Matchbox Box with a Drawer

A 2⅜ × 1⅝ in matchbox made of light blue paper: a cat sleeps under a crescent moon on the sleeve, and the drawer slides out by its double pull tab. The bottom says “YOU’RE AMAZING” with two little hearts, and a note or a small gift fits inside.

Medium
1 Letter sheet
2 nets
14 folds

Make it with your phone cameraLesson code: 5694

On VanGami the template appears over your sheet through your phone camera — no printer needed. Trace it, cut, fold and glue. Below are all the steps in text.

What you’ll need

Letter sheet — office paper, 80 gsm (20 lb)
Markers
Pencil — and eraser
Scissors — small
Glue stick — or PVA glue
A note or a small gift — optional: up to 2 × 1⅛ in
Glass — phone stand

Steps

Trace

Drawer: outline. Trace the edge of the net with a solid line: four walls, four tabs at the corners and a flap on the right.
Drawer: folds. Ten fold lines: around the bottom and by the tabs they are a dash-dot line (fold toward you), and the two on the flap are a dashed line (mountain fold, away from you). Don’t cut along them.
Drawer: lettering. On the bottom, copy the words “YOU’RE AMAZING” and two little hearts. The letters are written sideways — that’s so they can be read when the drawer slides out.
Sleeve: outline. Trace a long strip with a tab on the right with a solid line. You’ll cut along it.
Sleeve: folds. The four lines across are dashed: the strip will fold into a tube along them.
Sleeve: drawing. Copy the sleeping cat, the crescent moon and the stars with thin lines. The cat lies on the top wall and the stars are on the side walls.

Color

Light blue. The paper is white, but these parts should be this color: color them in completely, up to the outline. Move the marker in one direction.
Drawer: marker. Outline the letters and hearts with a black marker: you can fill the letters in completely. Don’t draw with colored markers on light blue paper — it will look muddy.
Sleeve: marker. Outline the cat, the moon and the stars with a black marker in one thin line.

Cut

Cut out: drawer. Cut out the drawer along the solid line. At the tabs, cut all the way to the corner of the wall — to the point where the lines meet.
Cut out: sleeve. Cut with scissors along the solid line. Turn the sheet, not the scissors — the cut will come out neater.

Fold

Drawer folds. Fold the drawer along all the lines: walls and tabs toward you, with the drawing facing in; both lines of the pull tab go away from you. Crease with your fingernail and unfold.
Sleeve folds. Turn the sleeve drawing side down and fold along the four lines away from you — the drawing stays on the outside. Unfold.

Glue

Double the pull tab. Turn the drawer drawing side down. Spread glue on the far half of the pull tab, fold the tab along the dashed line and press: doubled, it’s sturdier and easy to pull.
Build the drawer. Lift the long walls, fold the tabs inward and spread glue on them on the outside. Lift the short walls and press them onto the tabs. Bend the pull tab outward — it sticks out in front.
Roll up the sleeve. Place the sleeve drawing side down. Spread glue on the narrow tab, roll the strip into a tube and press the tab to the inside of the edge of the end wall.

Assemble

Put the secret inside. Put a note or a small gift in the drawer — so that the writing on the bottom stays visible by the pull tab. It can stay empty too: the writing is already a surprise.
Slide in the drawer. Slide the drawer into the sleeve back wall first: the pull tab stays outside, on the side where the cat’s paws are.