Carina’s Open When Series Instructions

*Please note these release dates:
December 15, 2014 Open When Releases will be 5 Envelope Box, 10 Envelope Box, It’s Christmas, It’s Our Anniversary, Just for Fun, Now!, You Are Angry, You Are Bored, You Are Feeling Worries, You Are Happy, You Are Sad, You Can’t Fall Asleep, You Need a Good Laugh, You Want Me! You Want to Reminisce.
December 22,2014 Open When Releases will be It’s Thanksgiving, It’s Valentine’s Day, It’s Your Birthday!, You Are Having A Bad Day, You are on a Plane, You Graduate, You Need a Pep Talk, 5 Envelope Box Butterfly Flap, 5 Envelope Box Scallop Flap, 10 Envelope Box Quote Flap, 10 Envelope Box Floral Flap

Links for all products available at the bottom of the post.

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I’m excited to introduce my Open When Series that can be purchased from my Silhouette Shop and my CGOnline Shop. Open When envelopes and ideas have been popular on Pinterest, and I wanted to create a version that I could make for my husband for Christmas. You can find the die cutting files at the Silhouette Shop and matching printables for each envelope in my personal Online Shop.

For those of you know do not know what an “Open When” Gift is, it is simply a set of envelopes that prompt you to open them when an event or emotion is about to take place. The ones I have seen usually come in a set of 10, but you can put as many or as little envelopes into the gift as you would like. There is generally an OPEN WHEN: NOW Envelope always with the set. In it, you explain what the gift is (I have a printable for this available if you choose to go that route). In each envelope, you place photos, memorabilia, games, candy or whatever you think would be meaningful to that person. Generally, you also include a letter to that person as well.

For example, I may choose to do a 6 envelope gift and it includes Open When You are Happy, Sad, Angry, Bored, and Now. I would place personal letter in each one of those envelopes. Then for the Bored Envelope, I would add a piece of candy, a printout/cutout of a Sudoku puzzle, a cutout from a funny joke or cartoon, and a fun photo of me and the giftee. If I were giving it to someone who likes to sew maybe I’d throw in a tiny cross stitch or for someone who likes to craft, all the pieces cut out to make a card that they could glue together. The point is to fill the envelope with things that are memorable, personal, and thoughtful. There are more ideas in each of the printable descriptions in the shop.

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All of the envelopes in my series are sized as A2. The boxes also fit this size envelope. I used a standard size so that if you choose to buy envelopes from a general office supply store, you can still cut the boxes and/or print the printables for your project.

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INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUTTING TOGETHER THE SVG OPEN WHEN ENVELOPES

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1.Glue down the front shapes, flaps, and lettering to the envelope (See photo above). If you are gluing individual letters (which takes some time but turns out beautiful), I recommend using a glue stick and a pin. Place the letter on the glue stick, then use the pin to pick it up and place on the envelope. I like starting with the middle letter first so I can center the wording (See photo below). It’s okay if it’s not perfectly centered…remember it’s SUPPOSE to look handmade! I have also included in each svg file a front that includes cut out letters if you choose not to cut out the individual letters and place them.

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2. Fold up the envelope (see photo below). Glue the side flaps to the bottom of the envelope.

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INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUTTING TOGETHER THE OPEN WHEN BOXES

There are two sizes for the Open When Boxes. The first is a box that is 1 1/2 inches deep and fits 5 fat envelopes (extremely full envelopes) or up to 10 relatively thin envelopes. The second box is 2 1/2 inches deep and fits 10 to 20 envelopes.

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1. For the 5 envelope box, first glue all the accent flaps to the box.

2. Then glue the top of the box (A in the diagram) to the main body of the box (B in the diagram).

3. Fold and glue together the remainder of the box.

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1. For the 10 envelope box, first glue all the accent flaps to the box.

2. Then glue the top of the box (A in the diagram) to the main body of the box (B in the diagram).

3. Fold and glue together the remainder of the box.

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I hope you get a chance to make this project for a loved one! It’s the perfect personalized gift for Christmas, birthday, or anniversary. I know I’ll choosing an assortment of these envelopes to make for my husband’s Christmas present this year. When I have photos of it fully finished, I’ll be sure to post it on my blog.

OPEN WHEN LINKS IN THE SILHOUETTE SHOP (SVG FILES)
5 Envelope Box
10 Envelope Box
It’s Christmas
It’s Our Anniversary
Just for Fun
Now!
You Are Angry
You Are Bored
You Are Feeling Worried
You Are Happy
You Are Sad
You Can’t Fall Asleep
You Need a Good Laugh
You Want Me
You Want to Reminisce
It’s Thanksgiving
It’s Valentine’s Day
It’s Your Birthday!
You Are Having A Bad Day
You are on a Plane
You Graduate
You Need a Pep Talk
5 Envelope Box Butterfly Flap
5 Envelope Box Scallop Flap
10 Envelope Box Quote Flap
10 Envelope Box Floral Flap

OPEN WHEN LINKS IN THE CARINA GARDNER SHOP (PRINTABLES
(To find all the Open When svg files and printables in the Carina Gardner Online Shop, go here: http://www.carinagardnershop.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=56&Itemid=2)

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Monthly Labels
It’s Our Anniversary
Now!
You Are Bored
You Can’t Fall Asleep
You Want to Reminisce
You Are Happy

(More coming soon)
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