How to Make a Cake Out of Cardboard Boxes

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Things You'll Need

  • 3 to 5 square, heart-shaped or round boxes

  • Gift paper or acrylic paint

  • Flat cardboard or cake board

  • Glue gun

  • Ribbon or trim

  • Ruffled lace

  • String of beads

  • Satin rosebuds or silk flowers

A small, medium and large box will form a tiered cake.

A set of recycled or new cardboard boxes can be combined to create a cake display for a useful centerpiece at a celebration party. The stacked boxes have an appearance of a tiered cake after being assembled with craft supplies. It is also useful as a decorative container for a money tree substitute or cardholder. The box cake is suitable to hold greeting cards for a wedding or an anniversary party and can be a pretty gift box centerpiece for a shower or birthday party.

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Step 1

Paint the exterior of each box with pastel colored acrylic paint and a paint brush. Wrap older recyclable boxes with gift paper as an alternative to paint. You may find boxes that have no need for paint or paper coverings.

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Step 2

Cover the flat cardboard sheet with gift wrap for a cake tray. You can choose to use a cake board found at craft and cake decorating stores for the base instead.

Step 3

Set the largest box onto the cake tray or board. Center it in the middle and lightly trace around it.

Step 4

Squirt adhesive around the bottom of the cardboard box with the glue gun. Set the box down on to the marked area of the cardboard cake tray or board.

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Step 5

Apply adhesive to the bottom of the next largest box and center it on top of the large box. Repeat with the remaining box or boxes with the smallest box as the top cake tier.

Step 6

Glue a border of ruffled lace around the bottom of the bottom tier of the box cake. The bottom of the lace should rest against the cake board. Add lace to the bottom of each tier for more decorative borders. You can hold lace and trims against the boxes to determine where you want them.

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Step 7

Glue a band of decorative ribbon or trim around the center of each cake tier to resemble a piped border. Add a layer of beads by gluing a string of them on top of the ribbon or lace. Drape the beading for a dramatic alternative effect.

Step 8

Glue a small corsage or designed arrangement of satin rosebuds or silk flower blossoms to the top of the box cake. Add single blossoms on corners of the box cake tiers.

Tip

Cut a slot in the back of the largest box to allow a guest to slide a greeting card envelope into the container.

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