Hey, hey, hey! It’s Tuesday, and hubby is working late, so in my boredom, I thought I would do a quick tutorial on one of my favorite quick crafts- covered gift boxes.
I started doing these earlier this year, when I ordered custom stationary for a friend as a bridal shower gift. The cards came packaged in a perfect little kraft gift box, but it had the company logo on it. I thought it would be a wonderful idea to cover it with pattern paper, so she could keep it as a little keepsake box.
For this craft you will need:
- A box to cover (I’ve been using Premier Jewelry boxes recently, because I got a bunch of free product from a party I hosted.)
- 1 or 2 sheets of 12×12 Scrapbook paper, or some other pattern paper (the amount of paper will vary based on the size of your box)
- Ruler (This 18×3 clear quilting ruler is my favorite)
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Adhesive (My adhesive of choice is always to use my Xyron. If you don’t own one, a glue stick or tape runner should work fine)
Step 1. Measure your box
The first step is to measure the sides of your box. This section of the box had a 1 inch side.
Step 2. Draw out your template
On the back side of your scrapbook paper, you will need to draw out where the box will go, as well as the sides. I buggered up this image a bit, because I wrote “Side Measure + 1 inch”… what I really meant was “Side Measure x2″, because if the side of the box is shorter than 1 inch, this equation wouldn’t work.
I guess if the box side is wider than 1 inch then you could still do +1 inch to save paper, but if it’s shorter, it will need to be x2.
Step 3. Cut Template and Pre-wrap the box
The next step is to cut out your template, cutting the corners on a diagonal to create flaps. For me, I like to leave 2 sides with the diagonal flaps, and cut the flaps down on 2 sides, folding them in. This creates full coverage of all sides, but also leaves a nice clean edge at the corners.
I always wrap the box once before applying adhesive, creating nice crisp fold lines before the adhesive is applied.
Step 4. Apply Adhesive
This is where my Xyron comes into play. I purchased it on Ebay for $15.50 (plus $15 shipping) after demoing one at a Paper-Source workshop. It’s the best purchase I’ve made. Here I’m using a permanent adhesive cartridge, but you can also use it to make magnets, to laminate, or to make repositionable stickers (think wall decals)
Anyway, enough gushing. If you’re using a Xyron, place it pretty side up, turn the crank, and then peel and stick.
If you’re not using a Xyron, cover the back of the paper with your adhesive of choice.
Step 5. Wrap the box
Now you’re going to wrap the box again, but this time, it’s going to stick. If you did the same method I did (Leaving 2 sides with little flaps and folding 2 sides under) then you’ll want to wrap the flap sides first.
Step 6. Repeat
Repeat Steps 1-5 for the lid. Put your finished box together, and your done!
Until next time!
-Bird
