Upcycled Gift Card Holder

Sometimes you think of something and you know, right away, that it. is. genius. This was one of those ideas. Last month before Thanksgiving my husband and I did Phase One of the South Beach Diet of which these low calorie cheeses are a staple. We bought a box of every variety, leaving me with 6 empty boxes when we were done. I saved them...for what? I wasn't sure.

Then in late November we had the Ahern family Christmas gift drawing and our family drew my niece and nephew ages 12 and 10 whose Christmas wishes were for iTunes gift cards. Then, it hit me! Here are the finished boxes. They turned out even cuter than I had imagined. Love this project.

- laughing cow cheese box (with cheese removed...ick) - 1 piece of double sided 12x12" patterned paper OR 2 pieces coordinating one-sided patterned papers- paper trimmer- glue stick- scissors & pencil (not pictured) OR circle cutter


1. Carefully peel off box top label and side labels. 

 You can leave the box bottom label on. It is adhered MUCH more permanently and will be too difficult to remove. 

  2. Cut 3 strips of paper using your paper trimmer.  Each strip should be this wide.  Now exactly what is that measurement? I dunno. Halfway between 1/4 and 1/2 inches.  6/16ths of an inch...maybe? 

 3. Next you make the top and bottom circles in one of three ways.A. Trace your lid and eyeball while cutting to make the circle 1/4" less all the way around. 

 B. Cut a circle using a circle cutter. The circumference is 4" across.C. Find something that is 4" across and trace that.  The bottom of my Lysol cleaning wipes was perfect... 

 Now you should have three strips and two circles. 

 4. Run glue stick well over back of narrow strip. Slowly glue it around circumference of box, covering where the label used to be.  You'll notice a small gap (the 12" paper doesn't quite reach around).  

 5. Cut one of the other strips to 2&1/2 inches long. Glue this piece over the gap, matching patterns as best as you can. (But seriously, don't stress if it's not perfect. No biggie!)  Repeat with bottom of box. 

 6. Use glue stick to adhere circle of patterned paper to the top and bottom of the box. 

 7. Embellish with cut paper, scrapbooking supplies, chipboard letters, flowers, etc.  Then put your gift card inside (nestled in tissue paper if you want). 

 Here's one I made for my 12 year old nephew.  I kept it very minimal and masculine.

 I hope you like this easy and eco-friendly way of re-using cheese boxes and dressing up gift cards this holiday season (and all year long!)