Sliding Card

Smock, Paper, Scissors	Sliding Card
A neat little card with animated parts!
Blog Beat	Pop Goes the World | Men Without Hats

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  Project:   Cardstock Sliding Cards
  Difficulty:   Moderate (I strongly suggest reading ALL the instructions before starting)
  Special equipment/materials:   Shiny plastic bag and this TEMPLATE

Before we get started, I want to make sure everyone is familiar with the terms I have used in this tutorial...

Right Side: The part of the project that will show once finished, so make it pretty ;)

Wrong Side: The part of the project that will face the inside of the card, so don't worry so much about keeping it clean... Also applies to the "No-Show" parts

Valley fold: A common term in origami, where paper is folded forward over itself, and the fold forms a "V" shape

Adherence zone: Where you'll attach the ribbon that makes the whole card work

Upper Card: The card that will slide up out of the card

Lower Card: The card that will slide down

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This is the template we will be working with... There are a couple of ways you can use the template: You can use it as a guide and copy the design onto the cardstock paper of your choice (you know, to avoid the labels); or, you can print directly onto a single letter-sized (8½"x 11") cardstock sheet since most labels are actually on the wrong side of the card pieces - just make sure to cover up the "Right Side Upper Card" label.

Careful! If you want to print directly on cardstock, the thick paper may not pass through your printer properly. Try a test run first!

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Start with the Base of the card and valley fold into three parts. The "Middle" portion will eventually end up sandwiched between the front and back of the card, hence why I called it the "Middle".

Tip! To get a nice, clean fold, use a bone-folder or stylus with a ruler to press fold lines into the paper before folding. If you don't have a bone folder, any object with a slim end, i.e. edge of a ruler, bobby pin, that pen that went dry last year but you are still convinced there is ink in there somewhere so you didn't throw it away, etc should do the trick.

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Cut out the slits and semi-circles and trim the end of the "Middle" section.

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I posted these pictures to show the pre-embellished upper and lower cards... These are the "Right" sides, or parts that will show from the front. Note that the ribbon attach to the RIGHT SIDE of the upper card

Counter-intuitive, I know, but that's just how it is...

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These are the Wrong or backsides of the moveable parts of the card.

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Time to decorate! This is where you put your personal touches... Embellish away! I decided to use the theme of Paper Petalody.

Don't forget about the base! A card needs a cover!

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This is where that plastic bag comes in... Cut a strip 7½" long and 1½" wide.

I took the strip from a smooth, shiny plastic bag similar to those plastic sandwich bags (a little thicker), but even a common grocery bag would work

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Thread the ribbon through the "Middle" portion of the card as shown...

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... and bring the ends together. You may have a large overlap as I have shown here...

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... so trim the ribbon so that the overlap is about ¼" or the width of a pencil

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Secure the ends together with glue or double-sided tape, leaving some leeway: if the ribbon is too tight, it won't slide very well! Make sure you can pass a pencil between the ribbon and the card.

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Time to assemble! By the time we're done, you should have a sliding card sandwich: from top to bottom, the card Front, the Lower Card, the Middle, the Upper Card, and finally the Back. Align your Upper Card with the top of the "No-Show" zone level with the top of the base.

 Important!  Slide the ribbon seam to the top-most part of the card, as shown above. Why? The seam itself is unlikely to move through the slit to the other side; arranging it this way means the only way it will be able to slide is down (which is exactly where you want it to go!) Secure with glue or double-sided tape.

I marked the seam and where it should attach to the upper card...

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Fold in the "Middle" and align the Lower Card so that the bottom-most part of the "Adherence Zone" lines up with the lowest part of the ribbon (again, so that the only way the bottom card can slide is up!) Glue or tape.

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Almost done! All that's left is to close the card up! Normally, I would just fold the front flap over the Middle and glue along the edge, but the tight fit of the sliding cards within the base almost always results in the sliding card getting stuck, so I came up with a solution: the Pocket piece.

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It avoids the problem of accidentally gluing the sliding card to the base and provides a little more give for the cards to slide. Align the folded edges of the "Pocket" and the "Middle" and glue or tape together.

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Do the same with the front of the card, making sure the Pocket piece wraps around the Lower Card on the closing edge. The image above shows what I mean (the paper clip is holding the Pocket in place).

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Voilà! Congratulations, you're done! Marvel away...

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Try some other variations!

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