Pop-up Heart Card

A Letter sheet folded in quarters is the card itself. Inside, a red heart sits on a V-fold: open the card and it pops up, close it and it folds down. On the front are three little hearts and a message in marker.

• Easy
• 2 Letter sheets
• 4 pieces
• 1 V-fold

Make it with your phone cameraLesson code: 3739

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

• 2 Letter sheets — office paper, 80 gsm (20 lb)
• Markers
• Pencil — and eraser
• Scissors — small
• Glue stick — or PVA glue
• Glass — phone stand

Steps

Trace

1. Sheet 1: red sheet. The red sheet should be under the camera now. The template has 1 sheets. The sheet is white — the pieces get their color at the coloring step.
2. Heart: outline. Trace the heart with a solid line, together with the two small tabs at the bottom. You’ll cut along this line.
3. Heart: folds. The middle line and the bases of the tabs are dashed: you fold the heart along them, you don’t cut.
4. Little hearts. Trace three little hearts — you’ll decorate the cover with them.
5. Red. 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.

Base

6. Card base. You don’t need the camera here — this is a diagram. Fold the sheet in half, short edge to short edge (line 1), then in half again (line 2), and crease the folds with your fingernail. You now have a 4¼ × 5½ in card.

Cut

7. Cut out: heart. Cut out the heart together with the tabs: at the base of the tabs, don’t cut into the heart.
8. Cut out: little hearts — 3 pcs. Cut with scissors along the solid line. Turn the sheet, not the scissors — the cut will come out neater.

Fold

9. Heart in half. Fold the heart in half along the middle line pencil side out — this side will show in the card. Halves edge to edge, and the tabs should match too. Crease the fold with your fingernail.
10. Fold the tabs both ways. Without unfolding the heart, fold both tabs at once along the lines up and then back down, all the way each time. Unfold them: the tab folds should bend easily both ways.

Glue

11. First tab. Open the card. Place the folded heart on the right page: tip in the card’s fold, 1¾ in from the bottom edge, the heart’s fold parallel to the bottom edge, tabs on top, by the fold. Spread glue on the underside of the bottom tab and press it down.
12. Second tab. Spread glue on top of the top tab. Close the card and press firmly with your palm where the heart is.
13. Open. Open the card — the heart will pop up by itself. Close and open it a couple more times: the folds will loosen up, and the heart will fold down neatly.

Decor

14. Cover. Close the card. Stick three little hearts on the front — glue on the back of each heart. At the bottom, write “For you” or a name with a marker.
15. Message inside. Open the card and write a few words inside, on the left — for example, “I love you”. The heart to the right of the message stays free.

Done. The card is done. Open it smoothly, not with a jerk: the heart pops up by itself. When closing, hold it lightly with your finger — it will fold along its creases.

Make it with your phone camera

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