Wedding Card Box

Today sharing how to make a DIY wedding card box.

One of my favorite things I made for our wedding was the wedding card box– a place for guests to drop their wedding cards at our reception.  It worked out perfectly.  We sat the card box on the gift table and guests could easily see where to leave their cards.  To be sure they knew exactly where to put the cards, I made a “Cards” sign and put it on top of the box behind the card slot.  You can never be too obvious with things like this, especially when serving alcohol.

We had around 125 guests at our wedding and this three-tiered card box worked out perfectly.

Now, remember this project was from back in the day so it’s lacking step-by-step photos.  I made a one-tiered wedding card box last year– check out the tutorial here for a couple more detailed photos.

SUPPLIES
paper mache boxes– 14-inch round, 10-inch square, 10-inch round (purchased at JoAnn Fabric and Michael’s, but also available here)
paint … craft store (Michael’s, JoAnn Fabric, Hobby Lobby)
sponge brush
scissors
Xacto knife
double-sided tape
ribbon
silk flowers
hot glue gun & glue
scrapbook paper
picture frame

TIP: Buy your supplies with coupons!  This is how I saved a boatload of money on wedding DIY projects.  I never bought anything without a coupon.  Use coupons for the paper mache boxes, ribbon, hot glue gun, hot glue, paint brush, Xacto knife, silk flowers.  Most craft stores take competitor coupons too.

Instructions for wedding card box:
1. Paint the paper mache boxes using your paint and sponge brush.  Two coats are best.  Allow for ample drying time in between coats.

2. After the paint has dried, begin cutting out the tops and bottoms of the boxes.

3. Begin with the middle box. With a pencil, draw a square 1 inch inside the edge of the bottom of the box. With the Xacto knife, cut along the pencil line.

4. Use the medium box as a guide– place it how you want it on top of the large box lid. With the pencil, trace along the cut-out edge. With the Xacto knife, cut along the pencil line.

5. Moving on to small box. With the pencil, draw a circle 1 inch inside the edge of bottom of the box. With the Xacto knife, cut along the pencil line.

6. Use the small box as a guide– place it how you want it on top of the medium box lid. With the pencil, trace along the cut-out edge. With the Xacto knife, cut along the pencil line.

7. Decorate the boxes as you wish.  (I used ribbon and silk peonies.)

8. If decorating with ribbon, use double-sided to secure the ribbon to the boxes.  If double sided tape worries you, use hot glue.

9. When finished decorating the boxes, secure the boxes to each other by applying a thin bead of hot glue from the glue gun to the inside edge of the bottom of each box.

10. If decorating with silk flowers, attach with glue gun and glue.

Instructions for “Cards” sign:
1. Print the word “Cards” on colored scrapbook paper.

2. Cut out to fit 3.5″ by 5″ picture frame.

3. Insert into picture frame.

TOTAL COST: ~$35.  I can’t remember exactly but I want to say it cost around $35, which is a definite money-saver if you look at the prices of three-tiered, custom wedding card boxes on Etsy (we’re talking $100-200).

Here was the wedding card box in action at our wedding.

I tried to sell the card box after our wedding but it didn’t work out, so it now lives in my home office on top of my work station with the program box I also DIYed for our wedding.

In case you’re curious, you can read about our wedding and see the photos here:

Before the Ceremony
Ceremony
Reception
The Details