It all started when I moved house and needed a new letterbox. I could not find a decent one anywhere. Some choices were big enough and practical - but they were all mass produced bits of tin, made on a production line. That's when I remembered ...

Around the same time, a friend sent me a post about FLIP — the Female Founders Program at the University of Newcastle. It was honestly the best thing I've done for ages and I met the most inspiring bunch of people.

With their wisdom, encouragement and a healthy dose of bravery, LetterboxArt moved from a “fun idea” to a viable project.

Early prototypes were built with cardboard, timber offcuts, borrowed tools and generous advice from local makers and the Wonderful Woodies in Marmong Point. This phase mattered. It cemented the belief that how something is made matters just as much as how it looks. 

I made this fellow years ago as part of a magazine story I was writing. It had character. It had teeth. It had opinions. I painted the inside pink. People would drive the kids past to say hello and passersby would make Dad jokes and comment.  That’s when I realized this wasn’t just decoration — it was connection.

Our rural Airbnb earns five stars, but finding it once felt like an adventure sport.
The cow letterbox solved that — becoming a much-loved landmark for guests.
It revealed something important: a letterbox can be a signpost with personality.
The cow soon became our Airbnb emblem.

I am an old (but not too old) Ad Copywriter, Interior Designer, Cartoonist, Design writer and Airbnb Superhost who just wanted a decent letterbox… and ended up designing them instead.

Turns out it has been a fun adventure.