How To Make A Cardboard Cutout Stand Up

Yes. Teens like standees too. Especially if they're zombies.

Yes. Teens like standees too. Peculiarly if they're zombies.

Whether it'due south for book bashes, birthday parties, or other fan-based events, cardboard standees are a wonderful style to add together that special "something" to your shindig. Kids of all ages – even teens – love posing and taking pictures with standees. It'south a neat way to brand them experience similar they're "living" the book and assist the story come alive for them.

The trouble with standees is that they're usually expensive. Especially if the series you're fangirling/fanboying over is an extremely pop ane (i.eastward. The Hunger Games). Such standees tin easily go for $20 a pop or more than, which can quickly consume through your program budget if you're not conscientious.

The solution? Information technology'due south uncomplicated: brand your own standee. It's ridiculously cheap, particularly if you already take the supplies on hand. Absolutely, you have to have a smidge of artistic power in order to pull this off. Or at to the lowest degree have a friend with a smidge of ability who tin be easily guilted into helping you. 😉

I've posted my tutorial on how to make paper-thin standees beneath. I'd recommend starting simple (ex: cartoon characters) before trying anything harder. Once you've got the hang of it, let your imagination run wild. Plants, animals, buildings: annihilation's upward for grabs as long as its made of cardboard.

Supplies:

2 large pieces of cardboard (refrigerator boxes are the perfect size)

ane box cutter

1 bottle of wood glue

1 pencil

1 sharpie marker

Bottles of paint in diverse colors

Pigment brushes in diverse sizes (both small and large)

Pace 1: Draw your grapheme

Since we're had a Frozen movie political party this week for Spring Break, I decided to make an Olaf standee so the kids could take pictures with him. I found a motion-picture show of Olaf on the Internet and drew him as all-time I could. So I outlined him with a black sharpie marker so he was easier to run across.

Annotation: The determination to use sharpie or non is entirely upwardly to you. If yous're not careful, the sharpie can bleed through your paint if you're using lighter colors. In my case, I wanted the lines to drain through so I could run across them and re-trace them in black paint. If yous're worried about it, I'd recommend sticking with just pencil.

Step two: Paint.

If you're messy like me, I highly recommend washable paints. Too, be prepared to practise multiple coats if you're using lighter colors. I had to paint Olaf's torso four times to take him from cardboard brown to white.

Step 3: Cutting out your grapheme using a box cutter

Go slowly while doing this, as in "so slow yous might be mistaken for a turtle." Otherwise, you lot may accidentally slice into your character and have to start all over. If you lot accept small, detailed parts (like hands) leave actress infinite around them so that yous can become back and take even more time on those sections.

Step four: Create the back support

In club for your character to stand upright, there has to exist a piece of cardboard attached to its back in perpendicular fashion. So take your 2d piece of cardboard and follow the directions below:

1) Cut the cardboard until it's just a little bit shorter than your character

two) Draw a "Giant Kick Shape" on this piece of paper-thin. Cut out your giant kick using the box cutter.

3) Fold the right side of your "boot" in nigh two inches. This will create a flat surface for adhering it to your standee.

2nd paper-thin piece

Behemothic boot shape

Finished product (with folded right side)

Step v: Attach the back back up

Trace the outline of the 2 inch, apartment section of your back up piece onto the back of your grapheme. Make sure that y'all've centered the support in the middle of your character'south body. Afterwards yous're washed tracing, fill in what you've fatigued with wood glue. Then apply the 2 inch department of the back up to the glue and press downwardly firmly. Weigh it downwards with several heavy objects and let it sit overnight.