Today's publication will come in handy for those people who like the space around them to be not only beautiful, but also organized. The topic of the article is "How to cover a box with a cloth?" We will look at several options for creating comfortable and attractive drawers that can be used in almost any interior. Below, readers are offered several detailed master classes with photographs, thanks to which they will be able to translate their ideas into practice.
Boxes in the interior - functional decor
DIY-covered boxes have recently become very popular with designers. Despite the fact that these interior items are sold ready-made and quite suitable for use, it is still better to try and make them yourself. This has several advantages:
- independent choice of the shape and size of the box;
- the possibility of perfect selection of fabric colors;
- exclusive box decor.
In addition, having created such beauty on her own, the needlewoman can rightfully be proud of her talents and skills.
Place in the interior
There are several ways to use textile-lined boxes. With their help, you can organize space in pantries, cabinets on the balcony. In this case, it is better to make all the boxes in the same style, covering them with the same fabric. The decor on them will be superfluous, but the signs for the inscriptions will not interfere.
"Indoor" boxes can be made whatever you like. If they will be placed in the nursery, accordingly, they will be decorated with bright fabric and beautiful applications. Don't waste your time on trifles - toys and books need large boxes that can be placed directly on the floor. The smaller drawers look great on open shelving. In general-purpose rooms, drawers are also best placed on racks, selecting their size so that they do not protrude beyond the shelves. Boxes, which will only be used as decoration, can be stacked one on top of the other, making them a kind of turrets. In this case, it is not necessary to achieve perfect symmetry of the boxes. They may differ in height and even upholstery.
A homemade box is a very handy thing. Firstly, it can be so beautifully finished that it turns into a real box. Second, it can hold anything from sewing supplies to cosmetics. Thirdly, you can use it as a gift box. How you will design it is a separate topic, and in this article I would like to show, first of all, how to glue it with fabric. We will tell you what kind of glue is needed, what kind of fabric.
Detailed master class: how to glue a box with a cloth
- We take a suitable box and, if it is poorly glued, separate the edges and glue them again.
- Take whatman paper - so that you do not have to glue small sheets together, and you could immediately cut one long strip that will cover two sides (not only outside, but also inside), the bottom.
- The second strip will also pass through the bottom, but through the other sides.
- Measure the box on a paper strip, where will be what parts of it.
- Bend the paper along these lines.
- With PVA glue, coat only the bottom well.
- And when you have already glued it, only then smear the sides.
- It can be seen that the sidewalls are bent a little further than the height of the sides - this must be taken into account in advance. Plus, from the inside, the box is a millimeter smaller on each side than the outside, cut it neatly.
- Also, only bending inward clearly along the height of the sides, we glue the second strip across the box.
- We start processing the lid. Expand it to trim off excess.
- Having measured the resulting width and length of the sides with a ruler, we cut out a long strip to fit the size, which will all be equal to the total length of the sides.
- And glue the strip around the perimeter of the lid.
- Prepare your fabric: wash it or iron it with a steamer. Make a blank equal to the length and width of the box on all sides, except for the bottom, taking into account the inner sides, add a seam allowance.
- When wrapping the box with cloth, pin up the corners. The fabric should be placed with the right side facing the box. The fabric should not stretch.
- Be sure to remove the fabric and draw lines along the pins with a pencil or tailor's chalk.
- On a typewriter, sew 0.5 cm from the pins (meaning that you need to step back to reduce the size so that the fabric tightly fits the box).
- Remember to cut off the excess fabric.
- It is better to take a glue that will not show through a thin fabric. In principle, PVA will also work, but stains may remain. Coat the inner and outer beads.
- Turn the fabric right side out and wrap it around the box.
- The seam should be at the corner to be less visible. ...
- Apply double-sided tape around the perimeter of the bottom to glue the edges of the fabric to it.
- If the edges remain not glued, then you can take PVA here.
- To make the bottom soft, which is very convenient for a gift if it is fragile, or for sewing accessories - the bottom can simultaneously serve as a needle bed, you need to cut out a piece of thick cardboard to the size of the bottom, the same size synthetic winterizer, and the fabric is slightly wider on all sides.
- When all layers are connected and dry, glue the side that was left without fabric to the bottom of the box
- Process the bottom of the box from the outside - attach double-sided tape to the corners.
- Do this with all corners and glue the edges.
- When everything is ready, cut another sheet to the size of the bottom, literally 2 mm shorter on each side. Coat the bottom and glue the sheet.
- Similar to the soft bottom, we make a soft lid with a padding polyester
- Draw the contours of the cover along the fabric, taking into account the sides.
- Double-sided tape should already be stuck on the perimeter of the lid by the time you place it on the glue-coated cloth.
- We smear with glue on all sides and attach the fabric.
- Cut off the excess fabric to make it look neat and the lid can then be closed easily.
- Cut the adhesive double-sided non-woven fabric to the size of this part.
- Wrap, press and iron until both sides adhere to each other.
- Attach a thin strip of double-sided tape directly around the edge.
- At the same time, coat the side with glue.
- The sides should look neat.
- The main thing is that nothing bends from the inside.
- And also glue the cardboard for the fortress.
- Decorate the lid as you wish. If this is a gift option, you can simply wrap it with tape or attach a bow.
You can make different versions of boxes, for example, the version with a hinged lid, but it is much more complicated.
There are several ways to wrap the box with a cloth step by step, including if you have a fairly dense box right away, you can do without thickening it with cardboard and whatman paper, immediately pasting all sides with a cloth, without even sewing the cover separately:
Many good lessons on this topic can be found in the MK video from experienced craftsmen:
Surely, many have faced the problem of upholstering the inside of the box with fabric. It turns out either not neatly or not at all. But a high-quality pasted over box looks prettier, nobler, and richer.
Thanks to Natalya Rodina, I learned all the secrets of upholstery that I share with you :)
I had a ready-made box, the interior of which I strongly disliked. Gaps are visible between the fabric and the walls, the fabric does not fit snugly.
I decided to remove everything that was there and make the interior upholstery as it should be. On the way, another useful master class was born, this one :)
Secret # 1: If you decide to paste over your work with cloth, then do not process the bottoms and walls in any way. The fabric will stick to wood, MDF and cardboard much more reliably than to varnish or paint. You will be wasting your time, and the result will only get worse!
For upholstery in the way I describe, only fairly thick fabrics are suitable: velvet, artificial velvet, minishtoff (artificial mohair), artificial suede.
Secret # 2: If you want to use silk, chintz or other thin fabric, you will need to make cardboard blanks, cover them with fabric, securing it on the back side and glue the blanks into the box.
Our method needs some thickness. I show it so that it is clear what kind of fabric I am talking about :)
Put a sheet of plain paper on the box and, in a childish way, just scratching with a pencil, show the inner contour.
Place the resulting template in the box. If necessary, trim the template with scissors, precisely fitting along the walls. The gap between the template and the wall should be 1-2 mm.
To make it clear if the edges are cut enough, just turn the box over. The template should fall out. But do not overdo it, there will be nothing to hide wide gaps.
Preparing paper templates for the bottom sides and lid sides.
Secret # 3: It is better to make the width / height of the sidewalls a little less than the sidewalls themselves, because otherwise, you will have to cut the already glued fabric, and it is almost impossible to do it neatly!
We transfer the templates to the fabric.
Cut, insert, adjust, if required. Prepare a flat brush and any Dense glue for decoupage. Liquid glue or PVA will soak the fabric and create tough, ugly stains.
Apply glue in a thin layer to the entire surface to be pasted.
I specially photographed a jar of glue so that you can see its consistency.
We put in a fabric blank and press it carefully over the entire surface with a soft spatula, focusing on the edges. The fabric adheres perfectly.
We put the fabric on the sides and before the main smoothing, remove the excess glue on top with a damp cloth.
Secret # 4: The seam of the inner side is best done on the front of the box, behind the lock. Because when opening the box, the gaze first of all falls on the back wall, which therefore should be perfect, without unnecessary seams.
We flatten and press the sides.
We go through the corner grooves with a flat screwdriver so that the joint is also perfect.
We get a beautifully and neatly pasted thing :)
If the box is rectangular, then cut out four parts of the sidewalls, glue each one separately, joining in the corners.
I share my experience of wrapping (or sheathing) a cardboard box with fabric. I must say right away that I do not pretend to make any discoveries, and perhaps many people do this, although I looked at several MKs on the Internet, and they all did not suit me with something. For all its simplicity - we just need to make 4 seams in the corners - this method, in my opinion, gives a fairly accurate result.
The box most often consists of a lid and a bottom. Mine has 3 details, but this does not change the essence.
Close-fitting INTERNAL lid sides
1. Cut out a rectangle from paper, exactly equal to the bottom of the box. Measure exactly the bottom, because the top side will be larger due to the thickness of the cardboard. In my case, for example, the cardboard is very thick. You can do without a paper blank, but it was more convenient for me.
Now we are making a pattern.
It is based on a rectangle, the size of which is easier to understand by looking at the photo.
In the center is a white paper bottom shape.
DC is the height of the side of the box, I marked its border with yellow strokes.
AD - the size of the lapel on the other side.
For clarity, the same marks on the box:
2. Form corners. Basically, we only need to make 4 identical stitches.
Fold the corner, aligning marks A and B, and chop it off.
3. We outline the line of the line, it is shown with a yellow dotted line.
Pay attention - from point D I moved a couple of millimeters towards the corner. This distance depends on the thickness of the cardboard, because when bending over the side, the size of our workpiece should increase, otherwise we will not be able to accurately distribute the fabric on the box lid.
4. We make a line on a typewriter at all corners, apply a paper blank of the bottom - all corners must match. Then we try on. My box is small, so it was convenient for me to "put" the fabric on my thumbs and forefingers and insert the blank inside the box, so it's easier to feel the coincidence or mismatch of the sizes. With sufficient tension, the fabric should fit snugly inside, and the seams should be exactly aligned with the corners of the box. If you feel that it is wide or narrow somewhere, then re-line, do not be lazy! It depends on how the box will look in the end.
This is what the seam looks like:
5. If everything suits you, gently iron the seams on one side, smoothing the allowance symmetrically to the center at opposite corners (my allowances look at each other on the narrow side of the box).
In principle, you can leave everything as it is, i.e. there will be a triangle inside, but I did not like how it appears on the outside, so I cut off the excess, leaving about 1 cm.And I advise the first layer, which will ultimately adjoin directly to the box, to make a little smaller (yellow dots), and the second layer leave a little more (green dots), so that in the end our seam allowance is smoother and without a sharp outline.
I would not recommend smoothing these allowances on 2 sides, because then you will have to cut the fabric at the corner, and this is very unreliable.
6. Trying on again:
7. We proceed to gluing. You can probably use textile glue, but I find it easier to use double-sided tape. I glued the strips to the bottom, to the sides inside and outside (just don't peel off all the protective strips from the tape at once!).
First, glue the bottom. It was convenient for me to do this: we put the adjacent corners of the workpiece on the thumbs, and with all the rest we help to get exactly to the corners of the box, and also hold the seam allowances so that they do not turn up. You can use a ruler or something else even and solid to level and form right angles.
Then we peel off the following protective strips from the tape and glue the sides. At my box, I placed the strips not at the very edge, but below, right under the folds of the top layer of paper, which is wrapped around the box, at the same time softening this "step".
8. This is how the inside glued side of the lid looks like:
If, when gluing the fabric, bubbles are obtained, it is better not to be lazy and re-glue it, since it is not difficult to do this - this is what scotch tape is convenient for. Personally, in the end, I don't have a single bubble! (happy and proud smiley).
I also want to draw attention to the seam allowances. It is necessary to make sure that they do not twist, it was convenient for me to correct them with a large doll needle.
9. We pass to the outer boards.
It is very important to stretch the fabric well, while making sure that it does not come off the inside. It was convenient for me to hold the line of the side with a ruler inside, and outside with my left hand, pull the fabric first to the side and then down, like this:
The inside of the box is ready.
Close-fitting EXTERNAL lid sides
In principle, we do everything the same, only in step 3 from point D we retreat in the other direction, i.e. the yellow dotted line will be mirrored about the vertical axis.
On my box, the top of the lid is covered with embroidered canvas. Due to the fact that this fabric is extremely loose, I did not cut the corners inside, moreover, they turned out to be very small, and I just fixed them with double-sided tape.
Note : To prevent the picture on the box from showing through the fabric, you can either paint over it with white paint, or glue a white sheet of paper onto the same double-sided tape.
Embroidery advice:
I would not recommend sticking the canvas on the box around the entire perimeter, this is very noticeable: the adhesive tape will shine through with shiny stripes through the threads, moreover, the canvas stretches, and the places of fixation will immediately indicate themselves. Therefore, I stuck pieces of double-sided tape from the inside out in those places where the solid embroidery is going on: on the wings, body and in the corners of the ornament, and then I glued it all to the lid.
Better yet, stick a voluminous non-woven fabric, a piece of felt or fleece on the top of the lid to add volume and softness, and put a canvas on top. In my case, this did not work out - I left too little canvas around the perimeter of the embroidery, because at first I wanted to make it into a pinkyp and attach it to the top of the lid.
Immediately I note that I had a sad experience of pasting embroidery on a volumetric non-woven fabric: no matter how hard I tried, the canvas was still shrinking when gluing, and I had to brutally tear apart these layers in the finished product, since I succeeded!
Each of us loves a beautifully designed interior. This commitment becomes especially demanded in cases where interior solutions affect a good mood and joy for our loved ones.
With proper ingenuity, you can create any design options with your own hands.
This joy can be caused, among other things, by the gifts that we so love to present to each other. But how to make the gift not just a routine, but something unique and memorable for a long time?
There are several different solutions for this, and today we will talk about one of them: decorating the box with wallpaper, paper, fabric and other similar materials. Wallpapering the box or covering it with fabric is not as difficult as it might seem at first. Let's look at a short master class, which contains step-by-step instructions on how to do everything yourself, decorating a cardboard shoe box both inside and out.
If you do not have experience of such work, you should not despair and worry. The scheme of work is quite simple, since it allows you to decorate yourself by completing the design according to the pattern. As for the choice of a gift box, it can be either with a lid or without: the decoration does not depend on what shape it has. It can be square, rectangular or even round.
Working with paper and wallpaper
Before learning about the process of decorating a box with wallpaper, it is necessary to say a few words about what materials and tools will be needed and may need to be done when performing work.
Box selection
It would seem that any box for storing toys, shoe boxes and so on can be suitable for decoration or decoupage. However, this is not entirely true, since an important criterion is not only the appropriate size, but also the sufficient strength of the material. It is also important to pay attention to how durable the cover is.
Remember! Packaging from small household appliances and various devices may also be quite suitable. As a rule, the packaging is made of corrugated cardboard.
Corrugated cardboard (corrugated packaging) is a durable packaging that is, in fact, free. The fact is that after purchasing the product, you will no longer need it, except for those cases when it can be used for long-term storage or transportation of things, dishes and so on. An example of such material is packaging from:
- Electric kettle.
- Thermos.
- Shoes - sneakers, shoes, boots.
By the way, it will be desirable to pay attention to the fact that, despite the rather strong material, the edges of the box itself may diverge somewhat. It is for this reason that it is advisable to glue them additionally. This will help to avoid potential deformation problems in the future.
What tools should be used
All in all, you don't need a lot of tools. All of them are the most common ones, widely used in everyday life. As a rule, we are talking about ordinary scissors, as well as a stationery knife. At the same time, for more convenience, you can use some additional devices, such as a ruler, a special clamp that will be used for fixing, and a set of brushes.
How to choose materials
To wrap the box, you can use small scraps of leftover wallpaper. In addition, the decor can be made with the following materials:
- Newspapers (this will look very stylish, including in some modern interior styles).
- Foil (including self-adhesive) made of a variety of materials.
- Napkins, preferably thick.
- Paper, especially colored or specially designed for gift decoration.
According to its composition, the wallpaper that will be used for decoration can be very different: vinyl, paper, non-woven and even fabric (textile). How to decorate a shoebox using fabric will be described below.
The various finishes offer a wealth of possibilities to customize any design you like. You can decorate in one style or another, using different options for patterns, colors and shades: red, brown, blue, yellow, gray, green, turquoise, beige and many other "representatives" of the color scheme. When combined with original patterns and ornaments, they can give a really great result. No one will believe that you did it all yourself.
Advice! You can use a protective transparent varnish for the final finishing of your decorative “box”. Its role is to create a special layer that will clean the decorated surface in case of possible ingress of water and other liquids.
In addition to materials, you need to take care of the correct choice of glue. It is not so difficult to pick it up: you can use the same adhesives that are used when gluing ordinary wallpaper of one kind or another, be it paper, vinyl or non-woven canvases. When working with paper coatings, the time-tested PVA glue, which can be bought at almost any hardware store, is quite suitable. The favorable price and excellent characteristics speak in its favor, since it adheres well to paper, cardboard and many other materials.
The main stages of work
In the practice of home design and decor, there are several ways at once how you can paste over a box with wallpaper. Some of them are quite complex. Therefore, as an instruction for beginners, it is advisable to dwell on the simplest method. So, here is the sequence of necessary actions:
- First of all, we need to take the proper amount of material. Please note that a few extra centimeters will not hurt, so you need to take a certain margin (overflow). We straighten the wallpaper by leveling it on a table or other similar surface.
- Then, using a pencil, we mark out a pattern for decorating a shoe box or other product, depending on what exactly you are using.
- The next step: you need to carefully wrap the box (both its bottom and side parts) with paper, wrap it inward and press it tightly. Thus, we prepare the wallpaper for gluing. We remove them and put them aside for now.
- Using a cutting tool, we get rid of unnecessary pieces.
- Now you can proceed to pasting. We put glue on the bottom of the box (of course, from the outside), and put it on the place outlined with a pencil. Press firmly. Using the same scheme, we glue the paper to the sides, and then to the inner ones (those areas that were bent.
- But that is not all. Inside, you also need to glue everything so that the overall look is attractive not only from the outside. Contrasting paper colors are perfect for internal pasting. You can use plaid or velvet paper. By the way, some types of fabric are also suitable.
So, after the glue is completely dry, we can assume that our decorative gift box is ready. On the other hand, you can go even further and continue decorating it. We will talk about this below.
How to make decoupage
In addition to simple pasting, you can talk about such processing technology as decoupage. In order to complete it, it is necessary, first of all, to choose a drawing that would act as a plot. As for the material, a fairly popular solution is the use of two-layer paper wallpaper, which is also known as "duplex".
However, the best solution for such cases is to watch a video tutorial on decorating using this method of decorating boxes. Therefore, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with a more detailed master class:
How to sheathe a box with fabric
In addition to decorating newspapers or even tissue paper with wallpaper, there is another option for decoration. It's about using fabric. You can glue the box with a cloth using a wrap. This is a fairly simple method that allows you to create a unique design and, in its way, exclusive thing.
Note! Using this technique, you can not only sheathe the packaging itself, but also make an attractive textile cover for the gift box. Especially considering that when you work, you may have extra scraps of fabric.
Such an item can act as a separate independent gift, and also be a great place to store all kinds of small household items. These can be toys for children, home decor items, sewing supplies, and more. Especially much such gift wrapping can please a mother or daughter. Many women are very fond of such decorative elements. So, here's what you need to cover the gift box with fabric:
- The box itself. When choosing it, you can use the same principles that were described above for working with wallpaper, film or newspapers.
- The fabric you are going to cover. It is desirable that it be dense. Denim, which is known to be made from cotton, will do. But some other varieties are also acceptable. It is best to take at least two colors, but more are possible
- Special glue and tape (it is better to use double-sided).
- Sharp scissors.
- Additionally, it is necessary to say about a strong cord, the shade of which should either match or contrast with the fabric base, as well as an awl, which may also be needed.
Click the picture below for a larger view:
Well, now let's move on to a short listing of the main stages of the work. To do everything right and count on a good result, it is advisable to strictly follow these instructions:
- Make a pattern for a square or rectangular box that has relatively right angles – the easiest way. You just need to measure the size of the sides, and also leave some margin for the part that will bend to the other side. At the same time, it will not be easy to sew round or oval sheathing. By the way, you can see examples of what is the result in the photo below.
- We glue the main part. At the same time, it is advisable to choose a suitable glue that will not saturate the fabric through and through, leaving ugly streaks and stains. It is allowed to use high-quality double-sided tape, provided that it firmly glues the fabric and cardboard.
- When working, it is advisable to make sure that the fabric is firmly pressed against the cardboard, without leaving folds and "waves". If necessary, you will need to get rid of excess material.
- After the design of the outer sides is completed, we proceed to gluing the inside.
Interesting! You can make a decorative handle if needed. They are done with a cord. It is either threaded into pre-made small holes, fixed in knots, or glued, which, on the other hand, is slightly less reliable.
