DIY Christmas Money Explosion Box
Learn how to make a Christmas Money Explosion Box! A fun way to gift money and treats for the holidays!
Hello Crafty Friends! It’s the third day of my annual series “12 Days of Holiday Crafts” and I’m excited to share a new SVG cut file, this time for a Christmas explosion box.
I designed this explosion box as a special way to gift cash. My older nieces and nephews really appreciate cash for the holidays. They can use it for gas and for going out with their friends. This explosion box is a unique way to give money, plus there is room for a little treat in the middle of the box!
This box only takes a few supplies and just four sheets of cardstock. The outside of the box features beautiful winter wonderland scenes on every side with evergreen trees and snow.
To create the cute money gifts on the inside of each box side, I followed a YouTube video to fold five dollar bills into neat little squares. The money squares slide under paper ribbons so they are snuggly held in place.
Explosion boxes are so much fun! Once you lift the lid up, the four sides of the box will fall down revealing the special surprise inside! Below is the tutorial for creating the box. I am offering my SVG cut file as a flash freebie. You can download the SVG for free through the end of my “12 Days of Christmas” series which ends on November 15th.
Christmas Explosion Box
Supplies Needed
- SVG Cut File – Available in my Etsy shop. Thank you for supporting my small business!
- Cardstock – I used 80lb cardstock from American Crafts and Bassill Cardstock.
- Double-Sided Tape – I used 1/2″ Scor-Tape, 1/4″ Scor-Tape and 1/8″ Scor-Tape
- Bearly Glue or Glue Pen
- Cricut Cutting Machine
- Cricut standard mat
- Cricut tools
- Cricut Brayer
Assemble the Box
Step One: Adhere the white square pieces to the inside of each box side. I used 1/8″ Scor-Tape around the edges of each square. This was thin enough to not show through any of the holes.
Step Two: Decorate the outer side flaps with snow and evergreen trees. Use the second picture below as a guide where to place each snow pieces and the evergreen trees.
Decorate the Inside of the Box
Step Three: Add red paper ribbon and bows to the inside of each side flap. These are used to hold the square, origami-folded bills of money. Fold the ribbon paper ribbon pieces along the score lines then adhere them using a ruler to help position them. I placed my ribbons 3/4″ from the bottom edge of each white square.
Create mini red bows and attach them to the center of each paper ribbon piece.
Create the Mini Interior Box
Step Four: Create the box that is at the center of the explosion box. Fold the flaps along the score lines on both the box bottom and box lid. Add adhesive to the tabs and to the outer edges of the red square. Place the red square behind the lid cut out, then form the box and lid by attaching the tabs.
Add adhesive to the bottom of the box and attach it to the center of the explosion box.
Create the Large Red Bow
Step Six: Create the large red paper bow for the top of the box. Start by rolling the loops of the bow with a pencil to help them form without creating hard creases. Place adhesive in the center and secure the loops to the center of the bow. Wrap the small rectangular piece of paper around the center of the bow, then attach the bow flaps to the underside of the bow.
Create the Box Lid
Step Five: Fold the box lid along the fold lines then place adhesive on the flaps and form the lid. Fold the red ribbon pieces along the score line, then secure them to the box lid after it is created. Add the large red bow to the center of the lid.
The lid is complete! Lift up the side flaps of the box and place the box lid on top to hold them in place. When the lid is lifted up, the sides of the box will fall down!
There are two different ribbon options for the box lid.
Fill the Box with Money and Treats!
Fold bills into small squares that will fit through the red paper ribbons on each flap of the box. I chose to use four five dollar bills and followed NProkudo’s video, “My Money Square Envelope”. If you’d prefer not to include money, replace the money with small notes! Fill the center box with sweet treats like Chocolate Kisses!
The box is finished and ready to be gifted!
I hope you enjoyed this festive Christmas explosion box! I hope you will continue to join me for the ninth year of my series “12 Days of Holiday Crafts“. I’ll be back tomorrow with day 4 and a new fun DIY holiday craft. In the meantime, you can also visit my Christmas craft page for over 100 DIY holiday craft ideas!
