At this time of year when the leaves are changing colour and we’re all starting to reach for a cozy jumper, here’s an autumnal crafty project from artist Rebecca Cahill Roots to cozy up inside and try out. Pop up cards are having a resurgence at the moment with people falling back in love with the childhood wonder of finding the surprise inside and figuring out how it was made. Use these step-by step instructions to create your own little piece of paper magic.
Materials
- A5 Card in white and a shade of green
- A4 thick paper
- Craft Knife
- Cutting board
- Scissors
- Tombow ABT Brush Pens
- Tombow MONO Maxi Power Glue Tape
- Tombow MONO Liquid Dual Tip Glue
- Ruler
- Irojiten Pencils and MONO Mechanical Pencil
1. Fold both your white and green card in half and press the fold. Cut 2mm from each side of your green card to make sure it fits inside your card when folded. Put aside your white card for now and measure the half-way point of your green card. On the folded side cut a slit 5cm towards the centre at the middle point.
2. Open the green card out and mark 2.5cm from the edge of the fold on each side. Use a pencil to connect this mark to the top of the slit and score it gently. Fold these two shapes inward to the inside of the card to make a triangle shape. Flatten it and press down to make the folds crisp.
3. Holding the green card closed, place it on the white card at the fold line. Using a pencil lightly mark the diamond shape that you can see through the pop-up area on each side of the card as this will be a guide for where artwork will need to be on the white card.
4. Using your Tombow ABT Brush Pens and Irojiten Colour Pencils make yourself a range of coloured papers with different textures. Try experimenting with blending and layering the colours in autumnal tones. This will give your project depth when it all comes together.
5. With your scissors cut out small leaves in different colours from sections of your coloured paper. These do not need to be very exact, the paper cutting process adds to the style of the card and doing them freehand can make them look more organic. Add berries, mushrooms, forest flowers and logs all cut from your coloured paper. You can layer paper like a collage to add depths and colours for insects and details.
6. Begin to stick all your shapes to the front of your green card, arranging them to make a forest scene. Cut out longer branches and plant stems and glue them to the internal side of the folded triangle pop up. Make sure they do not stick out from the card by closing it often to check they are not too long. Leave your card open to completely dry.
7. On the white card decide what your animal is going to be in the centre diamond shape. In the same way as your leaves, cut sections of coloured card out and layer them to create your animal, check on the size of your animal to ensure it will fit in the top section of that diamond when folded. Add coloured paper or use pens and pencils to create a background for your animal then stick it all on.
8. Bring your green card and white card back together and check it fits together when folded and your pop up is working correctly. Glue the two cards together with the green inside the white card in the correct place to match up the designs. Add any additional forest motifs you need to make it really magical then leave it to dry.
Use the outside of your card to write your message and pop it in an envelope to give someone a unique little work of art as a surprise. If you have a go at this project share your work with us @tombow_uk
