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Tutorial · 1:12

How to make paper groceries

Every box, can, bottle and crate in my colmado is printed paper. Here is how each kind is made, with photos from the build. The same steps work for a kitchen pantry, a bodega or a bakery.

You'll need

  • Cardstock (65–80 lb), regular printer paper and photo paper
  • A craft knife, a metal ruler and a self-healing cutting mat
  • An empty ballpoint pen or a bone folder for scoring
  • Tacky glue, a glue stick, toothpicks and tweezers
  • A ¼ in wooden dowel (for cans) and a sheet of foam board

New to printables? Read print, cut and glue first, and see which glue to use.

1 Boxes and cartons

  1. Print at 100% on cardstock (65–80 lb). Check the test square first.
  2. Cut on the outline with a craft knife and a metal ruler.
  3. Score every fold line with an empty ballpoint pen, then fold.
  4. Glue the side tab first to make a tube, then close the bottom and the top. A toothpick spreads tacky glue thin.
  5. Run a matching marker along the white cut edges.

Tip: Making a whole shelf? Cut all the pieces first, then score them all, then fold them all. Doing one step at a time is faster and the boxes come out matching.

Cut-out box nets on a cutting mat
Cut and ready to fold
Folded miniature boxes on a cutting mat
Folded and glued
Folded Brisa detergent boxes
Finished

2 Cans

  1. Print the can labels on regular printer paper, which rolls without cracking.
  2. Wrap each label around a ¼ in wooden dowel, leaving a small gap between labels, and glue the seam.
  3. Once dry, cut the dowel in the gaps between labels.
  4. Color the cut ends with a silver marker so they read as metal lids.

Tip: Why ¼ in? A real can is about 3 in across. At 1:12 that's ¼ in. A label for a ¼ in dowel is about 0.79 in long (¼ × 3.14), plus about ¹⁄₁₆ in to overlap at the seam.

Tiny rolled paper cans with red and green labels
A batch of cans

3 Bottles and jars: the shelf-strip shortcut

  1. Print a whole row of bottles as one strip, on photo paper for a little shine.
  2. Glue the strip to light cardstock so it stays stiff, then cut along the straight edges.
  3. Glue a small strip of foam board behind the bottom edge so it stands up on the shelf.

Tip: From the front a strip reads as a full row of bottles, and it saves folding dozens of tiny pieces. Save your patience for the pieces people see up close.

A printed strip of bottles on a cutting mat
One strip, a whole row
The bottle strips standing on the colmado shelves
On the shelf

4 Produce crates

  1. Print the crate on cardstock and cut it out in one piece.
  2. Score and fold up the four sides, then glue the corner tabs.
  3. Glue a white insert inside, a little below the rim, so the fruit sits on top.
  4. Glue the printed fruit on the insert.
Crate nets cut out on a cutting mat
Cut out
A folded crate
Folded
A crate with its white insert
Insert in
A finished crate of guineos
Guineos, done

5 A paper grocery bag

  1. Cut the bag on its outline, including the zigzag top.
  2. Crease every fold, then glue the narrow flap to make a tube.
  3. Fold the sides in to make the gussets, so the bag folds flat.
  4. Fold up the bottom, then open the bag and press the bottom square.
A tiny brown paper bag with the store stamp
Fingertip size

6 A wooden counter

  1. Cut a block of foam board the size of the countertop.
  2. Wrap it in printed wood-grain paper like a gift, gluing the paper on the underside.
  3. Glue it on top of the counter front and cover the exposed end so no foam shows.
Countertop wrapped in wood-grain paper
Wrapped
Counter end with its cover
End covered
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