A Jack-in-the Box

At my Fun With Punches class we not only enjoyed stamping the projects I had planned but also talked about other ideas and things to try with punches. While working with the accordian flower (see earlier post) a thought occurred to me. Actually I had my accordian all folded up and my finger slipped and it popped loose – and what did I think of – a Jack-in-the Box! What if I created the accordian put it inside a box and added a punched clown face to the top. So an idea sprang out and of course I had to play with it. So I came up with a box – basically a 2-4-6-8 box that I scored and cut to create a lid. And then to create the clown face – with punches of course – and bright colors. Then to work on the accordian and the mechanics of it. Well that part took the longest because it wouldn’t pop the way I wanted – I shorten the accordian, made it wider, attached it in different places in the bottom of the box – this little clown wasn’t going to win the battle – he was going to pop. So finally I could get him to pop sort of how I wanted but I had to make it happen more than once – and I finally did – I decided it had more to do with how I put him in the box than anything. And after working a long time on this decided it would NOT be a project to do in a class but I will share it here in case you want to tackle this on your own – I was good with the creative part, but didn’t want to spend more time on the mechanics of it – but maybe someone else does. So here is the box closed:

Clown Box closed

You pull up on the little tab (punched with the Word Window Punch) to lift the top and …..

POP!

Clown Box open

Colors used are Real Red, Summer Sun, Green Galore, and white and black.

Stamp set is Party Hearty.

Punches used are Scallop Circle, 1-1/4″ Circle, 1/2″ Circle, 1/4″ circle, Heart to Heart Punch. I clipped inbetween the scallops on the clown face. Added accents with the Gel Pen for the eyes and nose. Mouth was drawn with a black marker.

The accordian strip on the inside is 1″ wide and 7-1/2″ long and scored every 1/2″ and attached in the center of the box with sticky strip and the back of the clown a dimensional.

The box is a 2-4-6-8 box. Start with card stock that is 5-1/2″ x 8-1/2″. Score at 2″, 4″, 6″, and 8″. On the other side score at 1″, 3″, and 5″. Then you have to imagine the box and where the lid would be and cut away the extra squares – leaving the two sides with a 1/2″ strip for the flaps on the lid. I cut each of the flaps onthe lid at and angle so the box would close easily. I hope that makes sense.

Have fun and let me know if you give it a try!