Skip to content
PlayOwl
An open pop-up card standing like an L, with a green paper tree on a pop-up step, a yellow sun and a white cloud on the back wall.
The finished project.

Paper craft

Pop-Up Tree Card

  • Confident (level 4 of 5)
  • 30 min
  • 11 steps
  • Ages 7–12 (a guide, not a rule)
  • Uses scissors
  • Uses glue
  • Adult help suggested
Start Making Print with template

A pop-up card hides a little machine: two short cuts from the fold make a step that folds out every time the card opens. Print the two templates at actual size, cut, fold and push, then glue the tree to the step. The tree is sized so it folds away inside the closed card.

Before you start

You need

Decorating (optional): Color the tree, sun and cloud before cutting them out, and decorate the front of the card.

No card stock printed with both templates? Printer paper works for the pieces; use card stock for the card itself so the step stands up. Draw your own tree, house or animal on scrap card instead, as long as it is no taller than the printed tree (72 mm, about 2 7/8 in).

For the grown-up: Help hold the folded card while the two short cuts are made through both layers, and check that each cut stops at the end of its line.

Use blunt-tip scissors and cut away from your fingers.

How to place the paper before the first step
Your paper: Print both templates at 100% (Actual size) on card stock and check that the 5 cm bar measures 5 cm. Lay the card sheet printed side up.
  • Valley fold: blue dashes. Fold toward you, like a valley.
  • Mountain fold: pink dash-dot. Fold away from you, like a mountain.
  • Crease: a thin gray line where you folded before.
  • Cut: a thick solid line with scissors.
  • Glue: a yellow area marked "glue".

Step by step

Each step shows what to do (left) and how it should look after (right).

  1. Step 1: cut, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 1 result Result
    Step 1 of 11 Cut Cut out the card along the solid outer line.
  2. Step 2: mountain fold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 2 result Result
    Step 2 of 11 Mountain fold Fold the card in half along the long middle line, with the printed side on the outside.
  3. Step 3: cut, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 3 result Result
    Step 3 of 11 Cut Cut the two short lines in from the folded edge, through both layers. Stop at the end of each line.
  4. Step 4: fold and unfold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 4 result Result
    Step 4 of 11 Fold and unfold Fold the flap between the cuts up along the dashed line. Crease it hard, then fold it back down.
  5. Step 5: unfold, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 5 result Result
    Step 5 of 11 Unfold Unfold the card and lay it flat, printed side up.
  6. Step 6: push, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 6 result Result
    Step 6 of 11 Push Stand the card up like an L, printed side toward you. Push the flap toward you so it folds the other way and pops out as a step.
  7. Step 7: cut, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 7 result Result
    Step 7 of 11 Cut On the second template, cut out the tree, the sun and the cloud along the solid lines. (The second template: the tree, sun and cloud pieces.)
  8. Step 8: glue, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 8 result Result
    Step 8 of 11 Glue Rub glue on the front of the step. Press the tree trunk onto it, with the bottom of the trunk at the floor. (Back to the card, standing up like an L.)
  9. Step 9: glue, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 9 result Result
    Step 9 of 11 Glue Glue the sun and the cloud high up on the back wall.
  10. Step 10: check, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 10 result Result
    Step 10 of 11 Check Close the card slowly. The step and the tree fold flat inside. If anything sticks out, trim it a little.
  11. Step 11: open, shown on the paper Do this
    Step 11 result Result
    Step 11 of 11 Open Write a message on the front, then open the card: the tree pops up!
An open pop-up card standing like an L, with a green paper tree on a pop-up step, a yellow sun and a white cloud on the back wall.

You made it!

Yours may look a little different. That is part of making things by hand.

Print the steps

Template

Print the template at 100% (Actual size), not "Fit to page". Then measure the check bar with a ruler: it must be 5 cm (2 in) long.

  • Pop-up card with step cuts (preview, not to scale) Pop-up card with step cuts · 184 × 204 mm. Card 180 x 200 mm. The two step cuts are 50 mm long and 50 mm apart. Print at 100%.
  • Tree, sun and cloud (preview, not to scale) Tree, sun and cloud · 160 × 95 mm. Tree 72 mm tall: it fits inside the closed card. Print at 100%.
Print the template

If something goes wrong

The step will not pop out.

Crease the flap firmly both ways in step 4, then push it through from the back while the card is half open.

The tree sticks out of the closed card.

Glue the trunk lower, with its bottom right at the floor, or trim the top of the tree.

The card tears at the end of a cut.

Stop each cut exactly at the end of its printed line. A small piece of tape on the back mends a tear.

There is a hole in the back of the card.

That is normal for a pop-up. Glue the card inside a second folded sheet to cover it, leaving the step free.

Helpful hints

  • Crease every fold sharply before you push the step out.
  • Glue only the trunk to the step, so the tree can fold flat when you close the card.

An original PlayOwl project.

  • An open pop-up card: a brick tower with a clock and two lower wings stand up from a green lawn in front of a blue sky.

    Pop-Up Building Card

    Challenge (level 5 of 5) 40 min Ages 9–14 Paper craft Card stock printed with the pop-up page Scissors Glue Adult help suggested
  • A blue folded greeting card with a red, a yellow and a green paper balloon glued on the front, with drawn strings tied in a bow.

    Folded Greeting Card

    Starter (level 1 of 5) 15 min Ages 4–9 Paper craft Card stock or construction paper Scissors Glue Adult help suggested
  • A tree with a wide brown trunk and roots, three main branches that split into thinner branches, and six round green leaf clumps.

    Tree with Branches

    Confident (level 4 of 5) 20 min Ages 7–12