not_on_display at 4:37 PM on January 5, 2022
"Six Forty Five
Hillview Terrace"
There's a house in my neighbourhood where they have the address written in words carved into the stone cladding. Unfortunately they misspelled the address as "fourty nine" instead of "forty nine" and it has been like that for at least 5 years and I can't understand how any of the owners haven't corrected it.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 4:53 PM on January 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
Hillview Terrace"
There's a house in my neighbourhood where they have the address written in words carved into the stone cladding. Unfortunately they misspelled the address as "fourty nine" instead of "forty nine" and it has been like that for at least 5 years and I can't understand how any of the owners haven't corrected it.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 4:53 PM on January 5, 2022 [1 favorite]
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posted by fairmettle at 9:47 PM on January 1, 2022 [15 favorites]