Instructions: Box with a bridge for creative blocks

Our Silke has done magic again and designed these fantastic instructions for you, with which you can make a box into which our creative blocks fit perfectly.

We are blown away! 😍

material

• 2x design paper of your choice
• 2x screen printing cardboard or gray cardboard 2mm thick
• 2x Cardstock Bubbles
• 1x cardstock silk
• 6x strong magnets , discs, 1 mm thick, 8-10 mm diameter (four magnets for the box and two magnets for the magnetic pin)

Tool

• Book glue
• Brush for gluing
• Set square with metal cutting edge (alternatively: set square and metal ruler )
• Sharp cutter
• Corner Chomper or round object as a template for the curves
• Pencil
• Container for diluting book glue (e.g. jam jar)
• Scrap paper
• Cutting and folding board
• Bone Folder
• Cutting/crafting mat
• Dry rag
• Damp cloth or oil-free baby wipes
• Liquid glue
• If necessary, use some fine sandpaper

Cuts

Screen printed or gray cardboard, 2 mm thick

• (1x) 16 x 17.5 cm (base)
• (2x) 17.5 x 2 cm (side panels)
• (1x) 16.4 x 2 cm (back panel)
• (1x) 16 x 1.5 cm (bridge)
• (1x) 17.5 x 16.4 cm (lid)
• (1x) 16.4 x 2.2 cm (front flap)

Screen printed or gray cardboard, 1 mm thick

• (2x) 16.4 x 5 cm (lid flap)

Both parts are rounded off on the long side using a corner chomper. If you don't have a suitable corner chomper, use a small, round object as a template and cut around it with the cutter.

Design paper

• (1x) 3 x 17 cm (bottom pen compartment, fold all around at 5 mm)
• (1x) 16.8 x 15.8 cm (bottom large compartment, fold at 5 mm on the long sides and one short side)
• (1x) 19 x 15.7 cm (cover the bottom, place the long side and fold at 1.9 cm)
• (1x) 16.4 x 5 cm (From a leftover piece for the stencil, scratch paper also works)

Cardstock Bubble

• (2x) 19.5 x 5 cm (side strips - draw a thin pencil line lengthwise at a height of 19 mm)
• (1x) 10.5 x 19.5 cm (front flap outside)
• (1x) 21 x 19.5 cm (outside lid)
• (1x) 4.3 x 20 cm (inside of the lower part)

Cardstock silk

• (2x) 15.9 x 10 (front flap inside)
• (1x) 15.9 x 19.4 cm (lid inside)
• (1x) 1 x 3.2 cm (cover bridge)
• (1x) 4.3 x 20 cm (inside of the lower part)
• (2x) 0.2 x 1 cm (for concealing the transitions of the bridge)

Cutting the cardboard

It's better not to use a guillotine to cut, as the strips will quickly become a little crooked.

I like to use a large cutter with a chipping blade (always a fresh blade) or, even better, a real box cutter with trapezoidal blades. Ideal for this: a ruler or set square with a metal edge or a metal ruler. Make a score along the desired cutting edge, preferably more often with a little less pressure than two or three times with strong pressure.

Particularly easy: You can “score” with your cutting board, but the blade quickly becomes dull. I like to use old blades for this that no longer cut the paper completely smoothly.

Material selection

You can also use bookcloth for all parts. You can also use the dimensions and technology described in these instructions.

Gluing

Gluing is always done from the inside out. If the entire cut piece has to be glued in right up to the edge, then place scratch paper under it and use the brush to move it over the edge.

Remove the scratch paper immediately and make sure that no glue ends up on the “nice side” of the linen or paper.

Cut all the material once, then you can start with the first step:

Assembling the lower part

Lay out the side parts for the bottom part as shown in Fig. 1 . Apply some undiluted glue or glue (e.g. Nuvo Deluxe Glue ) to the lower edge of the side panels and attach the side panels flush to the floor. Now apply glue to the bottom, right and left edges of the back wall and attach the back wall to the bottom and side panels. Align it so that nothing protrudes (Fig. 2 ). If there is a small protrusion somewhere, you can rework it with some fine sandpaper after it has dried.

Measure 2 cm from the back wall and make a mark. The bridge is placed here (you can also cut a strip of cardboard exactly 2 cm wide as a template, Fig. 3).

Apply some glue to the sides (Fig. 4) and the bottom edge of the bridge and then insert the bridge straight. If it is a little too big and the side walls are a little “bulgy”, take the bar out and shorten it a little, for example using sandpaper or your cutter. The bridge should fit exactly between the side parts (Fig. 5).

Now dilute your glue with about 10% water.

Inserting the base into the pen compartment

When everything is dry, take the strip for the bottom of the small compartment and cut the corners as shown in Fig. 5a . Fold up the sides (the nice side facing you) and see if the strip fits into the compartment. You may have to refold a little. If everything fits, glue the bottom of the small compartment as well as the sides about 1 cm high ( Fig. 5b ) and insert the paper. Press it firmly inside and on the sides with the bone folder ( Fig. 5c ).

Making the front flap

Take your paper template and round it, as well as the two side parts, with the corner chomper or your cutter. Cut two round windows that are as large as the magnets (use these as a template) relatively far into the rounded corners, about 1 cm from the edge of the cardboard. Mark the top of the template with an Place the template on one of the side panels and mark the holes, which you then cut out with a sharp cutter ( Fig. 7 )

Glue the part with the holes precisely onto the part without holes and place a magnet in each recess ( Fig. 8 ). It doesn't matter which way you insert the magnets. Glue the cardboard part and the cardboard part 16.4 x 2.2 cm onto your paper for the front flap flush on the outside, leaving about 1.5 cm space around the edge at the top ( Fig. 9 )

Now, as shown in Fig. 10 , cut fine wedges into the paper at a distance of 2 mm from the cardboard and repeat the process on the other side. Work very carefully here: the better you maintain the distance and the finer the wedges are, the cleaner the curves will be.

Non-stick scissors are highly recommended here.

Glue the wedges and let the glue set a little, then glue again.

The material should swell a little so that it fits better around the edges. Turn the beautiful side towards you and carefully stroke the curve again and again with the bone folder. If it looks like in Fig. 11 , turn the cut part over again and glue the wedges over the curve so that they are not on top of each other, but the cardboard is well covered ( Fig. 12 ). I work very cleanly, it's a bit fiddly - but it's worth it!

Once you have done this, you can glue the top edge and the sides and also place them around the edges. The edge on the side opposite the curves remains open.

Covering the side panels

Apply some glue to the side of your box and stick it to the paper for the side panels so that exactly 1.9 cm protrudes from the top ( Fig. 13 ).

You made a pencil mark for this at the beginning. Lay the box on its side in front of you so that you have the open edges in front of you. Take your metal ruler and place it on the inside wall (floor) as shown in the picture. Cut a line from the cardboard to the end of the paper (in the picture you place the cut to the right of the ruler, Fig. 14 ). Make another cut on the top edge, exactly from the tip of the cardboard to the edge of the paper, so that a tab is formed like in Fig. 15 .

Lay the box back on its side and cut the tab diagonally, about 3mm from the tip ( Fig 16 ).

On Fig. 17 you can see exactly how you have to make the cuts using the red lines). Repeat with the other side piece.

Tape the paper around the back wall and turn the box with the bottom facing you. Use the scissors to cut a wedge about 1-2 mm away from the cardboard, as shown in Fig. 18 . You also do this at the front of the open edge, you have to be a little careful here: you only glue the lower part of the flap, the upper part of the flap remains open, see Fig. 20 ) and otherwise proceed in the same way. Glue the two small overhangs, glue them to the floor and then fold over the long tab. The floor should now look like Fig. 19 .

Attaching the front door

Apply some glue to the front flap tab and adhere it to the bottom of your box (on the bottom). Leave a distance of about 3-4 mm so that a small groove forms. Take the reference paper for the inside of the flap, round off the corners if you haven't already done so, glue the paper neatly up to the edge and glue it on. Start at the curves, keeping a distance of 3 mm from the edge. When sticking it in place, carefully press the paper into the grooves with the bone folder ( Fig. 21 ).

Covering the bottom and sides inside

Now you can glue the bottom of the box: Cut out the corners as shown in Fig. 22 and check whether everything fits. The paper should go right up to the edge, if necessary you need to shorten it by a few mm. Glue the back of the paper completely (including the flaps that are folded up) and glue the part to the floor. The part of the paper that does not have a flap faces the edge. Press everything down with the bone folder, including the raised edges. It should now look like Figure 23 .

Now you can finally glue the front small tabs and fold them around the edge. Also make sure that the small corner that sticks out at the top lies neatly on the edge so that you end up with a nice corner and no cardboard shows through.

The small flaps on the back now also need to be folded in: cut the paper straight down to the cardboard in the corner and glue the small flap created in this way. Pull it inwards so that the flap is placed over the corner in the inner part and smooth it down with the bone folder ( Fig . 25 ).

Now we cut a groove into the raised tabs.

Place the box on one of the glued side panels and place your ruler on the inside edge of the box ( Fig. 26 ). Cut the paper straight up to the edge at a distance of 2-3 mm from the box . Make the cut diagonally on the corner, you can see how it should look in Fig. 27 .

Now the flap is cut so that it encloses the bridge when folded over. To do this, place your ruler on the edge so that the ruler is at the height of the middle of the bridge. The bridge is about 4 mm away from the top edge (better measure once, if you have cut the bridge a little higher or lower, you will have to adjust) and the cardboard is 2 mm thick.

In total, a slit is cut at a distance of 6 mm from the cardboard ( Fig. 28 ).

Now stick the small, narrow strips of paper onto the bridge and in the corner. The paper should be stuck to the side wall about 3 mm high ( Fig. 28b ).

Now glue the tab in place and place it tightly around the flap. The slit that was cut at the height of the bridge divides the paper ( Fig. 29 ) that you press firmly against the inside of the side wall. Work the edges of the bridge well with the tip of your bone folder. Now glue the paper strip with which the bridge will be covered up to the edge. Place it at the front of the floor ( Fig. 30 ) and glue it all the way around the bridge. It should go all the way to the floor on the opposite side. It should now look something like Fig. 31 .

Manufacture and attach the lid

Place the lid on a top piece as shown in Figure 32 and place the template flush against the edge of the lid with the marked side DOWN . Trace the two holes onto the lid with a pencil and cut out the holes, not all the way through, but about 1mm deep so that the magnets can be inserted without sticking up.

Put a drop of glue in the pits and place two magnets on top of the magnets incorporated into the front flap as shown in the picture. The surface of the magnets that faces upwards is the surface with which they are glued into the holes in the lid (so essentially rotated once by 180 degrees ). Glue in the magnets. The lid is now covered:

To do this, glue your paper for the outer cover of the lid ( Fig. 33 ), leaving 1 cm of space to the edge. The cardboard is now glued on, with the magnets pointing downwards. Turn the whole thing over and smooth the paper with your hand (the bubble cardstock is embossed, if you rub it with the bone folder it will lose some of the embossing!). Turn the paper back down onto your work surface and cut off the corners diagonally on the short side on which the magnets lie, leaving a distance of 3 mm from the cardboard ( Fig. 34 ).

Glue the short side and fold it over. The edges are now open ( Fig. 35 ), you press them with your bone folder ( Fig. 36 ).

Repeat this on the other side and fold in the two side flaps. You close the open edges with the bone folder in the same way as you did with the corners. It should now look like Fig. 37 . You can taper the flap a little further with a distance of around 3 mm from the edge of the cardboard. If you later want to use the inside of the lid as a pin board, place a magnet in the upper half (that is the closed, short side). To do this, cut a small hole with the diameter of your magnets, like you did with the front of the lid, and glue a magnet in ( Fig. 38 ).

Coat the flap of your lid with liquid glue or undiluted glue and place the lid with the covered side on the bottom of the box. Fold up the front flap ( Fig. 39 ), the magnets should now snap shut. Keep everything closed and glue the tab to the back wall of the box ( Fig. 40 ).

Place the box on the lid in front of you ( Fig. 41 ) and adjust the paper for the inner cover slightly if necessary. I cut back a little because the cardstock still stretches a little when it is wet and it might then protrude a little ( Fig. 42 ).

Glue the cardstock carefully up to the edge and pick up the cardstock (don't be afraid of dirty hands here). First glue it into the back wall of the box all the way to the bottom ( Fig. 43 ) and then up to the edge at the top. Smooth everything out with your hand. As soon as the glue sets, go over the edges with the bone folder and paint them cleanly. Make sure that no glue oozes out.

Cover the bottom of the box

Almost there! Take the paper for the bottom ( Fig. 44 ) and glue it up to the edges. Glue it to the floor, at the fold it is glued “around the corner” to the back wall. It should now look like Figure 45 . Smooth the edges with your bone folder as soon as the glue sets slightly.

Complete! 😊

If you like, we can now make an individual magnet for your pinboard inside:

To do this, I punched out the same motif three times from 1 mm screenprint cardboard (the more delicate the motif, the higher the likelihood that you will have to cut again with a scalpel) and cut a hole into one part into which one of our magnets fits ( Fig. 1 ). I used speech bubbles here, a classic that I particularly like.

I glued the part with the hole to one of the cardboard parts without a hole ( Fig. 2 ), using liquid glue. Please do not use Tombow glue: it remains a bit sticky even after drying and if it oozes out just a tiny bit, you will always have dust etc. stuck to it).

I placed the whole thing in the place where I “hid” the magnet in the lid on the inside and then placed the magnet on it ( Fig. 3 ). This is attracted by the magnet inside and is then automatically in the correct position, so it can be glued in. I glued the third cardboard piece over it precisely. I evened out the edges with a little structure paste and let the whole thing dry thoroughly ( Fig. 4 ).

After it dried, I painted the edges with my beloved All Purpose Ink (here in Champagne Mist ) and let it dry thoroughly ( Fig. 5 ). I punched out the motif again from design paper (front) and white paper on the back ( Fig. 6 ) and glued it to the front and back.

Your magnet is ready ( Fig. 7 ) and the box is designed so that it can still be closed when both the creative block and the magnet are stored in it.

Have fun crafting!

From us for you ⭐

Silke

If you would like to see more of Silke's work, follow her on Instagram at @ silke.rossmueller , or stop by one of her workshops, you can find all the information here .