Popup Christmas tree

[Craigg64]

Hi

Here is a file I have been working on for a Popup Christmas Tree.

Again I have to acknowledge Carol from Extreme Cards. A great pop up designer and fantastic web site. Check out here tutorial for her tree http://extremecards.blogspot.com/2008/1 ... orial.html

I Have used her concept to mount the tree to the card. Refer to her instructions for attaching the tree to the card. My design is similar to the ones she refers to on here site, Some Assemble Required.

My instructions for assembling the tree will be short. I am not sure how to explain this. Except make sure you are not in a rush and have patience
It is very fiddly

Joint a green piece to a yellow then green and yellow. You should end up with a box construction. sort of . One thing though you will notice that one yellow and green have a pointed base. Make sure the long edges are on the same corner. These are the mounts for the tree.

Next slide the red and dark green pieces down through the center of box construction.

The final blue and gold pieces lock it all together. The Golds slide into the yellows and the blue slides into the greens. The ends of the blue and golds interlock.

The tree fits nice in a 6"x6" card

Those instructions are terrible
I have now added some assembly instructions in the attached zip file in this post. I have included pictures of each of the steps to make it clear where every piece fits.
This will stop my instructions sounding like a bad song " the red one is connected to the blue one, the blue one is connected to the yellow one and so on and so on. "

Hope you all enjoy the files

Cheers

Craig

[ceep]

It's interesting to see how the die cut from Sizzix (designed by Karen Burniston) differs in the slot design of the largest tree. (One tree has a CLOSED slot almost the full length of the tree, the other just two tiny slots). On the one hand, I think it would be prone to tearing out. On the other hand, if you turned the completed tree upside down it wouldn't slide apart! When I made these trees for Christmas last year I ended up taping my two large pieces together at the slot to keep them secure. I have no confidence that my recipients wouldn't drop or shake the card. Just to see what would happen. I can tell you what would happen, the thing would fall to pieces.

By the way, the woman behind Some Assembly Required is the author of Paper in Three Dimensions, Diane V. Maurer-Mathison.


Carol

[talanhart]

This looks great.

[jrichards]

I cut these out by hand one year and made over 25 cards with them. At the time I was a stay at home mom. It just amazes me that someone, NOT ME, can cut these out on a machine. My cutting finger still aches when I think about it.

[southernbellescrap]

How cool!!!!

[ceep]

25 by hand? That's insane. I cut about a hundred last year by machine and that was...not horrible. However, I deliberately made a pattern with only two "layers" (that would be six tree pieces: two big, four small). The three layer tree has TEN pieces. I couldn't see myself assembling those 1000 pieces ( hey, 600 was much better lol).

Carol

[Craigg64]

HI Carol.
That is why I liked this design it relys on the outer branches to lock it all in. There is no way those center branches are going to fall out

I cut these out by hand one year and made over 25 cards with them. At the time I was a stay at home mom. It just amazes me that someone, NOT ME, can cut these out on a machine. My cutting finger still aches when I think about it.

That is amazing. If there was a medal for that you would have won. My fingers are hurting just thinking of that. But then again who has not done some silly things for some special events. I still have nightmares about the 100 angels we made for my sisterinlaws wedding. Made from gold safety pins and pearl beads. Then there was the pine cones, foam egg covered in folded christmas ribbons and secured with pins. It sends shivers done my spin just thinging about them

Back onto the tree. I was thinking last night that this would also make a good table center piece. Just increase the size of the design and cut the pieces out of some thiker cardstock or chipboard.

[ceep]

I'm not too good at that whole spacial relations things--you know those IQ test questions where you have to look at a flattened box and figure out what it would look like put together? Forget it, I have to make it and look at it. Interesting hobby I have.. considering.

To get to the point...I'm looking at that tree and there is nothing to keep the whole darn thing from sliding out the top of the one big piece (the one with the slot at the top), is there? The four smallest pieces lock together, and maybe the middle pieces too,but nothing really locks them to the big piece. I think.

Oh, wait, I think I see it. NEVER mind.

[Craigg64]

Hi Carol
The center ones don't fall out. They are all locked in place.
The The big green one is held in place with the Big red one. The big red one is held in place with one of the little gold ones. (That doesn't make sense )

I need to do some pictures like Heathers 3d present.

[ceep]

Sing with me! The red one's connected to the...GREEN one. The green one's connected to the...GOLD one....

Now heeeear the world of the Lord!