Craft a holiday box

Southern Living, Dec 1999

Make use of all those holiday cards you've been saving over the years by pasting copies of them onto wooden boxes. You can trim boxes with wood strips or a photocopied border from one of your cards. Most of the materials can be purchased from a crafts store. At a local copy shop have your Christmas cards color copied at about 65%. (It's easier to collage smaller versions of the cards.) To save money, have several cards copied onto one sheet of paper. Be sure to make extra copies of any card you plan to use as a border, Sandra Allen Lynn

Step 1: Sand the box, inside and out, with fine sandpaper to remove rough edges. Paint the feet, knob, and inside of the box with acrylic paint. Apply several coats, sanding lightly between each.

Step 2: Trim images from the color copies. Play with the arrangement until you find what works best, placing your favorite cards on top and in front. Glue the copies to the box with decoupage finish, following manufacturer's instructions. Overlap images slightly in alternating angles. As you paste over the opening, run your fingernail along the edge to create a crease in the paper. (This will mark the line to cut by later.) Step 3: Decoupage copies until the entire box is covered. Once the glue has dried, carefully use a craft knife to cut along the creased edge you made earlier. Glue feet and knob in place.

Apply painted wood trim or a photocopied border around the edges or on the corners for added decoration. Using a craft knife, cut balsa strips or color copies the lengths needed; attach with glue.

To use a tassel as a pull, drill a small hole for the tassel cord to be threaded through. Once you have threaded the cord, knot it on the inside to secure.

Step 4: Paint the entire box with decoupage finish to seal, following manufacturer's instructions. Coat the inside as well. Prop open until dry o

MATERIALS

WOODEN BOX

FINE SANDPAPER

WOODEN BLOCKS

AND KNOB (FOR FEET AND PULL)

ACRYLIC PAINT

SMALL PAINTBRUSH

SCISSORS

COLOR COPIES OF CARDS

PLAID ROYAL COAT DECOUPAGE FINISH

CRAFT KNIFE

CRAFT GLUE

BALSA WOOD STRIPS (OPTIONAL)

DRILL (OPTIONAL)

UPHOLSTERY TASSEL (OPTIONAL)