Restoring Damaged and Missing Post Covers / Sleeves : Summer 2016 Edition

This is my newly complete set of post covers for the restoration house I am doing this week. Its about half vintage plastic and half dollar tree poster board. Not bad considering the brown shattered mess that arrived at the bottom of the shipping box last week. 

Make sure that the post is really all the way in via finagling it into all the corners, otherwise when you tap the base plates down to accommodate railings you risk chipping off plastic or creasing poster board replacement covers. 

The top post is pasteboard cover, the bottom one is painted plastic. 

Aerial shot, they tend to bow out a little bit even after creasing inward, so after a few hours or the next day, pinch them inward again so they hold position a little bit better. 

Poster board cover, they work surprisingly well. The only draw back is that they are crisp snow white, so if you are using a non painted house that is off white it sort of draws more attention to the difference in color, but it is still loads better than having no covers at all. 

About to paint reconstructed vintage post covers with 'Do It' flat white spray paint, $1.99 a can. 

Top is my personal A Frame's covers, below is the current reno's old unpainted ones. 

As found at my local small mom and pop hardware store. 

Painting in a small flat cardboard box allows for a nice flat surface free of debris and  pet hair. 

Supplies you will need: Exacto knife kit (ebay $3), ruler, pencil and scissors. 

This is how you will score each piece of cut pasteboard square (50 cents a sheet at dollar tree). 

Left side is newly made from poster board, right side is original. See it even saves you from having to paint anything. 

Alternately, you could use the measurements I provide and score with ruler. 

13" post covers, left side is paper, right side is vintage plastic. 

It is probably the most tedious and boring portion of the reno, but makes the finished product really shine. PS use the outside glossier side of the poster board, so score on that side for outer corners.

Measurements (in centimeters) are:

Smallest covers: Piece of paper  9cm x 7cm  (4 each)
Shortest of the tall covers: 9cm x 32cm (12 ea)
Medium tall covers: 9cm x 35cm  (4 ea)
Tallest tall covers: 9cm x 37.5cm  (4 ea)

Score ALL covers using the same distances between corners: 1cm space, 2.5cm space, 2.5cm space, 2.5cm space, 1cm space.

You will need a total of 3 poster boards ($1.50 total investment plus Exacto knife if you don't already own one).