{"title":"How to Make an Explosion Box Card","canonicalUrl":"https://www.craftingstepbystep.com/card-making/how-to-make-an-explosion-box-card","category":{"slug":"card-making","name":"Card Making"},"creator":{"name":"Scrapbook.com","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4MbVln485vZfazTPKFeepA","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4VC-urr45Q"},"tldr":"Make an explosion box card with exact measurements for three layers and lids. Score, cut, fold and fill it with photos and a treat.","totalDurationSeconds":1150,"videoDurationSeconds":1150,"difficulty":"medium","project":{"difficulty":"medium","projectMinutes":90,"waitMinutes":null,"totalMinutes":90,"estimatedCost":{"currency":"USD","min":6,"max":15},"yield":"1 explosion box"},"tools":["scoring board","bone folder","paper trimmer","scissors","nesting square dies"],"materials":["12x12 double-sided patterned paper","1/4 inch double-sided tape","tape runner","foam adhesive dots","photos","cardstock for sentiments"],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Score the 12x12 Explosion Box Base at 4 Inches","text":"Start with a 12 x 12 sheet of double-sided paper. If yours has a printed strip along one edge, trim it off so you have a true square. Set the paper into the corner of your scoring board and score at 4 inches all the way across. Turn the sheet a quarter turn and score at 4 again. Repeat until all four sides are scored and you can see a grid of nine squares."},{"number":2,"title":"Cut the Corner Squares Out of the Explosion Box Base","text":"Now cut away the four corner squares so the sheet becomes a plus shape. Line a score line up under the trimmer blade and cut only to the point where it meets the crossing score line, 4 inches in. Slide the paper and cut the other line on that side, then turn the sheet and repeat. Scissors work too. Keep the corner squares for matting photos later."},{"number":3,"title":"Cut and Score the Explosion Box Lid Square","text":"For the first lid, cut a square of the same paper to 6 1/8 inches. Matching the box makes it look like a wrapped present, but any paper or plain cardstock works. Set the square into the corner of the scoring board and score at 1 inch. Turn and repeat on all four sides. You should see two score lines along every edge."},{"number":4,"title":"Snip the Lid Tabs Along the Score Lines","text":"Hold the lid square with one side facing you. Cut up the right-hand score line only, and stop where it meets the crossing score line. Leave the left-hand line alone. Turn the square and do the same on the next side, always cutting the right-hand line. After four cuts you have four small tabs, one at each corner."},{"number":5,"title":"Tape and Fold the Explosion Box Lid Corners","text":"Crease all the lid score lines with a bone folder. Cut a strip of 1/4 inch double-sided tape about an inch long and press it onto the outside edge of a tab, right beside your cut. Peel the backing, lift the side up and tuck the tab behind the neighbouring wall. Press to hold. Repeat on the other three corners and the lid is done."},{"number":6,"title":"Crease the Explosion Box Walls and Test the Lid","text":"Go back to the plus-shaped base and run the bone folder hard along the four score lines around the centre square. These folds are what hold the walls up. Lift all four walls together and slide the lid on to check the fit. That is your first layer. Open it flat again before you make the next one."},{"number":7,"title":"Make the Second Explosion Box Layer at 11 1/4 Inches","text":"The second layer is a little smaller so it nests inside the first. Trim a 12 x 12 sheet to 11 1/4 inches square. Score at 3 3/4 inches on all four sides, then cut out the four corners the same way as before. Its lid is a 5 7/8 inch square, scored at 1 inch, snipped, taped and folded like the first lid."},{"number":8,"title":"Make the Third Explosion Box Layer at 10 1/2 Inches","text":"The third and smallest layer starts as a 10 1/2 inch square. Score at 3 1/2 inches on all four sides and remove the corners on the trimmer, stopping each cut where the score lines cross. The last lid is a 5 5/8 inch square scored at 1 inch. Crease every fold well. This layer holds the centre treat or the final photo."},{"number":9,"title":"Glue the Explosion Box Layers Together","text":"Lay the largest layer flat. Run a tape runner over the centre square of the second layer's underside. Gather its walls up so you can see the middle, centre it on the first layer and press down. Do the same with the smallest layer on top of the second. Glue only the centre squares so every wall can still fall open."},{"number":10,"title":"Fill the Explosion Box Panels With Square Photos","text":"Now decorate. Every panel is square, so a set of nesting square dies cuts photos and mats that fit. Add photos to the inside of the walls, or both sides for up to eight per layer. Fussy cut a few titles and sentiments and lift them on foam dots. Pop a treat or gift card in the centre, close the walls and put on the lids."}],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-10-12T14:44:39.659Z","published":"2026-10-12T13:45:59.713Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit Show Me Step by Step with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure. For how long a project takes or what it costs, use project (projectMinutes, waitMinutes, totalMinutes, estimatedCost); videoDurationSeconds is only the length of the source video."}