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A bendi card, also called a bendy fold card, is a fun fold card with a strip of card stuck across the front that bows outward when you open it. The bend turns a flat card into a little 3D scene that stands up on its own, then folds flat again to fit a square envelope. This tutorial follows Sam Calcott of Mixed Up Craft as she builds one with a garden gnome for Father's Day. The base takes a few minutes. Most of the time goes into stamping and coloring the pieces you put on it.
The strip is longer than the card is wide. When the card is open flat, the extra inch has nowhere to go, so the strip pops forward into a curve. Close the card and the strip lies flat again. That is why the tabs must sit flush with the outer edges: if they creep inward, the curve gets too tall and the card will not close neatly.
Pick a stamp set with a main character and plenty of small extras. Sam uses a gnome, a tree stump, a toadstool, a wheelbarrow and a wishing well. Stamp and color everything before you build, then fussy cut it. Put the tallest piece on the inner tab so it stands in the middle, and tuck smaller pieces along the strip to fill the gaps.
Match the ink to how you color. Sam uses colored pencils, so any crisp black ink works. If you color with alcohol markers, use an ink that will not smear under them. For watercolor, use a waterproof ink.
Try a pop up card, a stepper card or an easel card. For another Father's Day idea, see this Father's Day card.
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Make a bendi fold card that pops into a 3D scene and folds flat for a 6x6 envelope. An easy project: about 1 hour. Materials cost about $1 to $3. You need 9 things, including white cardstock, 6 x 6 patterned paper and black ink pad. The 10 steps start with score the Bendi Card Base Down the Middle, score Both Ends of the Bendi Card Strip and stamp the Sentiment on the Bendi Card Strip.
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Cut a 6 by 6 inch square of sturdy white cardstock for the base. Lay it on a scoreboard and score a line down the middle at 3 inches. Fold it in half along the score and crease it well. This is the whole back of the card. A square base fits a standard 6 by 6 envelope once the card is finished and folded flat.
Run a bone folder along the fold so the card closes cleanly.
Cut a strip 7 inches long and 1.5 inches tall. This is the piece that bends. Score a line half an inch in from each end and fold both tabs back. The strip can be taller if you want more room for a sentiment or a bigger design. Lay it across the base to see how it looks before you go further.
Audition your sentiment on the strip now, before anything is glued.
Stamp your sentiment across the middle of the strip. Sam stamps Father's Day in black ink, then adds small images at each end to fill the white space. A stamping platform holds the stamp in place so you can stamp again if the first one is faint. Color the small images before you glue the strip down.
Pick an ink that suits your coloring: any crisp black for pencils.
If you plan to cover the base with patterned panels, peel back their corners or wait to add them. Put glue on the back of one end tab of the strip. Press it onto the card base along the outer edge, level with the bottom. The panels later go over the tabs, which hides them and makes the card look like one piece.
Liquid glue gives you a few seconds of wiggle time to line things up.
Glue the second tab the same way on the other side. The fold of each tab must run flush with the outside edge of the card and sit right along the bottom corner. Take a minute here. When both ends are in place, open the card and watch the strip bow forward into its curve. Shape it gently with your fingers.
If the card will not close flat, a tab has crept inward. Fix it while wet.
The inner tab gives your main image something to stand on. Cut a piece 4.5 by 1.75 inches. Score it at half an inch, 2 inches, 2.5 inches and 4 inches, then fold it into a small bridge shape. This piece is optional. You can stick everything onto the bendi strip instead, but the tab lets a tall image stand in the middle.
Change the size to suit your main image.
Add glue to the two outer tabs of the support piece. Set it in the middle of the card base so the half inch center section hangs over the center score line. Keep it flush with the bottom of the strip. Sam's tab comes up a little higher than the strip, but the main image will cover it from the front.
Check the card still folds flat before the glue sets.
Put a line of glue along the top front of the support tab. This is where the main scene attaches. Sam sticks her fussy cut tree stump here, so it rises up behind the curved strip when the card opens. Press it on and hold it for a moment. Open and close the card once to make sure the stump moves with the fold.
Use a fine tip glue bottle so glue does not show around the edges.
Now add the star of the card. Sam glues her colored gnome on top of the tree stump so he sits right in the middle of the scene. Add the toadstool next to him. Press each piece in place and open the card to check that it pops up the way you want before moving on to the smaller pieces.
Foam squares behind a piece add a little extra depth.
Trim around the rest of your stamped pieces with small scissors, then glue them around the scene. Sam adds a wheelbarrow, plant pots, a bird and a wishing well, and decorates the inside back with more stamped bits. A touch of glossy accents on a few spots catches the light. Fold it flat and slip it into its envelope.
Stand taller pieces at the back and small ones in front.
Keep going
How to Make a Gatefold Card (Side Gatefold With Measurements)
10 steps · about 7 minutes
More on this topic, picked for this bendi card.
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How to Make a Bendi Card (Bendy Fold Card Tutorial)
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