Pop-up matchboxes

I love a matchbox - any tiny box really, and I bought a job-lot of them for a pound in Home Bargains the other day. I've been wanting to try a simple pop-up matchbox idea, and Halloween seemed like the perfect time!

It took a few attempts to work out where to cut and where to stick... but we got there in the end! And once you've made the pop-up mechanism, you can add any ghostly, ghastly ghoul you like..


1. Rather handily, our matchbox had lines on it already, but basically you need to draw two lines, a few cms apart, down the middle of your box top.

Take them really close to one end, and draw a line across (this is important! See above), leaving the other open (about 0.5cm from the edge). We've coloured this open end with the black pen so it's a bit easier to see which end's which. (And this black mark will become dracula's shoes later!)

2. Adult help is needed for this next part - use some nail scissors or similar to pierce a hole through the line on the matchbox top (keep the scissors closed, press down firmly and twist from side to side). Once you've pierced through, cut carefully along the 3 lines you've drawn, leaving the end with the space (or the thick black mark in the picture).

3. Fold this flap of card right back and press firmly.

4. Then fold the flap of card in half and press the crease firmly again.

5. Cut a strip of paper, about the same width as the card strip, and roughly 4cm long.

6. Glue a good section of it under the card flap and let the glue dry.


7. Now the more fiddly bit, because you need to glue the other end of the paper strip to the end of the matchbox drawer.

Take the match box drawer out of the cover and dab some glue at the end and bottom of the cardboard drawer. Then push it back in from the thick black mark side (not the paper strip side), gluey end first, until it's half in, and

Take the match box drawer out of the cover and dab some glue at one end of the cardboard drawer (end side and bottom). Then gluey end first, push it back in from the thick black mark side (not the paper strip side), until it's half in, and you can see the gluey end through the hole in the top of the matchbox cover.

8. You need to stick the paper strip to the glue, this is tricky, so we used the end of a pencil to push the paper strip into the glue (end side and bottom).

It is really important to get the cardboard strip as close as you can to the edge of the drawer - there should be a small gap, but it must be small, or the mechanism won't pull back properly. (See how close it is in the photo. We've drawn a black line along the top edge of the matchbox drawer, so you can see how close it is to the edge of card strip.)

9. Once it's dry you can try out your pop-up box! When you push the drawer back into the cover,  the middle section should go flat. If it doesn't, then the card strip needs to be glued closer to the end of the drawer. If the box is too tight and won't shut properly then the card strip has been glued too close to the end of the drawer and needs more of a gap.

11. Draw your Halloween figure on some paper - make it roughly the same size as the matchbox.

12. Make sure the matchbox is open so the mechanism is sticking up, and glue your ghoul to the side of the folded card strip that isn't attached to the paper strip, lining up the bottom edge of your figure with the crease.

 13. To make an easy pop-up match box surprise, cut a thin strip of cereal box card or similar and fold it a few times to make a spring mechanism. Glue or stick this inside the drawer part of the matchbox, near one end. Draw your bat, spider or ghost or whatever you like and glue to the top of your cardboard spring. We also made a ghost from some tissue paper!

You could decorate the matchbo too - draw around the box on some paper, and design a spooky cover! Cut out and glue on top of the matchbox.

DIY Dandelions and Daisies

Everything in the garden looks good in May I think, even the weeds have a kind of charm, and I have a soft spot for these bursts of yellow and white that pepper the grass.

Know it's not everyone's favourite, but I love a sunny yellow flower.

These paper daisies and dandelions are easy to make and can be used in lots of different ways - to stick on cards or pictures, or as decorations.

You will need:

Plain white paper
Yellow paper (optional)
Scissors
Glue stick
Craft glue
Yellow tissue paper

1. For the little daisies, fold an A4 sheet of plain paper in half, lengthways, then fold it again lengthways two more times.

2. Cut thin strips by cutting across the folded paper, then unfurl your strips and snip into pieces by cutting on the creases.

3. Rub glue stick in the middle of a petal piece and stick another one at right-angles to it, to make a cross. Rub more glue in the middle and attach another two petal strands, to fill the gaps.

We found the best way was to assemble a daisy on a finger tip! The first rub of glue seemed to fix the petal strip steady on the tip, making it easier to add the other pieces, but use whatever method you find best.

4. Use a hole punch to punch out small yellow circles - if you don't have yellow paper, colour in some plain paper.

5. Rub glue in the centre again, wet your finger to help pick up the little yellow circle, and glue it down.

6. For the dandelions, fold a sheet of tissue paper a few times so it's easier to cut across. Cut a few 4/5cm strips.

7. Cut a fringe along an open end of one of the pieces (keep the cuts close together). Make the cuts about 2cm long (no more than halfway down your strip)

8. Open up the strip and dab some glue along it at intervals, just under the fringe, then fold the strip in half.

Best not to use a glue stick like we did... because the tissue paper is easy to rip - better to use a small amount of glue on a brush.

9. Dab more glue along the length of this shorter strip, again just under the fringe, and tightly roll your strip. It can be fiddly to start off, but once you get going you can hopefully roll it between your finger and thumb, and remember to press tightly just under the fringe where the glue is. Brush some glue on the end of the strip and tightly roll the last bit.

10. Puff out the dandelion with your fingers, trim the centre if you want, to make it flatter. We cut the stalk bit off so we could stick them on a picture.

Bunny and Chick Easter egg holders

These make great table decorations for a Easter day spread. You could even write the children's (and adults..) names on them, before filling with treats like mini eggs.

You will need:
Toilet paper tube (or two)
Scissors
Pencil
Ruler
Paint
Glue
Glue stick
Black pen (gel or felt-tip)
Green paper (optional)
Coloured tissue paper
Feathers (optional)

1. Flatten the cardboard tube with your hand - press down along the sides, so you can see the creases.

2. Squeeze the tube back into shape, then line up the two creases you've just made, in the middle, and flatten again, pressing down on the sides.

3. While the tube is flat, use a ruler and pencil to draw a line across the tube, about 2cm from the bottom.

4. Use the scissors to cut down the (longer) two side creases to the pencil line.

5. Squeeze the tube back into shape, then line up the cuts you've just made in the middle, and press the tube flat again.

6. With a pencil, draw half an 'n' shape on the fold, so it goes about halfway up the tube. Leave a space between the pencil shape and the side cuts.

7. Cut around the shape to the pencil line (*mini makers might need help cutting through the double card). Snip through the crease at the top, above the shape (see pic below), so you can bend each side piece down, and fold on the line. Now they're easier to snip off.

When you squeeze the tube back into shape you will have the body for your chick or bunny.

8. For the head, draw around something like a coin or a bottle top on spare card and cut out (if there isn't enough card left, cut open another toilet paper tube and use that.)

9. (Bunny only) Fold some spare card and draw a rabbit ear on top. Cut through the double card * to get two identical ears. For an easier option, use paper instead.

10. Now you have all your pieces, it's painting time. Paint behind the body first - use a nice, bright colour. Then paint the body and the other pieces. Paint a small piece of spare card (or paper) orange, for the chick's beak.

You could paint the foreground, below your chick or bunny green, or make paper grass (in step 12) 

We also cut long zig-zags into the back of the tube, to make it look like the rabbit's hiding in some grass.

11. Use a black pen to draw on the faces. For the chick, cut out a small triangle from the piece of painted orange card (or use paper), and use a small amount of glue to stick it under the eyes. Glue the bunny ears behind the head.

12. If you would like to make some grass for the front of your egg holder, cut out a strip of green paper (or colour in some plain paper). It needs to wrap round half your tube and be about a cm or so higher that the pencil line at the front.

14. Cut zig-zags along the strip - keep them short and make them uneven.

15. Glue the grass below your chick or bunny, lining it up with the bottom of the tube - a glue stick is good for this, just rub a layer of glue on the back of the grass.

16. For the flowers, scrunch up small squares of coloured tissue paper, dot some glue on the grass, where you want them to go, and stick in place.

17. Glue the chick's head on and if you have two feathers, glue them either side. If you don't have feathers, you could cut some wings out of paper and colour in.

For the bunny, glue the head onto the body.

You could use a paper clip to keep things in place while the glue dries, or prop them on their sides.

And why not customise your egg holder with some blingy sequins before adding Easter treats.

(They're a perfect size for a creme egg.. )

Linking up with #bloggerclubuk