Fancy Fold Friday Tutorial for Large Square Pop Out Swing Card - The Fully Opening version...

So having re-made some Pop Out Swing cards... or Lever cards as they are also known... for class projects last month... I went back to the drawing board ... as my original design does not fold out flat when assembled... and you know that I prefer a card that opens out fully! And I also wanted to have apertures in different shapes to the standard square too...

So here is the first... in quite a long series of card shares over the next few weeks...

And seeing as it is Fancy Fold Friday today... here is the step by step tutorial for you... for the Large Square (5 1/2" or 14cm) Pop out Swing Card (Fully Opening!) In both centimetres (metric) and inches (imperial)...

But I will admit that getting these to fully open was a real tweak with the measurements!  Which is code for some precise cutting and scoring dimensions being required! Thank heavens for the Personal Trimmer to make it all easy! 

Also slightly different mat size increments compared to my standard 5mm/ 1/4" ones...

PS If you prefer it to not fully open...  and/or you prefer simpler scoring/cutting measurements! Click here for the original 14cm/5 1/2" Square Card tutorial...  Or click here for the 6" Square Card from 12x12 cardstock... both with a standard square aperture...

Craft Spa Recipe
Card Blank - Cardstock Thick Whisper White 28 x 14cm (11" x 5 ½" )

Insert - Cardstock Powder Pink 20.4 x 13.6cm (7 7/8" x 5 1/4")

Tabs - CS Thick Whisper White 2 x 13.6cm (3/4" x 5 1/4") (x2)

Paper for Front of Card 13.2cm Square (5" Square)

Paper/Card for Inner Panel 6.4 x 13.2cm (2 3/8" x 5")

Card for stamping front centre panel 8 x 9.9cm (3 1/4" x 4")

Papers- Springtime Foils... Available exclusively and for free during the Sale A Bration promotion

Stamps - Charming Cafe, Perennial Birthday

Dies - Cafe Builder

Note that normally I would have added a Powder Pink mat to the front of the card... but the metal dies will not fit through 3 layers of card and paper to cut the aperture in one go... so I didn't! As I sadly couldn't! And lining up this die shape twice on separate pieces of card/paper would definitely have been too hard!

Craft Spa Instructions

1. Score LANDSCAPE larger (white for this card) card blank panel at 14cm (5 ½”) Bone Fold.

2. Score smaller (Powder Pink for this card) insert panel at 6.8 & 13.6cm (2 5/8" & 5 1/4")

3. Bone Fold as concertina/Z-fold ( ie one as mountain & 1 as valley fold)

4. Score 2 smallest (white) panels at 6.8cm (2 5/8")

5. Adhere paper to front of card blank...

6. Die cut Aperture in card blank front  …

7. Adhere Z folded panel to RHS of open card blank (note: valley fold of Z Fold panel to LHS when stuck )

8. Fold over front of card blank. (with Z folded panel folded)

9. Apply glue through aperture to top of Z fold panel ( ie to RHS of aperture) Note I have used Sticky Strip just so you can see where the glue needs to be…..

10. Adhere stamped and die-cut wreath through the aperture (making sure it can swing through the aperture)

 

So now for the Tabs to attach it all together….. and allow it all to pop out and swing…

10.Open up Card blank. Open out Z folded panel to the right.

 

11. Apply Glue to one side of the 2 Tabs

12. With folded edge of Tabs to outer/RH edge of Z panel - adhere one side of Tabs to top and bottom of Z fold insert panel  (ie above and below the die cut panel) ensuring that these tabs are clear ...

(a) above and below the aperture shape
and
(b) the Z fold insert panel LHS score line.
Trim if necessary

 

13.Fold top layer of Z Fold panel back over & open the Tabs out towards the central score line of the card blank.

  

Check that the Tabs will clear the central score line of the card blank.

Trim if necessary

14. With the Tabs opened out, apply glue to top side ( ie facing you)

14. Fold front of card blank shut to close down onto tabs

And there you have it…one safely attached swing out card mechanism….

Now depending on the colours you have used for the card blank and the insert panel... some of you won’t like the fact that you can see the Tab on the back of the white Z folded panel…

3 ways to work round that …

(1) have the card blank and tabs in the same colour (as I have with this card) so that you can't see the colour difference when you open the card... 

(2) have the card blank and Z folded insert panel all in the same colour ... so no colour difference anywhere!

(3) cut two extra 2 x 6.8cm (3/4" x 2 5/8") Tabs in the same colour as your Z Fold insert panel…and just stick over the top!

Look vanished! 

So there you have it… finish off your decoration to the front section… and you have a simple looking card with a WOW on opening… and it is simple to make too… especially by the third run...