Box decor: how to decorate a cardboard box and fit it beautifully into the interior?

Any house is filled with things that residents use constantly. However, their presence on the shelves spoils the entire design of the room. They can be hidden, but after a while they will still appear in a visible place. Salvation is in boxes.

After shopping and giving gifts, what remains is an aesthetic and convenient container that is a pity to throw away due to its spaciousness and practicality.

There is no point in leaving them in their original form. In this case, various decor for boxes will come in handy. The article contains ideas that will help you decorate the box yourself beyond recognition.

Purpose of boxes in the interior

Decorative boxes created with your own hands will not only serve as a piece of furniture, but will also help organize the space. This is especially important if the square footage of the house is small. Having placed things in chests, a person can easily find the desired item.

To distinguish the purpose of the box, it can be marked with a distinctive sign or a specific color scheme.

This storage method will teach an adult and a child to be in order. This means that this is not only an excellent design solution, but also a good assistant in the development of accuracy.

Important! You cannot leave the box in its original unattractive state; you need to decorate each box with your own hands in the chosen style.

There are many options for using the resulting chest.

You can put rings, bracelets, and necklaces in it. Handicraft lovers will be delighted with the convenient cookie jar, which holds all the accessories (buttons, scissors, sets of threads, etc.).

For children, boxes serve as storage places for pencils, markers, and cardboard.

Everyone has chargers that lie in the middle of the table and ruin the whole look. It is better to put them in a special decorative box. And if you find large boxes, then they will fit the baby’s toys or personal belongings of the residents.

Convenient use of cardboard box for chargers.

From plastic bottles

Plastic bottles and plastic candy boxes, if beautifully decorated, will become a container for various things, decorating the living room or bedroom. They are suitable for beads, earrings, rings, buttons, rivets, beads, paper clips, as well as other costume jewelry and sewing items. In the kitchen, cereals, seeds, spices, dried vegetables are poured there, cutlery is placed there.

Five-liter bottles will make large boxes that are not afraid of moisture, so they can be used in damp rooms. The upper edge is decorated with fabric, knitted lace, the base is decorated with self-adhesive film and painted with spray paint. A cap is made from a piece of another similar bottle - it is attached to the base using a “zipper” sewn into the upper part. This design is suitable for styles:

pop Art;
industrial;
loft;
art-believe;
modern

If desired, a large shoe or clothing box is made from two bottles; for this, several parts are fastened with a stapler, and handles are cut out in the upper part, decorated with soft fabric.

Application in different rooms and interior styles

From the bedroom to the bathroom, decorated drawers will be indispensable. The living room is often filled with friends, with whom it is a pleasure to play. This way the chest will store decks of cards, board games, and other entertainment toys. In another place there will be sets of dishes and stacks of photographs.

Transformed with your own hands and beautifully decorated, the box will serve for many months as a “storage” for all kinds of little things.

Note! By sorting everything into specific boxes, the problem of constantly searching for something specific will disappear.

Entering the kitchen, one begs for an arrangement of created “helpers.” All rackets and jars of seasonings are placed in one box, cereals in another, and teas and various types of coffee in a third. An attractive basket filled with fruit can be displayed in a prominent place.

Sometimes masters approach their work so creatively, the degree of transformation is simply impressive.

If you are equipping a children's room, you should use bright colors of cardboard or fabric. Storage containers of different sizes can be used to store books, educational toys, shoes or clothes. If necessary, each box is signed, so the child will understand where the place of a certain item is.

Creative people are able to decorate an ordinary box with their own hands in such a way that it will compete with antique boxes.

For the bathroom, storage for all tubes, jars, and towels will be an excellent helper. You can select a separate container that will contain cleaning products so that if necessary they are at hand.

Due to the high humidity, it is better to use boxes in the interior of this room without cardboard.

The chest of drawers in the hallway is constantly cluttered. To get rid of this, you need to come up with a beautiful container for keys, an umbrella, small items and other accessories that are in constant use. The mounting method will give the room a special touch.

Such storage units can not only stand on the floor, inside a closet, on a shelf, but also hang on the wall.

For the bedroom, baskets are used for laundry, evening care items, and other personal items. If the room is combined with a dressing room, then it is quite appropriate to put a separate box for jewelry, a collection of hats or scarves.

The layout will make any space look neat.

Boxes add a decorative touch to any room design.

Delicate colors emphasize femininity and lightness.
Plastic (transparent) will complement the design of high-tech, minimalism.
A classic would be a harmonica with voluminous chest decorations.
Baskets with weaving will fit into a fashionable ecological style or a country house.

The main thing is to correctly choose the appropriate pattern, shape, shade, and additional components.

Note! The design of rooms in a certain style (Africa, Japan) can be supported by thematic drawings and correct tones. By arranging material, shape, and decorations, any interior is supported.

Wood weaving

In ancient times, baskets woven from vines and pine roots were one of the very first “storage systems.” They not only collected and stored mushrooms, berries, healthy herbs, vegetables, but also took them with them on trips, putting everything they needed there. Willow branches collected in spring or autumn were usually used for weaving.

Wicker boxes, caskets, chests will perfectly decorate the interior in the style of:

Provence;
country;
ecological;
vintage.

In the modern world, almost anything is stored in such baskets - balls and knitting needles, clothes and shoes, notebooks and pens, drawings and magazines. They are quite well ventilated; in the kitchen or loggia, dried vegetables and numerous rag bags with medicinal herbs are placed in them. Previously, wicker wooden bread boxes with lids, boxes for cookies, and sweets were very popular. To weave such things well, certain skills are required.

Materials and tools

Important! Creating a product is more comfortable if you have a convenient workplace. To do this, you should adhere to several criteria.

Thinking about the appearance of the container.
Selection of necessary materials.
Remove everything unnecessary from the table.

Filling a shoebox with DIY decor depends on many factors, including lifestyle, hobbies, and the overall number of small items in the home.

The following should be on the work surface:

Scissors.
Pins.
PVA glue.
Scotch tape (regular, double-sided).
Pencil (preferably special for drawings).
Thin knife (stationery).
Paper clips.

The original design of the boxes with your own hands can eloquently remind you of what is inside.

For visual effect and strength, the following materials should be selected:

New fabric or scraps from clothing (pants, sweater, blouse).
Wallpaper.
Sackcloth.
Packaging type paper.
Jute.

How to decorate with rope: master class

There are different ways to design a storage box. From ordinary cardboard containers you can create an original basket for threads, socks, toys or cosmetics. An interesting solution is a product with rope decor.

To make it you will need a regular cardboard box, rope, and a glue gun. Then we proceed to making a decorative container:

Take the box.

Use scissors to cut the flaps off the box.

Then wrap the rope around the box. As you work, you need to glue each part of the harness.

The rope must be glued to the very edge of the box.
In order for the product to acquire a complete look, it is necessary to make an insert from a light material. The lining is placed inside and the fabric is folded outward.

A beautiful homemade basket can be used for various interior solutions.

DIY storage box decor

Decorations are the most creative stage of production. Various techniques and raw materials are used for it. The main thing here is imagination and experience. Here are some beautiful ways to decorate.

Decor using decoupage technique

You will need the following.

The basis.
PVA.
Washcloth.
Brush.
Paints (oil, acrylic).
Special napkins with a picture.
Scissors.

Think bigger, use other people's ideas, maybe you have a more interesting scrap, wallpaper or wrapping paper than in the example samples.

After preparing the materials, the following steps are performed.

Sanding the box.
Applying paint.
Cutting out a picture.
Attach the drawing to the plane, then mark its location with a pencil.
Spread the paint over the remaining edge with a sponge (do not touch the image area).
Drying.
Gluing an image.

Decoration with fabrics

Any type of fabric will do (from guipure to velor).

You can buy anything as a gift to people dear to your heart, but when the work of your own hands is attached to it, it is doubly pleasant.

Stages of work.

Size correction (you need to take into account 2 cm allowance).
Fastening with transparent adhesive or tape (double-sided).

Cardboard box decor with wallpaper

To decorate a cardboard box, pasting with any wallpaper using PVA or a special solution is suitable.

You need to wrap the box and lid with background material, but so that there are fewer bends.

Place the box on the piece of paper and trace it with a pencil.
Wrapping the base taking into account the bend inward.
Trimming excess paper.
Pasting the bottom, sides, inside (in that order).
Additions in the form of beads, rhinestones, ribbons, lace are optional.

Cardboard box decor with buttons

Tools and materials.

Varnish spray.
Tassels.
"Moment".
Pencil.
The basis.
Ruler.
Acrylic paint.
Buttons (various, up to 150 pcs.)
Pattern.

The decoration of the lid can be varied depending on what will be stored inside.

Manufacturing path.

Painting the box.
Drying.
Select a pattern (heart, horseshoe, flowers or random placement).
Smooth application of the picture using a compass or pattern.
Gluing buttons with a small amount of glue.
Opening with varnish.

Important! Tape each side as it dries.

Box decor using sophisticated techniques

You can be creative and come up with your own way of designing the storage unit. So, the following are popular.

Decoupage.
Three-dimensional origami or planar applique.
Quilling.

If desired, you can master any technique yourself from scratch.

But for the first craft it is better to take something familiar or easy.

Weaving from newspapers

First you need a base - a strong box, a corrugated box, of a suitable size. Next, long thin tubes are twisted from newspapers, which are attached to the bottom of the box at the same distance from each other. These tubes will become racks - they should be made thicker and denser than the rest. The stands are attached to the box with clothespins so that it comes out smooth. Then they are wrapped in thin tubes, using any weaving method, to the very top. The tops of the base tubes are carefully hidden, the edges of the box are smeared with glue, the newspaper layer is pressed to the base with clothespins. The lid is made in the same way, the entire structure is covered with paint and varnish. The interior is lined with fabric or paper.

It is not necessary to leave a thick cardboard base, but this will make the structure stronger.

What can you cover with?

Storage boxes are often lined with fabric. To do this, you can use a canvas in a single tone or several flaps.

To complete the work you will need:

scissors;
needle and thread;
PVA glue;
double sided tape;
decorative elements.

The fabric is cut according to the same principle as the box. However, you need to leave a margin of 1-1.5 cm on each side. When the pattern is ready, wrap it around the box, securing it from the base with double-sided tape. Do the same with the walls. Buttons, beads, stripes, and rivets are used as decoration.

Products wrapped in twine, jute rope or rope look original. They resemble stylish baskets in which you can store all kinds of little things. Using a crochet hook you can crochet a unique flowerpot for a box.

Helpful information

Tips for making and caring for cardboard boxes:

It is better to cut the box according to a pre-prepared template. This will prevent damage to the cardboard.
The box needs to be maintained regularly to prevent it from becoming a storage area for dust.
If the product is covered with several layers of varnish, wipe it with a slightly moistened cloth. Dust is removed from cardboard boxes without additional treatment using a dry cloth.
When choosing cardboard, you need to focus on its color. The white material is easy to cut, but it is fragile, breaks easily and can peel off, so it needs additional reinforcement. Yellow cardboard is stronger, flexible and easy to cut. Gray cardboard is difficult to cut and dulls knives. It is best used for making large storage containers.
To avoid damaging the table surface during the cutting process, it is protected with a board or thick oilcloth.
The easiest way to cut cardboard is with a knife. Scissors are used only to create curved lines.
When cutting, the knife should be moved in one direction; if you move it back and forth, the cardboard will tear and wrinkle.

Gift for a man

The decor of a gift box for a man will additionally emphasize a good attitude towards a person. To create a romantic gift, the box is decorated with photographs of them together, a note with wishes is attached, and the product itself is complemented with a dark bow.

To congratulate a colleague, you can choose your favorite alcoholic drink and place it in a box of a suitable size; the box is decorated with coins and complemented by a postcard with congratulations.

Those with a sweet tooth will appreciate a box of chocolates, the set is wrapped in dark wrapping paper. On top, you can create the look of an evening suit from a glued bowtie and a couple of buttons.

The cardboard case for the stylish pen is decorated with a mustache and hat cut out from a template. For bulky and heavy gifts, you can create the image of a suitcase or sports bag.

Linen trunks

There are other options for making your own storage container. You can make a trunk for storing things. It's very simple. A piece of fabric of the required size is taken and pockets are sewn onto it. The top of the case must be reinforced with a lath. After this, several holes are made in it, through which it will be attached to the wall with screws or nails using ties. The choice of fabric depends on the room for which the trunk is being made. For a nursery, for example, bright fabric is suitable, for a corridor - calmer shades or just a plain one. You can store toys, shoes, small items of clothing, and stationery in it.

In general, organizing the storage of various things is very easy and inexpensive. There is absolutely no need to buy expensive devices in stores. You can make them yourself from scrap materials that can be found in almost every home.

Where to begin

Before you start modifying shoe boxes, you need to provide everything so that you don’t get distracted from the work process by little things:

choose a suitable box, think over its design;
choose a comfortable, well-lit workplace;
find a sufficient amount of material;
Prepare tools: scissors, stationery knife, tape, glue, etc.

Original lamps from boxes
Selecting materials for decoration is very simple. You can simply paint it with paints, cover it with paper for decoration, colored paper, wallpaper, newspaper, sheets of music, geographical maps, napkins, stamps, jute rope, woolen threads. Products covered with various types of fabric, ribbons, leatherette, and oilcloth also look impressive. Children's boxes can be covered with candy wrappers, sheets from coloring books, stickers, key rings, matches, drawings of animals or favorite characters, parts from construction sets, and mosaics.

The most popular way to decorate shoe boxes is to cover them with paper or fabric.

How to cover a box with paper

Decoupage technique

One of the most popular decoration methods is decoupage technique. The base is primed twice, each layer must dry thoroughly. The surface is cleaned with sandpaper, covered with acrylic paint and impregnated with glue, all compounds must dry.

Straightened napkins are applied to the prepared box and ironed through parchment paper. The excess is cut off with scissors, and the box is coated with clear varnish.

Covering with fabric

The soft fabric gives all items a cozy feel.
This is one of the easiest ways to decorate home storage boxes. To work, you will need the box itself, a piece of fabric you like (you can combine materials), and glue. It is better to use glue rather than staples or paper clips: it is necessary that the fabric fits tightly over the entire area of the walls, does not bulge or form “bubbles”. The material should be dense enough, but not very heavy, so that glue does not bleed through it, but at the same time it should be held on the walls of the case. The most practical option is to use synthetic fabrics.

First, measure the box, recording all the parameters of each element. Then they make a pattern from which the fabric will be cut. It is necessary to leave small allowances along the edges: the material may shrink. It’s better to fill in or trim off the excess than to suffer with the “shortage” later.

The necessary pieces are cut out of the fabric and coated with glue. The box itself is also lubricated with glue. Then the material is carefully applied to the surface and smoothed, removing the smallest wrinkles and air bubbles. Then they let the box sit and the glue harden. This takes about a day.

If the textile box was glued on the outside and inside, then it is better to sew the outer and inner layers of fabric: the joints experience the maximum load, the glue alone may not withstand it.

And now about delimiters

Drawer dividers are special strips that are used to optimize free space in any drawer, regardless of its size and dimensions. It’s enough just to take separators that suit the parameters. Usually they are made in the form of strips that are assembled inside the box into a spacer and allow you to create several compartments in it to place things in them.

Egg container as an organizer for storing small items

Even a muffin tin can serve as an organizer.

Dividers are especially relevant for storing small kitchen utensils; they are also convenient to use for cosmetics, tools, medicines and other small things. If you simply put all the small items into a drawer without using an organizer, they will in any case get mixed up with each other, and you will have to look for the desired item for a long time. If there are dividers, getting out any item will not be difficult, because it will lie in its strictly designated place.

Organize your kitchen drawer

If we are talking about storing kitchen items, for example, forks, spoons, knives, then it is best to use plastic or wooden dividers. They will not be as susceptible to moisture as cardboard or fabric-lined ones, although dividers can be made from a variety of materials. But for storing small items of clothing, cosmetics and other things, you can also use cardboard dividers covered with fabric or covered with paper. There can no longer be any contact with water, and therefore there is no need to worry about something going bad.

Cutlery tray

You can also use dividers in the bathroom if there is some kind of chest of drawers or cabinet with drawers. And here it’s also worth assessing which ones are better to use – plastic, wood or cardboard. It will all depend on what needs to be stored. Thus, rags and sponges are stored well only in plastic containers with plastic dividers. But some dry personal hygiene items can also be placed in boxes with wooden or cardboard dividers.

An organizer will help you neatly place your underwear in your closet.

Birthday

A long-awaited day since childhood is a birthday. Each birthday person expects pleasant surprises and gifts. To please the hero of the occasion, it is important to work on the design.

To decide how to decorate the box, you need to decide on the size of the gift. For small options, you can choose several boxes of different sizes. The gift is placed in the smallest box, wrapped in packaging material and decorated with a small ribbon.

The finished design is placed in a larger box, and similarly packaged and supplemented with ribbon. Thus, you should reach the largest box, in the end you get the original nesting doll. It is recommended to use different colors of paper, and the size of the ribbon changes with the size of the box.