3 Ways to Make a Fun Fold with Patterned Paper

Learn how to turn your patterned papers into a fun fold card! You can make two fun fold cards from one 12 x 12 inch piece of patterned paper! It’s such a great way to show off both sides of your patterned papers. And I have 3 different ways you can use this fun fold template in your card making.

The cards feature a variety of products from the Perennial Lavender suite from Stampin’ Up! However, keep in mind you can use any supplies you have on hand with these fun fold card designs.

Patterned Paper Template

First let’s talk about the template for cutting and scoring your patterned paper. You can choose any double-sided patterned paper which means you can make this card for any occasion. This template does require the use of a 12 x 12 inch piece of patterned paper. However, you are able to make two fun fold cards from one 12 x 12 inch piece of paper. Yay!

Start by cutting a piece of patterned paper at 5-1/4 x 11-3/4 inches. If you have directional paper, make sure that your pattern is the long way across the 11-3/4 inch side. Next, score the paper at 1-3/4, 4-3/4, and 7-3/4 inches. Accordion fold the paper on all the score lines. Adhere the patterned paper to a 4-1/4 x 5-1/2 inch piece of cardstock and then decorate as desired! It’s so simple and creates a beautiful cascade of pretty patterns when the accordion section is opened. There are 4 different panels or sections to this card design.

Alternative Fun Fold Designs

Now that you know how to create the accordion style fun fold design. Let’s play around with two variations of this fun fold. You can use the exact same cutting and scoring measurements as described above to create two completely different style fun fold cards!

The first alternative design is a Z fold style card. Simply create the accordion folds as described earlier. Take the 1-3/4 inch flap and adhere it down to the patterned paper section which is directly underneath it. So instead of having a 1-3/4 inch flap for the front of the card, you will have a 3-inch flap for the front of the card. Basically, you will have 3 different panels or sections for this card design, a (1) Front section, (2) Middle section and (3) Inside section.

The third way to use this fun fold design in your card making is simply to create one-fold for the card front. Create the accordion style fun fold card using the exact same measurements as the first card. This time you will adhere the first 3 sections of the accordion folds together. Adhere the 1-3/4 inch section down to the 3 inch section. Then adhere the two 3 x 5-1/4 inch sections together to create a solid card front.

It’s really a lot of fun to play around with the patterned paper template to create a completely different look for each of these fun fold cards! And the best part is that you do not have to change the measurements of the template! Simply glue down different parts of the accordion fold to create a whole new look!

Tutorial & Supplies

Now you have 3 different ways you can use this fun fold design in your card making. For a complete list of supplies and the step-by-step instructions, feel free to download the printable tutorial.

I hope you enjoyed these card ideas and are inspired to play around with this design. Be sure to watch the video to see the creation of this fun fold in action. Have a fun and creative day my friends! ~ Lynn