Everlasting Gift Boxes

Project by Jane Beard. These instructions are for a 4-inch cube-shaped box with a separate lid. You can modify materials and dimensions as needed to make larger or smaller boxes.

All About

Product Ideas

More Product Ideas

Materials and Tools:

2 pieces 8-1/2" x 11" chip board
1/2 yard fabric
3 yards of 1/2" - 3/4" ribbon
super-stick tape, PVA glue, or heat-set fabric webbing
rubber stamps & fabric ink pads (optional)
scissors
craft knife or rotary cutter
ruler
pencil

Steps:

1. For the box bottom, cut five 4" x 4" identical squares of heavy chip board. Cut two pieces of different fabric 13 inches square.

2. Using super-stick tape, fusible web or PVA glue, adhere one piece of the chip board to the center of the fabric. Glue the other four pieces in the configuration of a cross, leaving about 1/8 inch between each piece of chipboard to allow for bending 'hinges'.

3. Once adhesive is set, use a sharp craft knife or rotary cutter to carefully trim along the straight outer edges. Trim the corners away at a 45-degree angle, starting at the corner of the chip board across the fabric to the adjacent corner of chip board. Once trimmed, the piece looks like a stop sign.

4. Adhere the contrast fabric to the other side of the piece, smoothing as you go. If you use fusible web, iron the four corners to fuse the fabric together. If using tape or glue, be sure to put a line of adhesive along the four diagonal corners before gluing the layers together. Allow this adhesive to set; then trim the second side of the fabric to match the first side.

5. For the top, cut a 4-1/4" square of chipboard and 4 identical 4-1/4" x 1-1/2" pieces. Attach the fabric and chip board together following the same steps used for the box bottom, above.

6. To finish: Cut eight 15-inch pieces of ribbon. Center a ribbon piece on one of the chip board outer edges. Adhere the ribbon to this edge, folding in half lengthwise over the edge to form a binding.

7. Apply ribbon to the chip board sides of the top and bottom. Tie up each corner, tucking the box corner fabric to the inside. Trim excess ribbon if necessary. Apply a little fray stop glue to the eight diagonal corner edges if needed.