Well, of course, we have written about miniature books before, but I have found some amazing little and unique pop-up books for sale on Etsy! And I just had to tell you about them 🙂
But you might not know what they are exactly, so let's explain it a little bit first:
updated 17/08/23
What Are Miniature Pop-Up Books and are pop-books still made?
Pop books are basically books with three-dimensional pages, where parts "come to life", as a matter of speaking, and yes pop-books are still made! (see below for DIY instructions)
This gives an even greater experience to the reader when especially important parts of the storyline can be seen in 3D.
Pop-up books are very interesting for children, but adults love them as well. And people who are visually impaired can féél better about what is happening in a book and empathize more with the story.
Behind the making of pop-up books, there is a certain technique that can be learned.
There are plenty of good tutorials on Youtube to make your own, but you can also get (mini) pop-up tutorials on Etsy, digital downloads, (mini) pop-up books that you can color yourself, etc.
We will be diving deeper into 5 stores selling unique pop-up books on Etsy today.
Store number 1: Miniature PopUp Book dollhouse
Well, yes: miniature pop-up books haha
This store sells finished mini pop-up books, but also kits and downloadable files.
So although this shop is from Japan and can't ship worldwide, it could be worthwhile to buy the downloadable files and DIY your small pop-up books!
Variable prices, depending on:
- finished pop-up book
- a pop-up book-kit
- a downloadable file (very affordable!)
On Etsy
- High-quality and unique pop-up books
- the possibility of making these DIY is a plus for sure (the coloring of these can be fun as well! )
- quick delivery
- returns and exchanges are accepted (not for the downloadable items)
- you can make your own pop-up books from downloadable files
- Unfortunately can not ship worldwide, so be sure to check that before ordering.
I would definitely buy from this shop or make a pop-up book myself DIY!
Store number 2: EverAfterMiniatures miniature pop up books
Downloadable dollhouse miniature books.
This store sells a lot of unique (openable) and downloadable miniature books, but also:
- Christmas/Halloween miniatures
- 'magical' miniature books
- Cooking mini books
- miniature scrolls and kits (for example thea sets)
- miniature gift boxes and bags
- miniature matchboxes ( I haven't seen those a lot before!)
- mini dollhouse kits
- pop-up mini books and scenes
For variable prices, check out the store below!
On Etsy
- This is a star-seller, which means that this seller has a history of 5-star reviews, shipping on time, and replying quickly.
- great quality items
- easily assembled
- This is not necessarily a negative point, but this store has only downloadable items, so consider that you need a good printer and know how to use it.
If I would know how to work with a printer, I would definitely purchase from this shop.
Store number 3: PaperCottagePrinties
Granny's Paper Cottage Printies and others.
This store sells a lot of things that are dollhouse-related, and of course, also pop-up books. A list:
- Dollhouse printables
- Paper Bead Templates
- embroidery designs
- printables
- matchbox corner
- scrapbooking/albums
- Halloween printables
- dollhouse wallpaper/floors
Variable prices, very affordable
On Etsy
- Buyers are raving over this store, which means that it gets a lot of 5-star reviews in the last 7 days
- projects can be cut by hand, with no need for a Cricut machine.
- quite easy assembly instructions
- there are just a few pop-up books available, sadly, but that is no criticism of the shop!
I would definitely buy downloadable files from this store.
Store number 4: MyMiniatureWorldShop
Miniature creations.
This store sells all different kinds of miniatures (on a scale of 1:12), let's dive into a list again:
- ceramic gift sets/decorative ceramics/Christmas decor ceramics
- Halloween/Easter/Christmas decor and miniatures
- quite unique circus-themed figures
- drawing room miniatures
- miniature clocks
- ready-made mini books
- downloadable books
- kits for mini books
- furniture/kitchen/nursery miniatures
- ornaments
- spooky/fantasy
- and last but not least 1:24 scale miniatures
Variable prices, check out the store below
On Etsy
- this store is a star seller, which means that it gets a lot of 5-star reviews
- very delicate and lovely work
- is on Etsy since 2013, so if it gets 5 stars, you can be sure of the good quality miniatures!
- no negative reviews to be found
I have to apologize, I only found one pop-up book in this store, while I thought that there would be more. It seems hard to find in mini size after all!
Store number 5: ALAcreatures
11 unique DIY pop-up books and pop-up cards.
The pop-up book is $15,99 and the pop-up printable cards are $1,99
On Etsy
- Very affordable/downloadable DIY projects (cut, fold, and glue) for unique pop up books and cards.
- you can color them the way that you like
- lots of different scenes available
- easy, step-by-step instructions
- The reason why I did not give this store 5 stars, is not because of the quality or anything else, it is just that it had 19 sales only so far. So if you would compare this to other stores with 5 stars, I don't think that would be fair, sorry!
These pop-up mini books and cards definitely seem worth it to give them a try!
What materials are needed to make a miniature pop-up book?
Here's a list of materials that you will need at least to create your mini pop-up books:
- Sturdy paper, like cardstock or drawing paper.
To create the pages of your mini book, but also for your illustrations and pop-up elements. - A pencil and an eraser
- Fine Scissors to cut everything out
- Glue or transparent tape
- A ruler
- A bone folder.
To make sharp creases in your paper for the pop-up elements - Paint, markers, and colored pencils to add color and detail
- Optional: a crafting knife, and a cutting mat..
How to make a mini pop-up book DIY?
Furthermore, you could of course try and make your own mini pop-up book.
How to do this in the next steps:
- Choose your own personal story that you want to use for your pop-up book dollhouse. This can be something magical, a classic fairytale, or even your own personal story.
- Make a plan: You now need to decide how many pages you want your pop-up book to have and decide which pages will "pop-up" from the pages, and how you will organize everything.
Beware that these will be in miniature size and that you probably need to learn first how to create little miniature books in the first place. - Draw or paint your illustrations on sturdy paper, so that they can hold up when folding and gluing together. Cut them out now and add any details.
- Create the most important things: the pop-up elements, these need to be created separately. Cut these out as well and fold them along the crease lines.
- glue the illustrations onto each page of the little book and add the pop-up elements after that.
- When all is assembled and glued, stack the pages together and glue them together at the spine. Make sure that the glue is completely dry before moving on.
- add any finishing touches, details, or embellishments, such as a cover or title page
- Done! Enjoy!
If you would like to learn a complete course on how to make a pop-up book, then check out this tutorial on Domestika by Sylvia Hijano.
I hope that you enjoyed this blog post on miniature pop-up books. They are quite hard to find I must admit, but aren't they cute?
If you have any questions on this topic, or if you want to chat with me, please leave a comment below, or join me on my social media pages or Facebook group.
I wish you happy crafting!
Kind regards,
Lizzy
Pop up books are a really neat hobby and the product looks beautiful. If I did not know what it was you definitely explained it well. I was wondering what the rating was for in the latest reviews then I sort-of guessed that it is the product rating accompanying the review. That actually shows how people really like those miniature pop up books. This reminds me of an arts and crafts activity I would do with my kids or at school or summer camp. This is really neat and affordable. The only Con you shared was shipping. Is that because you did not find anything else concerning about the product? Or the durability of the product and the complexity of difficulty levels would not be problematic for beginners?
Hi Alex,
They really are neat and so cute, right? About your questions: most of these are downloadable, so you don't need to worry about shipping 😉
The difficulty level doesn't seem to complicated for beginners either, just give it a try and don't be afraid to share the results? 🙂
Happy crafting!
Lizzy
I am a "hands-on" Grandma, helping out when my kids are working or have other things going on. I love to find interesting and educational projects to do with the grandchildren and this looks like a winner! Since I have a printer and my daughter has a Cricut machine, I feel confident that this is a thing we could accomplish! And the price of the DIY items are very reasonable so I'm going to give it a try. Thank you for posting.
Go Grandma and have fun with the grandkids haha!
Happy crafting and have a happy newyear!
