A Card Box from 12" x 12" paper

The other day I tried to send a card to a friend.  The problem was that all of my cards were in disarray in a drawer.  It took forever for me to find a card that would work because I had to look through the entire mixed up batch.  I also came across some beautiful cards that I simply would no longer feel comfortable using as they were in horrible condition having been bent and crushed in the mess.  Most of these cards are store bought and so cost some money and others were handmade by either myself or by a crafter and represented both time and money.  The loss of the cards was disappointing. 

I set about organizing them in groups and put rubber bands around them.  The bands caused the envelopes to bend and crease and some of the cards to bow a little, so I wasn't thrilled with that solution either.  That day I was looking through Pinterest for some card designs and came across this pin from Chic'n scratch Live, http://chicnscratch.typepad.com/chicnscratchlive/2008/05/12-x-12-box-of-cards.html.  This Stampin' Up! demonstrator posted a video of how to create a gift box to hold cards from a 12' x 12" piece of paper.  I posted it to my Gift Ideas! board but decided it would be put to use immediately for my own purpose. 

Had I thought it through, I would have realized that no matter how you fold the paper, a 12 x 12 piece will not hold the standard sized card from Hallmark.  But I barreled ahead with the video and created this little holder complete with decorations.  It is perfect for handmade cards in the A2 size and would made a very nice new home, thank you, or Christmas card gift for someone.  For my purpose, to corral my many cards, it was insufficient.  But it was not wasted, it also suits very well for post cards!  Thankfully I tend to collect postcards.

But it still didn't solve the problem with my cards.  I couldn't see being able to get designer paper in a larger size so I did some staring.  At the box of course.  And then it came to me.  I had purchased poster board for my DIY Rotating Goal List from the Dollar Store.  I had bought both a white and a black sheet as it was a $1 for two sheets and I couldn't decide which color I would want to use.  So I had a rather large sheet of black poster board that I could use.  Using the same plan for creating the box, I simply determined how much bigger I needed the base to be and added that amount to the size of the square.  I ended up using an 18" x 18" inch piece that I tiled designer paper over.  I then scored the piece at 6.5" and 11.5" in one direction and 4.5" x 13.5" in the other.  Otherwise, I put it together in the same manner as demonstrated for the 12" x 12" sheet of paper.  I also created some tabs out of the remaining black poster board to help separate the cards for easy searching.

I was not planning on using the labels on the front but felt it was now necessary.  I am not thrilled with how the decoration came out on them but otherwise they have come in very handy and my cards are kept safely.  I have also put my stamps and address labels in the card box for easy access.  And to top it all off, they add a little for color/decor to the room.  Afterall, they are designed to be seen!