3D Papercraft Projects · Christmas Papercraft · Upcycling Projects

Upcycled Greeting Cards: 3D Box Card Idea

I love upcycling. I love being able to turn something that would otherwise be thrown away into something else and giving it a whole new lease of life. Take this adorable owl pop-up box card for example!

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

I created the card from used greeting cards, gift tags and other repurposed materials. This is the front of the original greeting card, and as soon as I saw it, I knew exactly what I needed to do!

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

On the original card, the owl in the top right corner was already cut out and raised up on dimensional foam. I carefully removed the owl from the card with the foam still in tact, then carefully cut around the other five owls.

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

I then used red-liner tape on the back of those five owls to attach them to strips of repurposed acetate (food packaging). 

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

For the box card, the main structure was originally an old book cover and the decorative panels were scraps from another project. 

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

After carefully arranging the position of the owls, I attached them securely to the box card using red-liner tape. I then positioned the owl with the foam right at the back so that he’s looking down over the other owls.

I then cut out four shiny gold stars from a used gift tag and attached two of them to thinner strips of repurposed acetate. I placed one on each side, then glued another one to the back panel using several layers of scrap card to raise it up.

I just love how the owls seem to be looking at each other! They are such characters!

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

I glued a white panel to the back of the box card and left it blank so that it can be used for a handwritten message.

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

I then stamped a ‘hello’ sentiment onto a scrap of white card, cut it out in the shape of a cloud and attached it to the front panel using small scraps of card to create dimension. I also added the other gold star and a sparkly gold heart from another used greeting card to complete the design.

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

Here is the box card from the side, showing that it will fold flat for easy posting. 

Upcycled Owl Greeting Card, 3D Pop-Up Box Card

What do you think? It certainly has a truly unique, handmade quality about it, making it a beautiful one of a kind card!

How to Make an Upcycled Owl Box Card

Happy crafting!
Suzanne 🦉