How To Make A Gift Box From Old Greeting Cards
/Transform your old greeting cards into cute gift boxes with this easy DIY tutorial! It's a great way to upcycle old Christmas or birthday cards and give them a new lease of life. Perfect for storing trinkets or gifting small items.
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How To Make A Greeting Card Box.
If you're anything like me, you probably have a stack of beautiful greeting cards – birthday cards, old Christmas cards, and handmade cards – that you just can't part with. Instead of letting them collect dust, why not turn them into something useful?
Today I'm going to show you how to make a quick DIY gift box using old cards. Not only is this a super fun and easy craft project, but it’s also a brilliant way to repurpose your cards, making perfect gift boxes for small gifts or keepsakes.
These little boxes are a great thing to keep in stock for any gift-giving emergencies. You could even pre-cut and fold your boxes and store them flat until needed.
How To Make A Card Gift Box.
This is another one of those crafts that I used to make in school. We used to make these little gift boxes out of old recycled Christmas cards but since it's Spring and Christmas is quite a way off I decided to make mine out of birthday cards instead.
I know I've shown you how to make a lot of gift boxes in the past using a scoring board but as much as I love it I know it's not something everyone has or wants to use. This time I wanted to show a quick, foolproof method without a scoreboard in sight.
I bought some new cards for this project. I fell in love with that llama and the adorable sausage dog. I liked the idea of using the birthday messages as an extra surprise when you open the box but you could just as easily recycle old cards.
Simply cut off the fronts and mix and match your designs. It's a simple and inexpensive way to create gift boxes for small gifts and an excellent way to reduce waste and upcycle.
Supplies:
Old Greeting Cards (the sturdier, the better!)
Ruler
Pencil
Eraser
Glue (or double-sided tape)
Making the Box Lid.
1. Pick a greeting card that you love. The front design will become the top of the box, so choose a design that makes sense.
2. Carefully cut the card along the centre fold, separating the front from the back. We’ll use both pieces – the front for the lid and the back for the base.
3. To make the lid of your box use a pencil and ruler to draw diagonal lines from the corners to form an 'X' in the middle of your card.
4. Fold the sides in to meet in the middle marked by the 'X'. You may need to use a bone folder or a butter knife to help get a nice crisp fold.
5. Open your card back out and rotate 90 degrees. Repeat and fold both sides into the centre again.
If you're using a rectangular card the process is exactly the same except you fold in your long sides first. This will give you a guide for how far to fold your short sides in.
You do not need to fold your shortest sides in to meet the 'X' in the middle. Only fold them in as far as the long sides.
6. Open your card back out. You should now have four creases running along the edges of your card and 4 squares (one in each corner).
7. Before going any further you're going to need to rub out any pencil marks.
8. Next cut along one side of the squares in each corner up to where the two creases intersect. This will make a flap.
9. Repeat and do this for all 4 corners.
10. Cut a small angled notch into the inside of each tab like in the photo above. This will help the sides of your box sit neatly together.
11. Put some double-sided tape or glue on the back of each tab and stick your box together. You want to glue the smaller tabs on the inside.
Making The Bottom Half Of The Box.
12. Repeat the steps above to make the base of your box. You need to make the base smaller than the lid. There are 2 ways to do this.
The first way is to trim 2 mm of each side of your card and repeat the steps above. The base of your box will be slightly smaller and the lid should fit on easily. The only problem with this is the lid and the base of your box will sit flush and can be a little tricky to open.
The second way (and the way I recommend) is to repeat the steps above but when folding the sides in fold them 2/3 mm past the 'X' in the centre.
This will make the bottom of the box smaller and the sides of your box marginally taller so that there's a small lip at the bottom of your box to hold as you open and close it.
13. Once the glue is dry, place the lid (the top of the box) onto the base (the inside of the box).
And voilà! You’ve created a charming little box from an old greeting card.
This project is perfect for a rainy afternoon or a craft night with friends. Plus, it’s a wonderful way to upcycle and add a personal touch to your storage or gifts.
If you try making your own greeting card boxes, share your creations with me – I’d love to see them!
Want more gift box templates? Get your hands on the Gift Box Template Bundle and you’ll be making your own gift boxes in minutes.
