DIY Envelope

The first thing to do with posting a hard-copy letter is to source an envelope. The easiest way is to head over to accessories shop and but a pack of them. However, around this new era, sometimes, you only need just 1-2 envelopes a year but the shop sells you a pack of them. That's a lot of them. Also, using those envelope, you need to do custom printout.

What if there is a way to print a customizable envelope out on an A4 paper and you can just Do-It-Yourself (DIY) with double-sided tape, making it looks superbly professional? This post will guide you through different kinds of envelopes.

A4/Letter-Sized Letter Envelope

I obtained and customized this template original from a Singapore artist and now from Template Lab.com. Some modifications I did was porting to Google Drawing for scalability, removal of "scissors", reduces the embedded text to a shorter length without removing its meaning, and color striping the ribbon for indicating the confidentiality level / styling. Here's how it looks like after the editing:

Make A Copy

  1. head over to: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/193MtSbFWxgHTmg57sSo041rIj3WjtmS47sHX9M2RxC0/edit?usp=sharing
  2. Go to File > Make A Copy.
  3. Go to File > Share.
    1. Adjust the necessary access so that you protects the personal identification data (Name + Address)
    2. Press Done
  4. Use the envelope by changing the recipient name and address according to the guide.

Editing

  1. Apply any changes (e.g. graphics etc) according to the dimension as it is (both the grey solid and dotted line).
    • TIP: Each leaves are "parts". You can make use of Google Drawing's Top-Bottom layering to easily adjust the overlapping graphic pieces.
  2. Print it out as FULL page on A4 (recommended and tested) or letter sized (untested) hard paper.
  3. If you're using a blank-color only printer, it is better to change those colored stripe into black and attach a label to it.

Crafting

  1. Cut the dotted line using a scissor to form the body. Leave the solid line alone.
  2. Fold the parts into an envelope formation. Use double-sided tape (recommended) or other sticky and strong enough adhesive material to glue them together in sequence:
    1. The left side (short) leaf goes inside.
    2. The bottom (without word) goes inside.
    3. The top (with word) goes next.
    4. The right (close to colored stripe and stamp) is the last piece where it acts a letter cover.

Filling and Seal

  1. Fold your letter contents and fills the envelope.
  2. Stick the cover leaf and you have a fully-ready, professionally printed out envelope with contents.
  3. If you're a classical person, you can apply your wax seal at the letter opening at the poing where all 3 leaves met. Now that's cool around this era.
  4. Stick a stamp and post it!

That's all about DIY an envelope using computing system. All you need is a suitable printer, a scissor, and a double-sided tape.