Cheery Lynn Designs Origami Tree Tutorial and Gold Foil Notecard

Origami Christmas Trees on cards and other holiday projects is quite trendy this year and so I thought it would be fun to create one of my own and show you just how quick and easy it is to make a beautiful little tree using Cheery Lynn Designs thin metal dies. (They work in all your favorite tabletop die cut machines!) 

To create the tree that you see on this card, I used Cheery Lynn's Scalloped Square Little Stacker Nesting Dies. I then "highlighted" the tree on my card front by framing it on the Scalloped Oval Little Stacker Nesting Dies. To add just a bit more Christmas cheer to the card I also embossed the ivory cardstock using the Poinsettia XL Embossing Plate.  Now I'll show you how to make your own Origami Christmas tree....

To create an Origami Christmas tree you'll need the following supplies:
Scalloped Square Little Stacker Nesting Dies (all of them in the pack except for the smallest die)
Patterned Paper (I used Tinsel & Twig by The Girls Paperie)
Brown cardstock for the tree trunk (I just used a scrap piece that I cut by hand to create the trunk)
Desired embellishments for your tree decorations.

1.  Using all but the smallest die in the Scalloped Square Little Stacker Nesting Dies pack die cut patterned paper.  I used two coordinating patterns.

2. Now since Origami is all about the folding... let's get you started.  First fold one square in half.

3.  Then unfold the paper and fold it in half again in the other direction.

4. Now unfold the paper again and refold it into a triangle. Unfold again and repeat the triangle fold in the other direction. Then unfold the paper again...



5. Push the two center folds (made when you folded it in half) toward the center to create the shape above.

6.  Face the paper toward you and fold in the left side of the front triangle toward you (kinda like making a paper airplane...sorta.).

7.  Repeat that fold with the right side of the front triangle. This creates one layer of your Christmas tree.

8. Repeat all the steps with each one of your die cut scalloped squares.

9. Assemble the tree layers by putting glue at the top of the triangle, on both the front and the back.  Insert the larger layer into the center fold of next smaller layer.

10.  Continue gluing each layer into the next until you get to the final layer (do not put glue on the top layer of your tree)

11. The assembled layers should then look something like the photograph above. 

12. You can then add the tree to your project, adhere embellishments and your hand cut "tree trunk".

(Tip: When using thick cardstock (like I did here), you may wish to glue your layers down to prevent the tree from "popping" up too much.)

That's all there is to it and so easy with Cheery Lynn Designs dies too!  In fact, it was so easy and fun, that I decided to create one more quick card with Gold Foil, a product I'd not yet ever tried before.  You can purchase it from the Cheery Lynn Designs store right here. 

To create this clean and simple card, all you need is a 5 1/2 x 4 1/4 cardbase. With the cardbase folded in half, position the second to largest die in the Card-Makers Stackers Nesting Dies (I used the plain rectangle) between the fold of your cardbase, cut side up. Then run it through your favorite die cut machine (mine is the Cuttlebug). If you look closely at the photograph above you'll see that the rectangle die also embossed a nice frame with the cut.

Now cut a piece of foil large enough to fit behind the opening you just created in the card front and run it through your die cut machine using one the the XL Embossing Plates available at the Cheery Lynn Designs store. I used the Foliage embossing plate that you can purchase right here. Adhere the foil to the inside of the card front. (Tip: cut a piece of cardstock 5 1/4 x 4 to cover the back of the foil in side your card for a more professional finish to your card).

To see more beautiful projects and fun ways to use Cheery Lynn Designs dies in your favorite tabletop die cut machines visit the Cheery Lynn Designs Blog. To shop in our store, go here.