CULLMAN, Ala. – You may have noticed the bright blue box on Woodland Street in Cullman’s Woodland Heights subdivision. It’s covered in gleeful stickers and reads, “Give a trinket, take a trinket!”
This is no ordinary box; it’s a trinket trade box! The “Woodland Trade Box,” to be more precise. It’s owned and operated by Ashley Mitchell and her family, who moved to Cullman from Florida.
The box opened earlier this year and runs on a give-one, take-one basis. Mitchell reported that it gained more popularity than expected. She initially started it as a way to bond with her family and neighbors.
“Sometimes there are a line of cars,” she said.
The trinket trade box draws children, teens, young adults and even the elderly to participate in the fun.
The box features a spot on the door explaining the trading process:
“Choose a trinket, leave a trinket and keep the process going.”
Mitchell’s husband, Brad Mitchell, pointed out that some visitors don’t even take a prize. “There are people who will stop by and leave stuff and not take anything, so they are just donating.”
Items that are best suited for trade include:
- Small toys
- Stickers
- Keychains
- Bracelets
- Mini figures
- Trading cards
- Hot Wheels
- Fidgets
- Handmade treasures
The rules and guidelines advise that the treasures traded in must be clean and gently used, while also promoting good sportsmanship by keeping the trading going and following the “give a trinket, take a trinket” rule.
While any support is welcome there are regulations. The Woodland Trade Box does not accept food or candy, trash or broken items, dirty or sharp items. All items must be appropriate out of respect for the next trader.
Within the box are several shelves. Below the trade box is a shelf for painted rocks.
The Mitchell family also leaves notepads in the box for trinket traders to leave messages.
“We’ve gotten tons of notes,” said Mitchell.
Her husband said they’ve already had to replace the note pad a few times.
Initially the box had only small toys, but it was such a big success that various items were included to match different age groups.
“It’s been fun seeing what everyone leaves. There are homemade items, bracelets, crochet, bookmarks and stickers,” Mitchell said.
In fact, she said, the box gets so full sometimes that things start falling out when you open it.
You can find Woodland Street Northwest between U.S. Highway 31 North and St. Joseph Drive Northwest, in the Woodland Heights subdivision in Cullman.
Visit https://trinkettradeboxes.com to learn more or to start your own!
