Carousel Pop Up Mini Album Tutorial

        Hi friends sharing a very special project which I made as my first DT project for the  Israel based company " You Artists " You Artists have super cute pattern papers and since I loooove cute whimsical  designs , I didn't have to think twice when Noa Perez from You Artists asked me if I would like to be on their design team. And I am so happy to be able to work with such adorable papers!!

I used the  paper collection " Zoo" from You Artists to make a 3 D Carousel Pop Up Album. Here is how the  album looks when it is closed 

I made a belly band with glitter foam  and cardstock and added design motifs from the  paper stack to bring it alive!

Added satin and faux leather tassels and a cute binoculars charm to a bronze ring on the  closure . Decorate the  band on all sides with matching papers.

In modern zoos most of the  animals are not in cages but in enclosures and I tried to replicate that feel in my diorama style album. The first section is dedicated to the  majestic tiger!

 Each pop up diorama page has 3 layers which you can utilize to create a 3 dimensional effect and you can add photos right at the  back or on the  layers in front.

I didn't use any embellishments apart from motifs from the  paper collection and its matching die cuts on each of the  pages as it is best to have everything nice and flat for this type of pop up album. Isn't that sloth bear simply adorable !!!

I staggered the  animals in different layers to add to the  3 D effect ! 

The section below has adorable zebras and a cute giraffe

 I placed the  zebras in such a way that you can see them clearly when you change your viewing angle!

Carousel Pop Up Mini Album Tutorial 

The basic framework is pretty simple to make and is an adaptation of the  popular "star album" you must have seen in the  paper-crafting world. But this design uses less paper and so is easier to complete . I just added the  pop up elements to make it more fun! You can keep it simple by just adding photos or go all out like I did here and create mini pop up diorama scenes for each section.

Materials

Pattern Paper/Card stock - You can make the  basic framework using cardstock or if you have good quality, thick ,double sided paper this project is just perfect for it as  in this design you can see and use both sides of your paper. The You Artists papers I used in this project are 250 g thick and double sided so perfect to use as the  base.

You need 6 sheets cut down to 9 x 8 inches

This way you can use photos upto 4 inches wide  on each half. Tweak the  measurements to fit your needs.

Step 1

Step 1 : Score at 4 inches on the  8 inch side 

Step 2

Step 2 : Fold in half along the  score line

Step 3

Step 3 : Fold back the  upper free corners of your folded page to meet the  center fold as shown above in Step 3

Step 4

Step 4 :Chop off the corner triangles along the  fold lines [ as shown by black arrow]

Step 5

Step 5 : You will have a  "house" shape when you  cut off the  corner triangles from both the  sides.

PS: The cut lines should fall along the  black arrows in the  photo...I had initially added a flap to my design thinking I will add magnets there but later abandoned that idea and chopped off that flap...so don"t get confused seeing that extra bit.

Cardstock to create the  Pop Up frames : 

You need 

six 8 x 5 inch and 

six 7½ x 5 inch cardstock pieces 

Tip : Don't use very thick cardstock as it can become too bulky. 

Choose the  colours according to each section

Step 6

Step 6 :Score the  8 x 5 inch pieces at 1/2 inch from either side and down in the  middle along the  long 8 inch side

Step 7

 Step 7 :Score the 7½ x 5 inch cardstock pieces at 1/2 inch from either side and down in the  middle along the  long 7½ inch side

To create the  windows

To create the  windows in your pop up frames you can simple fold the  card pieces and cut out rectangles to create the  apertures or use dies in your collection to create the  windows

Tip : Take care not to make your frame borders too narrow as then you wont have room to add decorative and pp up elements.

Step 8

Step 8 : I used a simple rectangle die to cut out the  windows

Tip : Mark the  center of your die and align this to the  central scoreline on your cardstock to get perfectly centered windows

Step 9

Step 9 : Cut out windows in all the  frames

Step 10

Step 10 : Valley fold along the  central scorelines and mountain fold along the  scorelines at the  ends as shown above

Step 11

 Step 11 : Apply glue to the  1/2 inch ends[which are gluing tabs] of the  8  x 5 inch frame as shown

Step 12

  Step 12 : Stick one 1/2 inch gluing tab to the  edge of your base as shown

Step 13

 Step 13 : Fold over your frame with the  other gluing tab folded and facing upwards as shown

Step 14

Step 14 : Now fold over your base and the  gluing tab of your frame will stick in place.

Do the  same thing for the  smaller size  7½ x 5 inch frames...the  only difference is that these will stick over your 8 x 5 inch frames

Step 15

Step 15 : Fold a 5 x 1 inch strip of card stock length wise to create connecting tabs to join each of your pop up diorama sections

Step 16

 Step 16 : These will go on the  back side of your diorama as shown above. Apply on one diorama and align and stick the  next one [ red arrows]

Tip : A combination of adhesive tape and liquid glue is best for this step

You can see how the  pop up frames help to create dimension and depth in this seal diorama.

 This one below is my favorite . 

 You have the adorable sloth bear with the  serious gorilla in the  backdrop!

 I fuzzy cut leaves from the  paper in the  background and added them to the  frames

 The sign and the  fence are some of my favorites from the  Zoo theme!

I kept the  penguin diorama fairly simple using black and white frames to set a subdued tone to the  busy backdrop!

And here is the  back side of the  diorama...where you can see the  double sided nature of the  papers and which you can use to add more photos and journalling

The carousel is held in place using hidden magnets  

Here is the  video showing all the  features.

I hope you liked this idea and project.

Supplies : Papers : Zoo from You Artists , Die cut elements Zoo