If you would like to learn how to make your own DIY gift boxes ,you have come to the right hub. I am talking about cute, good quality gift boxes like you buy at a store and you can make them different sizes, too. Making your own gift boxes may seem hard to do, right? At least that is what I always thought. Recently, I learned gift boxes are actually quite easy to make. With just a little scoring, folding, cutting and gluing, you can make 2 pieces of cardstock into a nice and neat, custom gift box for that perfect gift. The great thing about DIY gift boxes is you get to pick out the colors and print you would like it to be. Another thing you can do is punch a shaped border on the lid of your box or use embellishments to decorate it any way you would like. This is a fun and easy paper craft that just about anybody can do. In this tutorial we will be making a 4x4x4 inch box.
STEP 1- Measuring and Marking
Table of Contents
Measure your 12×12 inch sheets of card stock so you can score them. First measure the sheet which will be the bottom of your box. Turn the sheet over to the back side or if it’s double sided print card stock, make sure the print you want on the outside of the box is face down. Take the card stock and ruler and line them up on the edge of the paper. Mark a small dot at 4 inches and another dot at 8 inches. Then turn it a quarter of a turn and mark 4 inches and 8 inches again, keep going until you have all sides of the card stock marked.
Now take the other sheet which will be the top of your box. This one will be slightly different because the top of the box needs to be a tad bigger so it can fit over the bottom part. Take your ruler and mark it just like you did the other but instead of starting at 0 inch mark, start at 1mm past 0 inches and mark the dots at 4 inches and then mark it at 8 1/8 inches. Now, use that measurement and make the dots on the other 3 sides of the card stock.
STEP 2 – Score
We are going to score the sheets now. Take the sheet that will be the bottom of your box and take the ruler and line it up with the dots you made on one side of the cardstock. Make sure the ruler is lined up with both dots on the 4 inch mark and score it. You score it by taking your stylus or score tool, press slightly and run it along and down the edge of the ruler. Don’t put too much pressure on it.. You are just trying to make a dent in it so you can fold it easily. After you have done that for both the 4 inch and 8 inch marks, give the paper another quarter turn and line up the ruler on the dots again and score that side at 4 inches and then 8 inches. Once you have scored that side, you can sit it aside.
Now for the other sheet which will be the top of your box. Do just as you did above. Line up the ruler on one side of the paper with the 4 inch dot and the 81/8 inch dots and score it at both points, turn the page a quarter of a turn and line up the dots with the ruler and score again at both 4 inches and 8 1/8 inches. Now the scoring should all be done!
Take both sheets and fold them all on the score marks.
STEP 3- Cut
Now it’s time to cut slits in the card stock so you can form the box. Again, take the scored sheet which will be the bottom of your box and cut slits according to the diagram at the right. Just cut along the scored like and stop when you get to the scored line that goes across. Then make the same cuts in the other sheet which is going to be the top of your box.
Use the guide to cut the card stock. You can use scissors or for an even neater, straight line use a ruler and x-acto knife.
STEP 5- Glue
You should now have both 12×12 pieces of card stock that are cut and ready to glue.
Bottom of the box:
Take your double sided tape or whatever fast tack glue you are using and put glue on each of the flaps on the bottom part of your box. Then fold the flaps in and glue them to the side of the box… See the illustration. It shows step by step exactly what to do for both sheets.
For the top of the box:
If you want the lid to only cover only the top or halfway down the box (instead of covering the whole bottom part of the box), you must trim 1 to 1.5 inches from the edges of the card stock BEFORE gluing/folding the top together. Use either a paper cutter or use a ruler and draw a line and cut on the line when you are trimming the inches off. It’s important that the trimming is accurate or else it will show when you assemble the lid.
Either way, glue and fold together to form the top the same way you did the bottom. Look at the illustration again if you need to. Once you have it all glued together, put the top on and you are finished!!
Do you want to make other sizes of gift boxes?
You make them all the same with the same steps as above but depending on the size of the box, you will start out with a different sheet size and the measurements for scoring will be different for each one. Here is a little guide:
I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial and find it helpful for years to come. Have a fun time making your own gift boxes!