How do you make a pop-up card? 

I remember when I first figured out the simple science around making a pop-up card as a kid. It was endlessly satisfying to build a surprise inside a seemingly flat piece of paper. Now I love not only teaching my kids how to make simple pop-up cards for the holidays, but making more intricate pop-up cards as a satisfying creative outlet that delights both me and its recipient! 

This gIngerbread pop-up card does require a craft cutter to achieve as the elements are detailed and exact proportions are essential to success. However, the great part about using a cut file and a craft cutter is that, while the results look complex, the process really isn’t! You simply load the file, cut, and assemble! 

(If you don’t have a craft cutter, we have some fun, simple, tutorials for basic holiday pop-up card designs that only require scissors and a glue stick–perfect for kids or adults! Find those tutorials here.) 

How to make a pop-up card with paper?

An essential element to the success of a more intricate pop-up card is your paper choice. You need a cardstock that comes in beautiful colors and a gift-worthy finish, but that can withstand all of the handling that comes with making a pop-up card. We use Astrodesigns Cardstock, which is perfect for all kinds of craft projects. The Astrodesigns Starter Pack is available at Walmart (so it’s affordable and accessible) and comes with 72 gorgeous sheets of cardstock in the most bold and vibrant colors. We used the 12×12 size for this project to make sure everything fit nicely on the paper. 

Supplies Needed to make a Gingerbread House Pop-Up Card

Astrodesigns Cardstock Starter Pack 12×12 sheets
Gingerbread Pop-Up Card Cut File (for Cricut or Silhouette) 
Cutting machine 
Tacky Glue 

How to Make a Gingerbread House Pop-Up Card

1. Purchase and load the pop up card cut file into your craft cutter’s software. Decide which elements you would like to cut on which color and cut each. 
2. Once all of the pieces of the cut file are cut and weeded, you can assemble the card. Begin by laying the house piece on a flat surface and glue the door pieces to the house in layers beginning with the arch, then the door detail, the wreath, bow, and doorknob.
3. Next,add the white detail pieces using the guidelines found in the cut file. 
4. For the back piece, simply layer the light green leaves onto the dark green back piece base. Then the dark pink berries.
5. Once the house piece and the back greenery piece have been assembled and dried completely it’s time to assemble the structure of the card. Take the front fence piece, and fold downwards on the score lines. Line up the tabs with the back piece. Adhere the tabs to the front side of the back piece, so you don’t see the tabs on the back of the card.
6. Fold flat to dry, making sure the card opens correctly.
7. Next, add the middle house piece. Take the house piece and fold on the score lines. The right tab you’ll want to fold down, the left tab you’ll want to fold up. This helps to keep the card laying flat. Add adhesive to the outside edges of the tabs, and slide the piece into the assembled card. Make sure it is opening correctly as it dries.( Sometimes it helps to put the middle piece into the card without glue at first, so you can get a feel for how the card folds.) Let dry completely. 
8. Flip the card over and write a note on the back of the greenery layer. Then put in an envelope and go make someone’s day! 

Isn’t this pop-up card so lovely? Who would you give yours to? 

Happy Making!

-Liz and Sam 

The post How to Make a Gingerbread House Pop-Up Card appeared first on The Pretty Life Girls.

This fun advent calendar is built entirely out of paper, and the result is bold and beautiful! Keep reading for all of our tips to make your own!

If you’ve followed the PLG for awhile, you know that advent calendars are kind of our thing. We’ve made them with everything from clothespins to wood blocks–we even made one with a shoe organizer! You don’t need a lot of crazy supplies to make a beautiful advent–you can even make a stunning, one-of-a-kind calendar from paper! 

This advent was so fun to put together with my daughter. We chose a gorgeous color scheme from our ASTROBRIGHTS paper stash, and worked together to cut, fold, build, and admire this cutie! Your kids will love the feeling of creating something 3D and functional with just paper! 

How to Make an Advent Calendar ouf of Paper? 

First, you have to get the right kind of paper for your project. Since we are making an advent that folds and builds the paper into a 3D structure, we opted for cardstock. And because we want the best quality and the most vibrant colors, we used ASTROBRIGHTS® Papers Spectrum Assortment. This paper pack has THE brightest colors, and is able to withstand all of the bending, folding, layering, and glueing that we threw at it! Plus, if you want to get really colorful for the holidays, there are 25 colors in this pack (3 sheets of each shade) so you can make an advent that uses one of each! 

To make our advent calendar we used a cutting machine. However, the shapes used for this project are simple enough to cut by hand, too! Just download the cut file linked below and use the shapes as stencils. The file also has a YouTube video that is a lifesaver when it’s time to assemble the pieces. The process isn’t complex, but there are a lot of pieces to keep track of and the tutorial makes it simple. 

What do you fill a small advent calendar with? 

Filling a small advent calendar can be a fun challenge! You could write activities/ideas on small pieces of paper for each day or you can split up the pieces of a larger gift into smaller parts and divide them into different days (like beads one day, string another, charms another–all items to make jewelry with at the end!) You could also make the advent a scavenger hunt–putting clues in the advent and sending kiddos on a hunt for their treats. 

Watch us make this project on Instagram, right here!

Supplies Needed to Make a Drawer Advent Calendar 

ASTROBRIGHTS® Papers Spectrum Assortment Pack
Drawer Advent Calendar Digitial Cut File
Cutting Machine (we use a Silhouette Cameo)
Scissors
Glue (we used both hot glue and tacky glue)
Brads 
Number stickers (if desired) 
Stickers, glitter, markers etc., for embellishing (if desired) 

How to Make a Drawer Advent Calendar

1. Download the cut file and load it into your cutting machine software. If you are cutting by hand, print off the pieces to make stencils.
2. Begin by cutting the 24 drawer pieces, 24 drawer frame pieces, and the two large square pieces. 
3. Once each of the pieces are cut, we recommend watching the video tutorial on assembling each piece. This video shows how to fold each piece and where to secure the folds with glue. 
4. Once you have built all 24 drawers and drawer frames you can embellish the exteriors of the drawers. We did this by cutting paper into a variety of shapes like trees, hearts, and scallops and glueing them on the drawer fronts. However, you could also use stickers, markers, glitter, and more! 
5. Once the drawers are embellished, secure a brad in the center of each drawer for ease of opening the advent. 
6. Following the video instructions, glue together four of the 3-drawer pieces on the bottom layer of the advent in a square shape with the drawers facing outward. Then, glue one of the cut square papers on top. Repeat this process with the top layer of drawer pieces and attach to the bottom layer by placing it on top and securing it with glue. Then, glue the remaining square paper to the top. 
7. Now that your advent is assembled, it’s time to decorate! We began by covering any of the exposed sides of the drawers with paper. Then, we cut designs (like festive sayings and shapes) and layered them over the paper using glue. 
8. Add numbers from 1-24 on the drawers. We used stickers for ours but you could draw them, or cut from paper and attach with glue. 
9. Let dry completely and fill with treats! 

Isn’t it so bright and magical? My daughter can hardly wait until December 1. What are you doing for your advent this year? 

Happy Making!

OX. Liz and Sam

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