We are so so excited to share this free little do-it-yourself download with you guys!
As you know, we are avid collectors of all things vintage kitchen/bakery. When we came across this collection of mini vintage Junior Chef mix boxes from the late 50s or early 60s, we swooned! First off, they're toy/play size! Little boxes made for kids who wanted to play kitchen. I LOVE stuff like this. When I look at these boxes I can clearly recall one of my all time favorite things from childhood. It was a cardboard "grocery store"…it had shelves stocked with groceries, and a checkout complete with cash register. On the shelves were faux food items and stuff like that…tooth paste, laundry detergent, cereal, and cake mixes, very much like these mini boxes. And the fact that the set was merely cardboard made it even more magical. Me and my sister absolutely loved playing "grocery store". I swear, just the act of filling our little play cart, and checking out at the register, provided hours and hours of fun.
So, when me and Aaron got our hands on this collection we couldn't believe how perfectly the pastel tones and fun imagery fit our home. And the mini boxes looked so great when they were all together in a group. So we devised a cute, fun, and super easy way to display them together. A garland of mini boxes! We simply strung a length of classic bakers twine through all of the lids of the boxes, spaced them out evenly, and hung them like a bunting. No, not just a bunting…more like The Cutest Bunting of All Time!
So, here's where the real fun comes in! When we posted the above pic on Instagram, we immediately got so many requests. Everyone asked if we were going to be making these and selling them in our shop. And then our friend Heidi took it a step further and said that she could help us make that idea into a reality. Heidi is an Uber Talent…she can do anything really. She's the gal behind MyPaperCrane. To list her accolades and fabulous lines of licensed products would take up way too much space. Let me just say that if you think you aren't familiar with her work…think again. I bet you've seen her stuff. Her plush pieces are amazing…her fabric patterns are incredible…and she's just all around crafty.
So, Heidi wanted to make reproductions of the boxes for her own personal crafty fun. So I scanned my set of boxes and emailed her the images. Within a few days she sent me the below templates! They are totally ready to print, cut out, and turn into mini boxes.
And here's the thing…me and Aaron have never really reproduced something and then made it for sale. We generally hand paint original artwork from scratch and then make prints of the paintings for use on signs, die cuts, etc.
So…we figured...what the heck, let's just offer these adorable templates as a free printable download for all of you guys!
We suggest that you load your printer with bright white card stock. The heavier weight of the card stock will make the boxes sturdier. You can find the pdf right here. Just print them out…they conveniently come two to a page...and then cut out.
You'll see that there are little flaps that you'll cut just partially, just like on real boxes. These will fold together to secure the ends shut. Once you've got your templates cut, then just fold and crease them along all of the thin black guide lines. Then fold to assemble into boxes, using a bit of glue to secure the tabs to one another. (we used Aleene's Quick Dry Tacky Glue)
Then to make the garland all you have to do is thread a length of bakers twine along the top of each box, simply closing the lid to secure the twine.
That's it! Your adorable vintage mini mix boxes are ready to hang. We LOVE ours! And yes, now we have two hanging in our home…the original is on a cupboard, and the reproduction printed version is draped across a shelf front in our kitchen. We hope you guys love these! And we would love love love to see pics of how and where you displayed yours…or any other crafty ways that you used your boxes. (tag us on Instagram! @jennyeveryday) And oh yeah…be sure to thank the wonderful Heidi…and shop 'til you drop at MyPaperCrane! Of course, feel free to share this post with your friends, or on Pinterest!
Happy Crafting!
xo Jenny & Aaron
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