How to Make a Pop-Up Heart Card
Create a colourful handmade card with a row of hearts that pops up when the card is opened. This easy paper craft takes approximately 10 minutes to assemble, making it a lovely project for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, birthdays or any occasion that calls for a heartfelt message.
Use a mix of plain, patterned or glitter cardstock to personalise the design for someone special.
Project Details
- Project number: A775
- Difficulty: Easy
- Approximate project time: 10 minutes, excluding drying time
What You Will Need
Materials
- One 6 × 12 inch piece of cardstock for the pop-up hearts
- One 6 × 12 inch piece of cardstock for the card base
- Additional cardstock for the smaller decorative hearts
Equipment
- Scissors
- Glue
- Large heart template
- Small heart template
Create the Accordion-Fold Hearts
- Take one 6 × 12 inch piece of cardstock and divide it into six equal sections.
- Fold the cardstock backwards and forwards along the section lines to create an accordion fold.
- Place the large heart template over the folded cardstock and cut around it, keeping the layers together as you cut.
- Carefully unfold the cardstock to reveal a connected row of hearts.
Add the Decorative Hearts
- Use the small heart template to cut three individual hearts from contrasting cardstock.
- Glue one small heart into the centre of each larger heart in the accordion-fold row.
- Cut additional mini hearts from your remaining cardstock to decorate the inside and front of the card.
Assemble the Card
- Take the second 6 × 12 inch piece of cardstock and fold it in half to create the card base.
- Decorate the front of the card with cardstock hearts, a message or other embellishments.
- Open the card and position the accordion-fold hearts across the centre.
- Glue one end of the accordion strip to the inside left edge of the card and the other end to the inside right edge.
- Close the card gently to check that the hearts fold neatly inside and pop forward when the card is opened.
- Glue the mini cardstock hearts flat around the pop-up design.
Allow the Card to Dry
Leave the card open and flat until the glue is completely dry. Once dry, add a personal message inside before gifting it.
Helpful Tips
When printing the heart templates, select Actual Size in your printer settings. Use the 3 × 3 cm test square on the template page to confirm that the page has printed at the correct scale.
Take care not to cut completely through the folded edges that connect the accordion hearts. Leaving these joins intact creates the continuous pop-up effect.
