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Click here for a larger view Turn an empty check box into this charming little quilted keepsake container. Use this cute little creation to store jewelry, hair accessories, receipts, loose change, or even… cancelled checks! Whatever you decide to use it for, it’s a great way to recycle any kind of old box.

What you need:

Empty check box with lid yellow card stock, 5×7 15 various patterned papers, 1 square of each pattern you want to use white craft glue medium paint brush pinking shears Liquitex Basics Gesso acrylic sealer spray, matte finish //

If you make this project

we’d love to see it! Just send your photos and comments to the editor and it may get published on our Facebook fan page !

What you do

Remove lid and set bottom of box aside. Paint a coat of Liquitex Basics Gesso on the lid and sides of lid. Set aside to dry.

Choose the patterned papers you want to use, alternating checkerboard and gingham designs with florals or other prints. From each patterned paper, cut one 1.5″ square with the pinking shears.

In a small container or bowl, mix together a teaspoon each of water and white craft glue. Mixture should look milky and have a thin, but paintable consistency. This concoction will serve as your own homemade decoupage medium.

First, lay your squares down onto the box so that you know how you want them to look.

Using the paintbrush, paint the back of one of your patterned squares with decoupage. Lay the square onto the box lid in the upper left corner. Paint more decoupage over the top of the square to secure it into place. If you started with a gingham or checkerboard, the next pattern should be in constrast, like a floral. Repeat this step until all quilt square are in place, you should end up with 3 columns and 5 rows.

Next you need to trim the yellow card stock to create an overlapping border over the quilt squares, and cover the sides of the box at the same time. First, using the pinking shears, trim the long edge of the card stock to give it the decorative edge. Lay that edge down onto the top of the box to line up where you want your border to be. Holding the card stock in place, fold the excess down over the side to create a crease. Remove the card stock from the box and gently fold the crease. Next, standing the box on end, lay the folded edge onto the top of the box and holding it in place with your fingers, fold the card stock into the inside of the lid so that you will know how much paper to trim off to cover the side of the box lid. Trim the excess, leaving about 1/4″ to fold into the inside of the lid.

Squeeze some white glue onto the yellow card stock and using the paint brush, spread into an even layer all over. Line up your border over the quilt squares and fold down the rest of the card stock to adhere it to the side of the box and into the inside of the lid. Repeat this process for all four sides, you may need to closely line up the edges so that they meet and don’t have any gaps.

Use the paintbrush with a bit of decoupage to smooth out and flatten down any loose edges. When dry, spray your completed lid with acrylic sealer and let dry completely.

Helpful Hints

:

• Don’t buy sheets and sheets of expensive papers. We used Sizzix brand paper pads, known as Little Sizzles. We used papers from both the Pastels (40-0014) pad and the Watercolors (40-0015) pad. These pads can be found in the scrapbooking aisle of your local craft store. Ours cost $4.99 per pad, each pad has 4 sheets of each solid cardstock, 3 sheets of each pattern paper, there are 80 acid free sheets total per pad. These papers were made for the Sizzix Die Cutting Machine . We have used these pads for many different projects, including our Charming Valentine Greeting Cards as well as our Decoupage Coin Banks .
• As one of our readers, Rose B., mother of three in North Carolina writes, “For those who do not have lots of pretty papers on hand, an easy way to get more different patterned pieces is to clip from magazines. Among interesting patterns likely to be found among the illustrations in a typical women’s magazine are sky with clouds, lush grass, fabric patterns on clothes, tile and wood flooring, carpet, upholstery fabric, wallpapers. There might even be beach sand, jungle greenery (with or without parrots), autumn leaves, a waterfall, brick work, basket weave. ”
• Don’t throw away excess paper. Tiny scraps can be discarded, but save larger pieces to use on other projects!