In Record Time: Part Two

Record Album Box

After you've melted your vinyl down into bowl form... repurposing the album cover for a gift or storage box is a cinch!
THIS half of the project actually took longer to complete than the bowl itself, but is no less simple to do.

You'll Need:
record album cover
ruler
utility knife
scissors
pencil
glue
clear packing tape

Step 1. Gotta keep 'em Separated Pry apart the record album cover, separating the back from the front. If there are extra spine bits that stick out, trim them away so you have two nice, neat, more-or-less square pieces of board of equal size. Step 2. Smooth Sailing

Use the packing tape to make a clear border around all the edges; this will keep the edges nice and smooth. Step 3. Measure twice...

Take the front cover and place it face down on the table.
Draw four straight lines, each H" in from each edge of the cover, where H = the height you'd like your finished box to be.

Using the lines you just drew, make cuts to create four tabs (see diagram below). Now LIGHTLY run over the uncut lines with your knife; this will score the cardboard and make it easier to fold. Make sure not to apply too much pressure, as you just want to break the surface of the board, not cut all the way through.

Step 4. Fold it like you mean it Fold along the lines you scored in step five. You'll find it's easier to fold the board outwards first, which is the exact opposite of how the final folds need to go. Once you've made the backwards fold, it should be easy to bend the cardboard in the opposite direction to fold inwards. Step 5. Assembly Required: Apply an even coat of glue (or... just use more packing tape) to the tabs, and press the sides of the box to the tab. Step 6. Bottoms Up! Time now to make the bottom half of the box. Place the back cover face down on the table. Draw four straight lines, each H"+1/16" from each edge of the cover (the extra 1/16" will mean the box bottom is a little smaller than the box top; this ensures that you'll be able to slide the two pieces together. For a looser fit, you can increase the allowance to 1/8"). Repeat steps 4 - 6. Viola! That's it! You can thank me later. These totally rock