c Finger Tips


If you've ever had to buy a greetings card you'll know that sometimes, a shop bought card isn't enough.

These Finger Tips Animated Cards are the answer - they're really moving!
They're great for showing someone that you care, and there are lots of design possibilities.

This one would be perfect for someone who finds it hard to get to sleep - they can gently nod off watching the sheep jump the fence!
How about this one?

It's like a party in a card - complete with balloons and streamers!
And this fish and ship (get it?) card looks great, doesn't it?

Here's how it's made.
If you'd like to make one of these cards, you'll need to get hold of a sturdy box.

An E3 size washing powder box is perfect.
The first thing to do is take a ruler and measure the width of the box.

Find the middle and make a mark there.
Now change the position of the ruler so that it measures the length of the box, from the mark you just made.

Measure along to a distance of half the width you measured in the previous step.

Make another mark.
Now carefully push a sharp pencil through the mark.
Turn the box over and repeat the above three steps on the other side.

The holes that you've made are for the spindle, which allows the card to turn.
Now cut three sides away from the box, just above the holes that you've already made.

When done, you should have something that looks like this.
Next you need a pair of compasses and open them out to half the width of the box.
Be careful to keep the compasses at the same width and draw a circle on a separate piece of card.
Cut the circle out.
Now you need to cut out another circle, slightly smaller than the last one, onto clear acetate.

Acetate is clear plastic which you can buy from most art and craft shops.

Keep an eye out for any packaging which has large areas of clear, flat plastic, as that would be just as good.
The acetate circle is used for this part of the card.
Make a hole in the middle of the acetate circle, which is also for the spindle.
Now for the fish and ship designs.

We've got a couple of templates for you.

Get them by clicking here.
If you've got some shiny card, the dolphins look great cut from that.

Kitchen foil would work just as well.
You can glue the dolphins onto the clear acetate circle.

Just pop some stick glue on the back of each and stick them to the outside edge of the circle, evenly spaced out.


Take the circle of card that you made earlier, and cut it down into a wobbly shape that looks something like this.

This will be the cog that the spindle turns round.
Now you can decorate the box however you like.

This one has been covered with coloured paper. It has a blue sky with fluffy clouds and a darker blue sea with wave detail drawn on.
Draw a wave pattern onto the circle of card, like this.
Now you can make the ship.

Corrugated card will work well, or ordinary card painted brown to look wooden will be just as good.

This one has portholes cut from kitchen foil with a hole punch - good, eh?
Take two cocktail sticks and decorate each with some white paper sails and a flag.
Stick them onto the back of the boat shape with a piece of sticky tape - and that completes the boat.
Make two cardboard washers by cutting two circles out of cardboard and put holes in them both.
Stick them to the cogs you've already made and will strengthen the holes..
Now you can assemble everything.

Thread a straw through the hole in the back of the box.

Pop on the wobbly cog first...
...followed by the cog with the dolphins.
Thread the spindle (an ordinary drinking straw) through the front of the box leaving an equal distance between the sides of the box and each cog.
Pop dabs of glue on each cog to hold them in place on the spindle.
Now make a 4cm floppy hinge and stick it to the back of the boat.
Stick it to the back of the box so that the boat itself is further forward than the wobbly cog.
As the cog turns around, the boat should go up and down.
Add a little life belt to the front of the box, on top of the spindle which pokes through, to neaten it up.
And that's it - all done - looks great doesn't it?

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