Haunted House Halloween Box Card Assembly

Extra tall dimensional card form measures 

approx. 10.5" high x 2.5" deep x 2.5" wide when opened, 

and folds flat for giving or sending. 

Spooky full moon rises behind a crooked haunted house. 

In front, a pair of ghosts gambol in the pumpkin patch, 

behind the web gate on the front panel. 

"Happy Haunting" shaped tag tied onto the gate's front cutouts. 

ASSEMBLY:

1. Identify and cut the shapes:
A main box shape

B moon base shape

C bat shapes (2)

D gate overlay

E box side flap overlays

F bridge for house assembly

G house assembly (base showthru; house, roof shapes

H ghost bridge, eye contrast, overlays

I pumpkin bridge, base layer (side pumpkins) main large, center large, leaves, leaf base

J tag assembled (tag base, happy and haunting word cutouts

2. Prepare the box shape by bending back on all vertical perforation lines as shown. Also bend side flaps back.

3. Form the box into a tube shape with the face side out (seam will end up at the back right corner). Apply glue to the long vertical tab, overlap the straight back edge to the tab perforation line, adjust so bottom edges are exactly even, and glue in place to compete the seam.


NOTE: because this shape is symmetrical, it IS possible to join this seam and flatten the box to present an area to apply finger pressure to complete the seam.

4. Prepare the accent shapes.

Assemble the tag with word cutout shapes glued in place within the offset margin as shown.

Attach house front over "window show-thru" base; attach triangle roof shapes.

Attach bats to moon. Attach eye contrast on backside of ghost bodies.

Layer and attach center pumpkin shapes over base; attach right leaf to curl base; attach 2 leaves in place.

5. Attach:

moon/bats unit at top back inside of box
(NOTE that there is a separate box back panel shape included in the file in case the paper you have selected has a backside that needs to be covered, since paper's face side will be the outside of the box when assembled.)

side flap overlays

gate overlay to front of box








6. Prepare the back bridge (#3 marked in tab) by bending the side tabs forward.

All bridge tabs will be bent forward like this.

7. Position the house assembly over the center portion of the bridge, with bottom edges of house and bridge even, and glue together.

8. Apply glue to the backside of the tabs. Insert the bridge assembly into the cavity of the open box as shown, position the house/bridge center one-quarter of the way forward from the back, square up so that it is perpendicular to the box sides and glue in place.

NOTE that the bridge tab tops should be . . . 

. . . even with the side flap fold on both sides.


Then, before the glue has cured/dried completely . . . 

. . . fold the box into its flat form and apply finger pressure through the layers in the area where the bridge tabs are attaching to box sides as shown.

(NOTE that this picture shows this flattening/pressing step after the ghost bridge #2 is in place. Complete this pressing step after each bridge is in place to help the bridges self-adjust to best flattened alignment.)

9. Assemble the ghosts onto their shaped bridge (marked #2 in tab).

9. Apply glue to the bridge tabs backsides, then insert bridge into box cavity as shown, position it at the center of the cavity, square up and attach, with tops of tabs even with side flat folds.

Complete the fold flat/press step.

10. Position and attach the pumpkin assembly onto front bridge (marked #1).

11. Apply glue to side tabs, insert into box cavity, position at front quarter depth (that is, halfway forward in front of ghost bridge), square up, attach, etc.

12. Position the tag assembly on box front and tie in place by threading twine or ribbon through tag hole and around the center bottom gate cutout.

Here is the box card folded flat for giving/mailing.

And here it is opened for display.