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How-to: Make a One-of-a-kind soda box school folder
by Mia McGregor
A new school year is coming up and that means the annual, sometimes dreaded, school supplies shopping trip. But don’t be too eager to spend your money. Some of these school time necessities can be made right at home! If you have soda boxes lying around (which you probably do this time of year), try using them to create a one of a kind school folder.
Make a soda box folder.
Supplies needed:
- 2 soda boxes (the one for the folder needs to be a long soda box, the other one can be smaller since it’s only for the pockets)
- Clear Packaging Tape
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Tracing device
- 15-20 minutes
- Old store bought school folder (optional)
Step 1: Take the large soda box and cut through it along one fold. It will no longer be a box.
Step 2: Cut off all the ends of the box, and set them aside.
It should look like this:
Step 3: Move on to box number 2. Repeat step 1, this time cutting it into four pieces. Do not cut the ends off of this box.
Step 4: Back to box number 1. Cut it into the size folder that you want. The old school folder is helpful here because you can simply trace around it and cut to the right size. 
Mine ended up being about 12 by 9.5 inches. 
*Note: If you stop after this step, you will have a simple file folder.
Step 5:
Time to make pockets using the second box. Take one of the thinner pieces and measure and cut it to pocket size. Then, trace around it on another piece and cut out your second pocket.
Step 6: Here is where we tape the pockets to the folder. Keeping the ends to wrap around the back will provide more support. I cut mine to about ¼ inch. Slowly tape the pocket to the folder, using small pieces of tape. 
I find big pieces harder to work with because it’s easier to mess up and create air bubbles and a bumpy surface.
Step 7: Use the tape on any fragile areas, such as the handle area with the dotted lines, folds, and any torn spots. The more tape, the sturdier the folder will be, and the longer it will last!
Step 8: If you would like, use the extra cardboard pieces to create additional pockets (for smaller items like flash cards). Or hole punch the folder, so it can fit in a binder.Get creative and make this do-it-yourself soda box folder your own!
Step 9: You are all done! Come the new school year, everyone is going to want to know where you got that folder. And nothing feels better than being able to say, “I made it myself!”
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