The right technique to make a 3D tunnel book with panels that tell the story - each panel is a layer in the final book
Today’s post is about different ways to make tunnel books. They are similar to star/carousel books in that they are based on accordions. In the case of tunnel books, two accordions hold the p…
The right technique to make a 3D tunnel book with panels that tell the story - each panel is a layer in the final book
The right technique to make a 3D tunnel book with panels that tell the story - each panel is a layer in the final book
Pen & watercolour paints; green book
I feel very lucky living near to Manchester as there is a superb exhibition on at Manchester City Art Gallery and it’s all free ! It’s an amazing collection of pieces from the work of 3…
Ok, just let me start off with a disclaimer. The swap for this month's (July) COF was a tunnel book. I will state up front that I realize ...
This is for you Wendy Y-H. Hope you take a peek! For this seasons 4E house project I’ve decided to create a tunnel book. Each artist has to respond to the previous artist’s page, there …
#Crafty
DIY Paper-Cut Tunnel Book: I like challenges. AND I like to make things, especially if they are from what would probably be thrown out. So that gave me this idea. Why not make a 3-dimensional book/sculpture?! It doesn't use much and can be a sort of therapy.
About a month ago I posted some pictures of tunnel books that two Grade 6 classes made. I promised the tutorial and here it is. The tunnel book starts off as a regular accordion book and then halfway it flips up exposing a tunnel to the back page. It's a great project to incorporate writing and the visual arts. The tunnel section can represent a transition in the story, literal or figurative. With the Grade 6'rs it was part of their novel study. The had to choose a portion of the book they had read and then incorporate this into a tunnel book. MATERIALS REQUIRED: - 1 piece of 11x17 white paper for practice and planning - rectangular piece of wc or good weight paper, by good weight you want it thicker than printer paper but not 300lb wc, a 90lb would work well here, I use roughly a 12.5 x 19.5 which is a 1/4 sheet of the 90-110lb wc we have on hand - ruler - pencil and eraser - scissors - watercolors, tempera disk, acrylics, colored pencil, etc. any medium to add color - fine sharpie - cardboard - tacky glue PROCEDURE: Now bear with me here. It really is easy once you get the hang of it. I just need to break it down into step by step. Hand out the 11x17 printer paper. This will be our practice book. We will also use this as a plan for our good copy. Fold in half both vertically and horizontally. I added black lines to show the folds. You do not need to add these. Lay out flat. Now fold each side into the middle. Unfold and you will have 8 sections. Now this style of accordion book is called a pants book. I use this term with the kids as it's an easy way for them to remember. Starting on one side cut along the horizontal fold line up to the last 2 sections. When you hold it up it looks like a pair of pants. With young kids you might want to make a mark at the stopping point to remind them. Place your pair or pants in front of you so that the seat is on the right (feet would come out on the left if this was a real pair of pants). Now in book making there are 2 main folds, a mountain and a valley. Mountains poke up and valleys go down. Click and the photo for a larger image. I have them marked. You want both pant legs starting on the left to have a valley fold, then a mountain, and then another valley. Fold up the top leg accordion style keeping the folds as outlined previously. You can now take these top pages and flip them down. In the tunnel book these pages will form the tunnel which sits up. Incidentally if you wanted to just make an accordion book with no tunnel. Just flip these pages the other way to the back. This would give you a nice accordion with single pages and one double in the middle. For both books you now can fold up the remaining leg of the book keeping those same folds. Your book should open nicely with 3 pages and then you can flip up the remaining pages and they can sit upright. Now the tunnel. Unfold the book. To create the tunnel you need to cut out 3 windows in the first 3 pages of the top pant leg. Ovals are the easiest but once you get the hang of it you can experiment. The windows do not need to all be the same shape but you want to get smaller as you go making sure you can see thru them all to the final page. Easiest way to cut the windows is to poke a hole in the center and then cut away. Now when you stand up that tunnel you should be able to see thru to that back page. Now that you've done your practice book you might as well use it to plan out what you want to do for your good copy. When you have your plan make your pants book with your good paper. Just like before. The older the student the more elaborate your windows can be. I also find it best to cut the large window out first.....I can then figure out where I want my second window and then again for the third. Now add color using whatever medium you wish. For grade 6 they painted all the backgrounds and then added all the details. They drew the details onto plain white paper, colored them in with pencil crayon and then cut and pasted onto their painted backgrounds. You need to paint the backs of the tunnel pages for a finished look. You can now add text if you wish. I printed out my story on the computer and then pasted it on. I also used a fine sharpie to add some outlines to my paintings. For the front and back cover you might want to add some weight to your book. Cardboard covers are a nice touch. Cut 2 rectangles, the same size as your pages, out of cardboard. (chipboard or corrugated). Paint the cardboard and then add a title. Fold up your tunnel book and glue the cardboard cover to the first page. Now the back cover is glued on. It should be the back of the 4th page on the bottom leg of the pants. That's it. My tunnel book is called 'Finding Paradise'. I know I still have Maui on the brain.....why not give a tunnel book a try! See you next time.
DIY Paper-Cut Tunnel Book: I like challenges. AND I like to make things, especially if they are from what would probably be thrown out. So that gave me this idea. Why not make a 3-dimensional book/sculpture?! It doesn't use much and can be a sort of therapy.
"Cavitivity" tunnel book
Hi friends, sharing a special Fairyland Tunnel book made with gorgeous papers from Graphic 45 and Crealies dies . Fairyland Tunnel Book This tunnel book has 6 layers connected by accordion folds which helps the whole book fold flat and expand out accordion style on pulling! Fairyland Tunnel Book The book rests on a base made using the Crealies arch die and multiple layers of foam . Fairyland Tunnel Book The doorway in each layer keeps narrowing as you go inwards adding to the 3 D effect. One of the really cool features of a tunnel book is that you will be able to see different elements when you look inside from different angles! Fairyland Tunnel Book Now let me take you on a ride into fairyland! On the entrance is a little green fairy beside a mushroom and lovely peach flowers with micro-pearl centres! To keep the design coherent I used Graphic 45 papers to make all the elements including the flowers, mushroom , butterflies and even the grass!! Fairyland Tunnel Book Hovering above the archway is another elegant blue fairy with the most gorgeous shimmering wings! On an aside note: she was so tricky to cut but turned out so beautiful ! Fairyland Tunnel Book Peeping in you get a glimpse of fairyland ,with all the magical creatures- cute bunny families, magical birds, whimsical little mice and the ethereal fairies! Fairyland Tunnel Book Deep inside fairyland you can spot a peach fairy sitting atop magical flowers Fairyland Tunnel Book Behind her is "Momma" rabbit talking to her little ones! Fairyland Tunnel Book And at the very back is a magical trio of fairies having a meeting! Fairyland Tunnel Book When you angle your head as you come back you can see fairies at every level hovering above wonderland playing sweet music! Fairyland Tunnel Book And if you are lucky you may even spot a baby fairy atop a chubby bird! Fairyland Tunnel Book Diligently guarding the entrance is a cute green fairy sitting delicately atop a pretty flower! Fairyland Tunnel Book And bidding you farewell as you leave is the elegant guardian fairy ! Fairyland Tunnel Book I hope you liked the journey through fairyland! And here is the Tutorial Tunnel Book Tutorial Tunnel Book Tutorial Tunnel Books are works of art which are rather easy to make with nesting dies, but in case you don't have a die-cutting machine do checkout this Tutorial which I made in 2011 with no sophisticated supplies whatsoever : Tunnel Book Tutorial Tunnel Book Tutorial I used the Crealies dies to die cut doors with progressively narrowing apertures from thick card-stock and pattern paper . You can actually use any large nesting die set in your stash. The double layering is to give a sturdiness to the layers since they form the framework to add your designs. Tunnel Book Tutorial The most interesting part of tunnel books are the elements you see when you look through the aperture . You can use stickers, stamped images or fussy-cut images from pattern paper and arrange them over your apertures in such a way that the images in the layer in the front don't completely obstruct the images in the layers behind it. Tunnel Book Tutorial As you can see my front most layer is really bare and the apertures get crowded as you go back. I did a lot of fussy cutting from the Graphic 45 Once upon a Springtime papers for this project. I had been hoarding those papers just for the right project ! Tunnel Book Tutorial Use fairly good quality paper to make the accordions . If you have a double sided paper it is especially advantageous as the accordions are visible both from the outside and the inside of the tunnel book. I used Graphic 45 papers from Artisan style to create 2 accordions. For this tunnel book I scored two 12 x 4.5 inch papers every 3/4th inches. I also had to use extra strips to create accordions for the outer layers and the jutting side panels. Tunnel Book Tutorial First glue the accordions to the layer which will go at the very back. Leave one mountain fold and stick the next layer onto the mountain folds[ as shown by pink bone folder] on the accordions on each side Tunnel Book Tutorial Keep sticking the layers leaving one mountain fold in between each layer to allow enough room for your tunnel book to expand. Though it sounds very easy, I urge you to first experiment gluing the accordions with scrap pieces of paper as it is a bit tricky and you can go wrong if you are not careful! Tunnel Book Tutorial Finally have fun adding little finishing touches on the outermost layer and the optional base! Tunnel Book Supplies Papers : Graphic 45 Once upon a Springtime, Graphic 45 Artisan Style Dies : Crealies
About a month ago I posted some pictures of tunnel books that two Grade 6 classes made. I promised the tutorial and here it is. The tunnel book starts off as a regular accordion book and then halfway it flips up exposing a tunnel to the back page. It's a great project to incorporate writing and the visual arts. The tunnel section can represent a transition in the story, literal or figurative. With the Grade 6'rs it was part of their novel study. The had to choose a portion of the book they had read and then incorporate this into a tunnel book. MATERIALS REQUIRED: - 1 piece of 11x17 white paper for practice and planning - rectangular piece of wc or good weight paper, by good weight you want it thicker than printer paper but not 300lb wc, a 90lb would work well here, I use roughly a 12.5 x 19.5 which is a 1/4 sheet of the 90-110lb wc we have on hand - ruler - pencil and eraser - scissors - watercolors, tempera disk, acrylics, colored pencil, etc. any medium to add color - fine sharpie - cardboard - tacky glue PROCEDURE: Now bear with me here. It really is easy once you get the hang of it. I just need to break it down into step by step. Hand out the 11x17 printer paper. This will be our practice book. We will also use this as a plan for our good copy. Fold in half both vertically and horizontally. I added black lines to show the folds. You do not need to add these. Lay out flat. Now fold each side into the middle. Unfold and you will have 8 sections. Now this style of accordion book is called a pants book. I use this term with the kids as it's an easy way for them to remember. Starting on one side cut along the horizontal fold line up to the last 2 sections. When you hold it up it looks like a pair of pants. With young kids you might want to make a mark at the stopping point to remind them. Place your pair or pants in front of you so that the seat is on the right (feet would come out on the left if this was a real pair of pants). Now in book making there are 2 main folds, a mountain and a valley. Mountains poke up and valleys go down. Click and the photo for a larger image. I have them marked. You want both pant legs starting on the left to have a valley fold, then a mountain, and then another valley. Fold up the top leg accordion style keeping the folds as outlined previously. You can now take these top pages and flip them down. In the tunnel book these pages will form the tunnel which sits up. Incidentally if you wanted to just make an accordion book with no tunnel. Just flip these pages the other way to the back. This would give you a nice accordion with single pages and one double in the middle. For both books you now can fold up the remaining leg of the book keeping those same folds. Your book should open nicely with 3 pages and then you can flip up the remaining pages and they can sit upright. Now the tunnel. Unfold the book. To create the tunnel you need to cut out 3 windows in the first 3 pages of the top pant leg. Ovals are the easiest but once you get the hang of it you can experiment. The windows do not need to all be the same shape but you want to get smaller as you go making sure you can see thru them all to the final page. Easiest way to cut the windows is to poke a hole in the center and then cut away. Now when you stand up that tunnel you should be able to see thru to that back page. Now that you've done your practice book you might as well use it to plan out what you want to do for your good copy. When you have your plan make your pants book with your good paper. Just like before. The older the student the more elaborate your windows can be. I also find it best to cut the large window out first.....I can then figure out where I want my second window and then again for the third. Now add color using whatever medium you wish. For grade 6 they painted all the backgrounds and then added all the details. They drew the details onto plain white paper, colored them in with pencil crayon and then cut and pasted onto their painted backgrounds. You need to paint the backs of the tunnel pages for a finished look. You can now add text if you wish. I printed out my story on the computer and then pasted it on. I also used a fine sharpie to add some outlines to my paintings. For the front and back cover you might want to add some weight to your book. Cardboard covers are a nice touch. Cut 2 rectangles, the same size as your pages, out of cardboard. (chipboard or corrugated). Paint the cardboard and then add a title. Fold up your tunnel book and glue the cardboard cover to the first page. Now the back cover is glued on. It should be the back of the 4th page on the bottom leg of the pants. That's it. My tunnel book is called 'Finding Paradise'. I know I still have Maui on the brain.....why not give a tunnel book a try! See you next time.
The right technique to make a 3D tunnel book with panels that tell the story - each panel is a layer in the final book
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Hello dear readers, Diana Trout here with the telescoping tantalizing tunnel book. Tunnel books have been surprising folks since the mid-18th century when they were called “peep shows.” (Glad they changed the name.) Tunnel books were inspired by theater sets! […]
I have tried several times over the years to make tunnel books. They are wonderful, interactive structures that are visually appealing as well. I have not been very successful in my endeavors as my "pages" tend to warp and bend. Last month at a San Diego Book Arts Salon I met a woman who makes beautiful tunnel books and she was working on one invented by Ed Hutchins. She downloaded the directions here and I came home and did the same. Fast forward to yesterday when I finally had the time to make a tunnel book myself. Below are pictures of the results. This version of the structure has lightweight side hinges and doubled pages. In other words, no more warping! I used a roll of craft paper for the base structure and it worked beautifully. I used three pages from an old calendar to get the images, but you can use anything, or just draw your own images. I hope you will be inspired to try this project. -Gina 1. Choose images. 2. Cut and fold craft paper (8" x 30") and lay out images. 3. Cut holes in pages so you can see through the tunnel. 4. Pasted first image and cut in an oval around elements you want to keep. 5. Paste down the other images and glue side tabs together. Finished tunnel book with 4 layers of images. Top view of tunnel book. Side view of book with hinges showing.
DIY Paper-Cut Tunnel Book: I like challenges. AND I like to make things, especially if they are from what would probably be thrown out. So that gave me this idea. Why not make a 3-dimensional book/sculpture?! It doesn't use much and can be a sort of therapy.
I have a great line up of workshops for Journalfest. I'm starting with a class on Thursday taught by Ingrid Dijkers called Into the Crypt. I've been a big fan of Ingrid's innovative journal-making style for quite awhile. We'll be making a tunnel book/journal with vintage imagery that is just...
Tunnel books are fun and unique! We made ours using a post card for a prompt and wrote a haiku to go with it. I've made these with grade...
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I have tried several times over the years to make tunnel books. They are wonderful, interactive structures that are visually appealing as we...
This tutorial is a long time coming! About two years ago, Becca Feeken at Spellbinders came out with these great Vignette dies where you die cut different layers of a scene and put them all together with a structure that you also die cut. These things BLEW MY MIND! I couldn't wait to get some of these dies. Everyone else felt the same way. These dies sold out very quickly! By the time I got to the website with my credit card, they were gone! I had no way of making an adorable vignette that would fold up, go in an envelope, and bring not only my good wishes but "ooos" and "ahhhhhs" from the recipient. Or did I? That's when I invented this card. But unfortunately, my life was so busy at that point (sole caregiver to my mother, who has dementia) that I didn't have time to make a tutorial. But now I do, and so here we go! Because I wanted this to be a springtime card, I chose to use a base of Stampin' Up's Mint Macaroon cardstock. I cut one piece of cardstock at 11" X 5-12," and cut another piece of cardstock into four pieces, each 4-1/4" X 5-1/2". If you want to make it easy on yourself, MAKE SURE THE 4-1/4" MEASUREMENTS MATCH! Each of those four pieces should be EXACTLY the same width. Stack them on top of each other, and if they are not EXACTLY the same width, trim them so they are. I sound like someone who didn't do this earlier, don't I? Mmmmhmmmm. Score the big piece of cardstock right down the middle at 5-1/2", and score each of the smaller pieces at 1/2" on both long edges (see diagram below). Remember: When you score cardstock, fold AWAY from the indentation, not with it. I know it's counter-intuitive, but if you fold away from the indented score line on the big piece, it's going to make one of the instructions further down make sense. Michelle Wright explains it well here. I bought these dies from Poppystamps specifically to create this technique. If you do not have these dies, you can use any nesting dies you have. You can use dies that are the same size for that matter. If you don't have dies at all, you can cut a tunnel in your cardstock with a paper trimmer or scissors. Heck, it's just paper! Play around with it! Here is the same cardstock after I die cut. (Okay, some of you have noticed that there are two right-side score lines on the bottom right-hand panel. I initially scored the wrong indentation. Whoops! That's why I designated this panel to be in the back. No one will notice.) I colored directly onto the trees and branches with the brush tip of a Copic W5 marker and airbrushed with some yellow-green Copics. I used the lightest marker for what's going to be the front panel and went gradually darker. However, I don't think that was necessary because you can always change how light or dark you go by airbrushing lighter or darker. (Eventually, I end up adding more color anyway, but at this point in the process, I didn't know I was going to do that yet.) Cut a contrasting panel (mine is yellow) at 5" X 3". This is going to go at the back of the tunnel, so I used a really bright panel. Then, after placing the tree panel with the smallest opening over top of the 3X5 panel so I would know where to stamp, I stamped the word "Spring." I also smeared some glue at the bottom and covered it with Flower Soft that I found in a drawer. The flower soft did not cover completely, so I added some light green glitter as well. It's like a meadow of flowers and glitter, like in real life. Now it's time to add our first windowed panel to the inside of the card. Start with the panel with the smallest opening. Add some Score-tape (or other adhesive; your choice) to the left flap of that panel. Because you have folded your 11" X 5-1/2" cardstock against the fold indentation, you should have a ridged score line on the inside of the card. Place the panel with the tree window on the right side of that ridge. Peel the Scor-Tape liner off, make sure everything is lined up, and close the front of the card. Now, when you open the card back up, you should see something like this. Take the panel with the second smallest opening, put some Scor-Tape (or other adhesive) on the left flap, and adhere it just above the panel you just did. Keep doing that until you have all four windowed panels stuck down evenly on the inside front of your card. I forgot to take a picture of it, but adhere the 3" X 5" panel (mine is yellow) to the inside back cover so you will be able to see it through the windows. Even though I forgot to photograph that part. You are very smart and will be able to figure out exactly where it goes. At this point in this particular card, I realized that just airbrushing some green around the tree tops was not going to make this a very woodsy card, so I took some distress ink and a sea sponge and sponged leaves on the various layers. It was extremely easy to mask off each layer by simply putting a half sheet of cardstock behind the panel I was working on and another half sheet to the left of that panel. I also took the opportunity to airbrush some moss or grass on the ground under the trees. And then I die cut some deer, and a bunny, and some birds. I believe these dies are from Impression Obsession. I sponged some ink on the edges to make them look more rounded and lifelike. This is a great time to add any critters or flowers or vines or whatever to your layers. So much harder after sticking the right side of the flaps together (voice of experience). I also realized I wanted to scatter some more Flower Soft at the bottom of each layer, so I did that too. Now cut one more piece of the green cardstock at 5-1/2" X 4-1/4" and score it lengthwise at 2". I went ahead and stamped mine with a wood background. The 2" part of the panel is going to be used to hold all four of the right-hand side flaps together, and the 2-1/4" part of that panel is going to get stuck to the right-hand inside of the card. Because you are sticking flaps together, on the back of that panel, run your adhesive horizontally. I used my wide Scor-Tape for this because . . . I really don't have a lot of other uses for tape that wide, and I have a whole roll. You can absolutely use adhesive that is narrower. Open up your card completely and press all those layers down. See how they line up nice and even? That's where the 2" part of the new panel is going to go! Take your Scor-Tape liners off, and stick it all together. I glued the 2-1/4" part to the back cover first, and then--while it was all still flat--glued the 2" side down. Open the close your card to make sure it all works. If you want to take another run at it, Scor-Tape can be loosened with your heat gun and the paper very gently pried apart again. Also feel free to use your scissors to trim anything that didn't quite fit. To finish up the inside of the card, I stamped this sentiment by Penny Black to the left of the trees. And this is how the tunnel looks all put together! Magical! Here is the entire inside of the card put together. Oh yeah, I need an outside of the card too! I used this die from Eutreec that I bought really reasonably from Amazon, and a wood-grain embossing folder from Stampin' Up. Here are a couple more samples I made: This one uses regular old nesting dies, and some very old but gorgeous paper from a company I don't even think is in business anymore. I can't remember what this paper is. I made the card two years ago. I have a thing for adding butterflies wherever I can. The nesting dies used here are Spellbinders, and the butterfly and plant dies are Cheery Lynn. And this one uses Spellbinders dies from the one and only Becca Feeken! Yes, the very dies I was looking for and couldn't get at the time, came back in stock and I bought them!!! And now I can use them in the Storybook Tunnel Card! I also got to use some very beautiful paper from Graphic 45 on this one. This card is made even more special with a door. The door opens and everything. Look! Another magical world inside! A message of thanks! And thanks to all of you who hung in there all the way to the end of this very long blog post. If you have made it all the way to the end, you have to click on this link and see the VERY GORGEOUS card made by my good friend, Shelly Hickox. Shelly is a genius with Graphic 45 (with anything really--very creative that one). Now go make one of your own! Cyndi
Although today is the official first day of spring, the plum trees and magnolias up the hill in Berkeley honored the season early on Februa...
