Template Thursday: 4″ x 4″ cards, envelopes & card box

Yes I do realize it’s actually Friday and not Thursday *lol*!  I made this set last weekend intending to share it with you all on Thursday, but had some issues with photographing the set, and wasn’t able to get the pictures taken and edited in time.  Since I know you all look forward to my Template Thursday posts, I decided to share it with you anyways – just one day late.

I had a lot of fun creating this set.  Since Stampin’ Up! released the Fresh Cuts Notes in June (which are 4" x 4" cards),  I’ve really fallen in love with creating 4" x 4" cards – especially after I stumbled across THIS TUTORIAL by Cindy Lawrence, which showed how to make envelopes for 4" x 4" cards using our Medium Whisper White envelopes and designer paper (DP).  So I pulled out my new Flower Fancy stamp set &  Georgia Peach DP, and set about creating a set of six 4" x 4" cards (2 of each of the ones shown), 6 matching envelopes, and a cute box to hold them in.  Notice the large half-back pearl in the center  of the flowers.  Those come from Stampin’ Up!’s Pretties Kit.  Because they are so large, I haven’t used them as much as the other elements in the Pretties Kit, and had a lot left over. I was really pleased they fit in the center of the flowers so well, because it gave me the perfect opportunity to use them up. Here’s a close-up of the box:

Here’s a top view of the box:

I loved the way the cards and matching envelopes looked in the box, so I opted not to put a lid on it.  Instead, I thought it would make a really pretty gift wrapped in cellophane and tied with our 1 1/4" pink pirouette grosgrain ribbon.

You can download a copy of the template I created for this box here.

Stamps: Flower Fancy, Fundamental Phrases, Boho Blooms
Ink: Pink Pirouette, Regal Rose, So Saffron, Basic Black
Paper: 12" x 12" pink pirouette CS, 8 1/2" x 11" Pink Pirouette, Regal Rose, So Saffron, Whisper White CS, Georgia Peach DP
Accessories: Regal Rose 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, Pretties Kit, mini glue dots, sticky strip

Step 1: Download your template, follow the cutting, scoring and folding directions.

Step 2: Lay your CS piece face up. Stamp and decorate the front of your box.  Place sticky strip on the two middle flaps as shown.

Step 3: Peel the red backing off of the sticky strip, bring up the back of the box, and stick the small flaps to the inside of the larger flaps.  Place sticky strip along the inside of the large flaps (the ones on the box front piece).

Step 4: Peel the backing off of the sticky strip, bring up the box front and stick the large flaps to the outside of the side flaps of the box back piece.  Your box is now assembled, finish decorating it as desired.

Quick and easy isn’t it? In order to create the envelopes I followed Cindy’s tutorial and first took one of our medium whisper white envelopes and sealed it shut. The envelopes are 4 3/8" high, so where you see the black line in the picture below, I cut the envelope using my tabletop paper cutter.

I then took a piece of DP that was 2 1/2"  x 4 3/8", and scored it at 1".,   I then glued the 1" flap to the envelope as shown in the picture below, and rounded the corners of the flap. It’s kind of hard to see in the picture below, but the "seam" (where I sealed the flap of the envelope down) is at the back of the envelopes.

Here’s a close-up of the finished envelope and one of the cards:

Unfortunately, Stampin’ Up! doesn’t carry their envelope glue anymore, which means to seal the envelope you’d have to use some other kind of double-sided adhesive.  Also, please note that you cannot mail 4" x 4" in either the US or Canada, instead you’d have to give it someone in person or with a gift.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this tutorial.