Make a Pop-Up Cube for an April Fool’s Day Surprise

We’re a prank-loving family, and I love to play little jokes on my husband and kids on April Fools’ Day.

However, I have a few self-imposed rules on what I will or won’t do:

• Don’t mess with people’s food.
• Little silly jump scares are fine, nothing horrifying… or mean-spirited.
• No massive messes (learned this one the hard way).
• Nothing too elaborate or expensive.

This year, I found something fun, inexpensive, and easy-to-make. It is also something we can use again: Pop up Cubes!

These are a current Instagram and social media trend, with people designing elaborate surprises for birthdays, anniversaries, or other special occasions. I have seen the called “Boomf Boxes (or Bombs)” Pop-Up Cubes, Jumping Cubes, and many other variations.

The goal and result are always the same: a paper cube that is easy to hide and stack that pops up the second whatever weight holding it down is lifted.

You can find several videos and tutorials on how to make these, and cardstock paper, glue, and rubber bands are always the main materials. I liked this one from Joy of Crafting, primarily because it comes with a link to an easy printable template:

Make sure to watch the entire video before trying this. Even then, your first attempt might not be perfect. It took me a couple of tries to get it right, but when I figured it out I could crank these out fairly quickly. Even the ones that don’t look perfect will bounce well if you follow the instructions.

This is one of these pranks a parent can play on a kid or teen, or a kid can make themselves, and isn’t gross, scary, or messy. I’ve seen people paste photos on them, write messages, place them in a box with confetti, and other variations, but just a bunch box bouncing up out of nowhere is funny enough.

For April Fools’ purposes, sliding these under laptop computers or backpacks is an easy place, as well as in a bathroom drawer or between the pages of a book. Even one could be a fun gag, but make about ten or so for a big surprise.

One of the most valuable assets we have as humans is the ability to laugh and share joy. April Fools’ Day can be a way to do that if we do it properly and safely.

Why not give it a try with a little “pop”?