How to make a DIY scrapbooking box?

Scrapbooking is a type of creativity based on creating all kinds of things (postcards, beautiful boxes, notebooks, notebooks) with your own hands. The word "scrapbooking" comes from two English words scrab - clipping and book - book. This combination of words is due to the fact that initially this type of activity involved collecting your favorite poems, phrases and expressions in a separate book. Since the history of this type of creativity began long before the printer was invented, the book was replenished with clippings from newspapers and magazines.

The earliest collection dates back to 1598. Around this time, it became popular in England to collect poems. And in Russia at the same time, handwritten albums appeared, which were made to order. This work began to take its modern form in the 19th century, and the word came into use in the 1830s. Later, family photos were added to magazine clippings, poems and curls.

On each page of the album, a completed story or memorable moment was saved with photographs of recorded memories. There was a special paper for creating scrapbooking albums for photographs and a lot of specially created decorations for this.

Decorated box has become one of the most common scrapbooking products.... It can be used as a piggy bank to save money, gift wrapping or directly as a gift. It is also very useful for storing chocolates or sweets. A notebook or notebook is a great gift for busy people.

It is worth paying attention to some features.

• Scrapbooking is not a cheap hobby. Both materials and tools are quite expensive, which, of course, does not exclude the use of cheaper analogs.
• There are special materials that are designed for long-term storage. They do not deform, do not lose color, do not delaminate and do not interact with objects containing chemical compounds (for example, in the case of photographs).
• Due to the fact that this kind of activity came to us from Western countries, we will have to use a dictionary or remember languages.
• Scrapbooking materials take up enough space.
• The creation of such products is a rather painstaking task.

So what do we need when creating a surprise box?

• Cardboard. Thick enough to make a solid base.
• Office paper.
• Origami paper.
• Stationery knife and scissors.
• Soft sandpaper. At first, it can be replaced with a not very soft nail file.
• Figured hole punches.
• Ruler.
• Pencil.
• Stencils.
• Curly scissors.
• Glue stick or hot glue (whichever is needed).
• Something sharp to create holes (toothpick, needle, or awl).
• Gel pens, colored pencils.
• Wire.
• Sequins.
• Double sided tape.
• Thin ribbons, beads, beads, decorative flowers, bows, stamps, fabric, straw, gauze, lace, tree bark, metal details for decor.

There are several techniques for how to assemble the base of our magic box, read about it below. Finding jewelry the first time around, however, can be tricky. In this case, we recommend to find on the Internet sketches. These are pre-assembled models of patterns and decorations.

Let's figure out how to make a universal gift box with your own hands. Such boxes are also called magic box or surprise box... The amazing thing about this scrapbooking clamshell box is that she herself is a gift, you can put something in it. When such a box is opened, its sides are laid out in a "flower". For example, you can write wishes and congratulations on the “petals” of this “flower”, and place decorative ornaments or a figurine in the center.

Let's take a look at the step-by-step creation of a magic box.

What we need:

• cardboard;
• glue stick and hot glue;
• origami paper and white office paper;
• scissors and a stationery knife;
• decorative ornaments;
• ribbon.

First, we need to calculate the volume of our box. To do this, we decide with the parties. Suppose (visually presenting our box from above) that its width is 12 cm, length 12 cm, height 12 cm. We took the same values ​​so as not to get confused in the numbers when describing the technology. Your box can be anything you want.

We draw a square with sides 36x36 cm on thick cardboard.This figure was taken from the addition of all sides (12 + 12 + 12). Immediately we draw a lid for our box. To do this, we take the size of the base of the box (12x12x12) and add 0.3 cm to them on each side (this is necessary so that the lid can be easily put on the box). Then add another 2.5 cm to the resulting 12.3 cm on the edges of the lid.

We divide this square of the large base of the box into 9 small squares inside with sides of 12 cm. Now, using scissors or a stationery knife (if the cardboard is very dense), cut out the squares from the corners. We should have a central square and 4 squares strictly on either side of it.

For the lid, we need to do the same. The squares to be cut will be 2.5x2.5 cm.At the place of the supposed fold, we draw with a clerical knife (not very hard, so as not to cut through the cardboard). We process the upper cuts of the figure with sandpaper or a nail file. We do the same with the lid.

Now let's prepare colored or origami paper and regular office paper. We need to cut out 2 shapes from them, identical to the cardboard base. Office paper will serve as a kind of interlayer between the figure made of origami paper and cardboard (this is necessary so that the grayness of the cardboard or glue does not shine through). Colored figures will become the front part for us.

We will stick them on the outside and inside the case. They come in a variety of colors, but we recommend sticking to the same color for the inner finish of the lid and the base of the box inside. And on the outside, use a different color to decorate the appearance of the box. Figures from office paper need to be drawn taking into account 1 additional centimeter at the edges of the "petals".

The outer and inner colored figures must be left unchanged (you can add half a centimeter from the top, this may be required when folding the cardboard). However, this is a special case if the cardboard is very thick or the paper is of poor quality. In the end, you should get 2 figures of office paper for the main box and 2 of the same paper for the lid, 2 figures of colored paper for the lid and the same amount for the main part.

Let's glue our cardboard box base (don't touch the lid yet) with a figurine made of office paper. We wrap the additional centimeters left on the paper figure around the edges around the slices of the cardboard figure so that the ugly edges are not visible. We bend our structure in order to "work out" the seams. We glue the entire structure with origami paper. We leave everything to dry.

We return to the lid. The cardboard base of the lid must be bent at the folds and glued at the corners. This is best done with hot glue. Next, glue it on top with office paper, without gluing the corners. We need to glue the left centimeters at the corners so that one edge "goes" under the other, so the cardboard corners will not be visible. We do this outside and inside. Let it dry a little and glue it over with colored paper.

We return to our base under the box. We need to decorate the edges nicely. This can be done by simply carefully cutting off the remains of colored paper (since there is white paper under it, this will look quite harmonious) or by gluing the edges with tape. Our base is ready. We bend it and place the lid on top.

The next step is to decorate our box. There are no limits for imagination, but let us give some recommendations.

• Peach, pink, yellow, light green and ultramarine blue go well with flowers and girly themes.
• Blue combined with white stripes can be used for a nautical theme.
• Decorating with straw looks good with canvas.
• Green is a neutral color.
• The inside of the box can be decorated with antique-style postcards, on which you can write a wish. And decorate the base of the box with flowers or leave it unadorned so that you can put something there.
• As an additional decoration, you can put another similar box inside.

The instructions given here give a general idea of ​​how to create the simplest box. With a little fantasy and changing the instructions for creating a magic box, you can add a cache, make a retractable wall, add a pleasant surprise in the form of photographs sliding out of the "petals" or create an ordinary multifunctional magic box.

In conclusion, we want to add that the main purpose of products made using the scrapbooking technique is to please and surprise a person with such a cute and unusual gift. Of course, these boxes are not just a gift. You can make them for yourself. Since there are no size restrictions, you can create both a box for rings and boxes for sewing supplies and children's toys.

How to make a scrapbooking box, see below.