Tutorial Tuesday: Christmas Card Gift Box

I can't be the only one with a giant stack of Christmas cards received over the holidays. I hate to let them go to waste; all that nice paper and those pretty images. Why not reuse those old cards and make them into gift boxes? You'll have less paper waste to throw out and will already have a head start on next year's Christmas wrapping.

Materials:

• Christmas card (or any other greeting card)
• scissors
• ruler
• pencil
• tape or glue

1. Tear the card
Tear or cut the card in half at the fold.



2. Resize back half of card
Cut off approximately 1/8" (3.2mm) from the top and side of the back half of the card. This will form the bottom part of the gift box. Making it just a bit smaller will allow it to fit easily into the top part of the gift box.



3. X marks the spot
With your ruler, make an X on the card by drawing two diagonal lines that cross at the center of the card.



4. Fold the edges
Fold each edge over to the X in the middle of the card. This will form the sides of the gift box.



5. Cut the corners
Cut one vertical slit along the fold of each corner.



6. Form the box
Fold the 2 vertical sides inward, toward the center of the X.
(Please excuse the poor photos here. It's hard to get a decent picture at night with a horrible table lamp!)


Then, fold the small tabs inward, forming the box frame.



Fold the remaining tabs upward, finishing the box frame. Put a piece of tape (or glue) on the piece of tab that sticks up over the edge of the box.


Fold those edges over towards the inside of the box, sealing the tape (or glue).



Repeat steps 3 through 6 for the other piece of the card.