DIY Box Clutch

Hey Everyone!

I have been seeing so many cute and interestingly designed box clutches out in the market.  So many designers came out with elegant to artistic boxy clutch styles that looked so fun to recreate.  It is pretty tough for me to justify spending a lot of money for a clutch that I would only use for a special event though.  I wondered if I could just DIY one myself.  I have a tendency to collect pretty boxes and when I see a good and quality one, I like to keep it for when I have a DIY idea in mind.

You'll need:

• A good quality cardboard box
• Craft acrylic paint
• A gloss glaze
• Glue gun or E6000
• Lastly are the decorations.  You can pretty much use anything you like.  Breaking apart old accessories to make decorations is a great idea.

If you have a 2- piece box with a cover, take the width side of the cover and cut it down the corner.  Repeat that cut on the other side of that flap.  Next, trim that cut piece along the sides  by about 1/8th inch until it slides cleanly into the bottom of the other box.  You want to use that cut flap as the attachment point to your base box. It will work like a clam shell.

 

If you have a nice quality smooth looking box, you can start to paint this with a color of your choice.  If your box has logos that are visible and a contrasting color- Try using a richer color that can hide the design.  Ex. White will be very difficult to cover black lettering so, try a purple or blue instead.  Paint on about 2-3 layers. Make sure to let each layer dry for 15-20 minutes before painting the next coat.  Use a foam brush for a nice smooth finish.

If you use a traditional bristle brush, it will leave a brush line texture.  If you paint and stroke the brush evenly, the lines will look like saffiano leather – like on the Prada bags.  So chic!

After letting the base coat of the paint dry, it is time to put on a top coat.  I like to use a spray gloss finish for this, it makes the paint look flawless and shiny.  You can use any other brush on glaze as well.You only need to use 2 coats of this but if you want to cover up a texture, I recommend 3-4 coats of paint.




Glue the cut part of your cover-box to the bottom-box. Make sure to glue it on the inside so it doesn’t show.  I like to use hot glue, but you can use any other high strength craft glue.

Yay! Time to decorate and embellish!  This is the fun part… have fun and be creative, decorate it however way you like.  For the handles I was inspired by Alexander McQueen. I used some left over ring base from another project to glue on and then decorated.  This gives the clutch a chic look and a place to put your fingers.

Ok, the clutch is looking good, but to give it a nice finishing touch, you should put in a liner.  I prefer using a satin fabric as it gives it a high end look.  Cut a square lining a little bit larger then your box opened up to give an allowance for gluing the fabric in.  I like to fold in the raw edges and then glue it in. First, glue the top edges of the box on both boxes.  Next, glue the sides in only on the inner box.  Don’t glue the fabric on the outer box.  If you totally glue it all around it will be hard to close up.  Fold in and tuck in the fabric on the sides of the box.

I did not use a closure for this because of the design.  The way you hold this is downward. As you can see by the photos. The fingers are supposed to go through the rings and will naturally wrap around the opening.  This will keep it stays shut and secure.  If you’re not holding this, then lay it down on a table with the decorative side facing up.  Things will not fall out unless you shake the box like a crazy person.  You can get crafty and use a button enclosure or thin magnets if you would like for extra security, but if you made the clutch right, the tight fit of the boxes will prevent the clutch from popping open on it’s own.  Enjoy!!!