How to Make a Simple Pop-Up Birthday Cake Card

A simple and fun DIY pop-up birthday card that you can print, cut, fold, and assemble at home. This project is beginner-friendly and perfect for birthdays, handmade gifts, or paper craft practice.

You will need:

1. A4 cardstock paper
2. Craft knife or scissors
3. Metal ruler
4. Scoring tool (or an empty ballpoint pen)
5. Glue or double-sided tape
6. Cutting mat

Tip: Thicker paper (around 200–250gsm cardstock) works best for strong pop-up structures.

Print the birthday cake pop-up template on A4 cardstock.

For cleaner folds and better structure, use “Actual Size” or “100% Scale” when printing.

You can find the full printable PDF template and more pop-up designs here:

👉 https://www.brunofold.com/blog/how-to-make-a-pop-up-birthday-cake-card

Carefully cut out all pieces following the solid cutting lines.

Take your time around:

1. small corners
2. candle details
3. inner pop-up structures

Using a craft knife with a ruler will give cleaner edges than scissors.

Before folding, score all dashed fold lines.

This is very important for smooth opening and closing.

You can use:

1. a scoring stylus
2. an empty pen
3. the back of a craft knife

Lightly press along the ruler without cutting through the paper.

Slowly fold the card along the center line.

Then gently reverse the inner cake mechanism inward.

Open and close the card several times to help the structure settle naturally.

If some parts resist folding:

1. reopen the card
2. strengthen the score lines
3. fold more gradually

Glue the pop-up mechanism onto the base card.

Make sure:

1. edges are aligned
2. the card can fully close
3. the cake pops up smoothly when opened

You can also decorate the card with:

1. colored pencils
2. markers
3. stickers
4. pastel colors

You now have a handmade pop-up birthday cake card!

This project is great for:

1. birthday gifts
2. DIY paper craft practice
3. classroom activities
4. handmade decorations

More printable pop-up templates and paper engineering tutorials:

👉 https://www.brunofold.com

You can also create colored versions and explore more pop-up mechanisms on the website.