Cue the organ music, because I’ve got a an extra special design that you’ll definitely want to take for a spin. Whether you’re looking for a unique, handmade art piece for a nursery, or just in the mood for a fun paper craft, you’ll love this intricate, die cut 3D carousel.
Like this design? Consider leaving a tip.
A few months ago, I was working on my Mary Poppins paper lantern design, and decided to incorporate a little carousel. I wanted to include so much more detail in that carousel design, but was limited because of size constraints. So, I decided to explore doing a carousel-themed project in the future.
Once I had decided to start on this project, I knew that a 2D rendering wasn’t going to cut it—this project demanded more intricacy than that. And that’s how this beauty came to be!
I’ve added some alternate animals that can be used with this project. You can check those out and download the templates here.
Follow along using the instructions below, or check out this tutorial video.
Supplies
- Cardstock
- 6″ Lollipop Sticks
- Hot Glue
- Bone Folder (optional)
- A Cutting Machine or X-ACTO knife
- My Free Template
How to Make
1. Use your cutting machine or X-ACTO knife, along with my template, to cut out all of the carousel pieces.
Note: I don’t usually include score lines in my SVG downloads, but I made an exception for this design because of the complexity of the overall piece. If you are using the SVG files that includes the score lines, don’t forget to set them as such in Cricut Design Space and attach them to their shapes before sending through your cutting machine. If you’re not using the SVG file that includes score lines, you can use the PDF version as a reference to know where your folds need to go.
2. Fold the base pieces and glue them together. Fold the center column pieces and glue them together as well.
3. Attach the center column to the base by inserting the tabs at the base of the column and gluing them to the base.
4. Fold the base of the top tent; fold the border pieces and affix them to the top tent base. Attach it to the center column.
5. Insert lollipop sticks into the top and bottom portions of the carousel. Use hot glue to hold them in place.
6. Glue the top tent sections together. Fold and attach to the top tent base.
Optional: Attach the flag to a shortened lollipop stick or toothpick. Insert it in the center of the tent and affix with hot glue.
7. Assemble the carousel horses. Attach them to the lollipop sticks.
Not that I’m not proud of all of the designs I share here on my site, but I’m extra proud of this one! There was a lot of wasted paper, late nights, and, admittedly, a few tears involved in getting this template to fit perfectly. So, when this finally came together, I was extremely excited!
I realize that this design is a little more complicated to piece together than most of the ones I provide on my site, so I’m hoping to create some tutorial videos in the near future in order to better show the set-up and assembly processes.
I use Adobe Illustrator for all of my designs, and a Cricut Maker to bring my creations to life. For tips on creating fun paper cuts like this one, see the FAQ section on my website. Also, be sure to check out the other awesome die cut freebies available on my blog!
I hope you enjoy this enchanting die cut 3D carousel! Would you be interested in seeing me feature more 3D projects like this in the future?
Watch the video tutorial for this design here:
*This post contains affiliate links. By clicking through my links to make a purchase, you are supporting this blog and the hard work that goes into providing free, quality designs.
Mandee is a professional graphic designer, amateur bird watcher, and rollercoaster enthusiast. She is a wife to hardworking high school teacher and mommy to three adorable little humans. She fell in love with graphic design when she started working on a comedy website with a guy she met her freshman year of college. Design wasn’t the only thing she fell in love with, and they were married a year and a half later. She created Designs By Miss Mandee to be a place where she could merge her passion for design with her lifelong love of crafting. 70 Comments on Die Cut 3D Carousel
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Christele CAMUS
May 21, 2019 at 6:08 am (5 years ago)magnifique !! oui cela serait super si tu pouvais publier de projet en 3D
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:06 am (5 years ago)Thanks Christele! Glad to know you like it. I’ll definitely have to think up some new, 3D pieces for the future. 🙂
Mechelle
February 1, 2022 at 8:02 am (3 years ago)Hello I really love your carousel. You did an amazing job. But I want to make the larger. How do I do that?
Mandee
February 1, 2022 at 8:41 am (3 years ago)You can scale the design up larger in your cutting machine software if you’d like. YOu’ll just need to use bigger sheets of paper. 🙂
Catherine
May 21, 2019 at 6:17 am (5 years ago)I love it!! Thank you so much!!
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:06 am (5 years ago)You’re welcome Catherine! I’m so glad you like it. 😀
Juanita Williams
May 21, 2019 at 6:20 am (5 years ago)Love this. It would be great to have more 3d projects. Thank you so very much for all that you share.
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:07 am (5 years ago)Thank you Juanita! That’s good to know—I’ll be sure to think up some new, 3D projects for the future! 😀
Kathy
May 21, 2019 at 6:21 am (5 years ago)Mandee,
Thank you so much for the adorable project, and yes, more 3d projects in the future (3d projects are my weakness). Your carousel is over the top in cuteness! I can’t imagine how much work you did to create the project.
The carousel immediately transported me back to my childhood when my family would go to Liberty Park in Salt Lake City during the summer and I would be able to ride on the carousel. Whoa, that was a long time ago, is the carousel still there?
A friend will be visiting soon and she may want to make one of your carousels for her granddaughters. She doesn’t have a cutting machine or use anything from the internet (we are old). When she comes for a visit I try to have some cute projects ready for her. This year we will build paper fairy houses. If we have time maybe we can make your carousel too.
Thank you again!
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:15 am (5 years ago)Thank you for your wonderful comment Kathy! This really was a tricky project for me, but I’m immensely pleased with the result! Being a Northern Utah resident myself, you made me curious about the Liberty Park carousel. I looked it up, and according to an article in Deseret News, there was a carousel there in 1984. It doesn’t say when it was removed, though. I’d be interesting to know what happened to it.
Have fun visiting with your friend! It’s always great to spend time doing creative projects in good company!!
Barbara Pritchard
May 21, 2019 at 6:41 am (5 years ago)Thank you so much for your generosity. You are a remarkable person to share the beautiful things you make, and this carousel is no exception.
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:15 am (5 years ago)Aww, thank you Barbara! You are too kind. ^_^
Tracey
May 21, 2019 at 7:03 am (5 years ago)Thanks for all your hard work and lovely designs! Love this carousel!!
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:16 am (5 years ago)Thank you Tracey! I’m so glad you like it!! 😀
Priscila
May 21, 2019 at 7:23 am (5 years ago)Realmente amo tus diseños!!!, que lindo carrusel, su acabado es tan delicado :3
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:17 am (5 years ago)Thank you Priscila! I’m glad you enjoy my work. Thanks for taking the time to say so. 🙂
Susy
May 21, 2019 at 7:45 am (5 years ago)Wow, thank you so much for this. It looks amazing!
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:18 am (5 years ago)You’re very welcome Susy! I’m glad to know that you like it!!
Charlotte Silber
May 21, 2019 at 8:41 am (5 years ago)Thank you. This is so cute and a great table center piece.
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 9:19 am (5 years ago)Thank you Charlotte! It would definitely make for a great talking piece when people visit!! 🙂
Melanie Lashua
May 21, 2019 at 10:50 am (5 years ago)Yeah! Thank you so much, this is so beautiful!!!
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 11:31 am (5 years ago)You’re welcome Melanie! I’m glad you like it. ^_^
Dee
May 21, 2019 at 1:23 pm (5 years ago)Oh my GOSH!!! Thank you so much. I love carousels and have been a collector of carousel items for many, many years. I LOVE THIS.
Mandee
May 21, 2019 at 1:25 pm (5 years ago)Wow! What an awesome coincidence!! Well, I’m sure this one will look lovely as part of your collection. ^_^
steffie chu
May 21, 2019 at 7:39 pm (5 years ago)Phenomenal Mandee. Is there anything you can’t design!! Absolutely LUV LUV LUV it. I’m going to make it for a baby gift. BTW, congratulations on your upcoming new family addition. I don’t know how you do it with 2 young boys and a 3rd child on its way and still designing for us. We’re so very fortunate and lucky!!! Get your rest in there, too! Thanks so much for all your wonderful designs and your continued generosity and kindness in freely sharing them with us.
Mandee
May 22, 2019 at 7:15 am (5 years ago)Aww, Steffie, you are too kind! And thanks for the congratulatory note—we are super excited to be growing our family!! I’m so glad you enjoy my designs—I worked especially hard on this one, and I’m happy that it shows. Have fun making this carousel for a baby gift—what a fun idea! 😀
Hope Donald
May 23, 2019 at 5:29 pm (5 years ago)Congratulations on your upcoming new arrival. I wish you the best. I want to thank you for designing this beautiful carousel, and I cannot wait to cut it out. The pdf was very helpful with score line placement.
Mandee
May 24, 2019 at 8:13 am (5 years ago)Thank you Hope!! We are really excited. ^_^
I’m glad you like my carousel design and that the pdf was helpful too!!
Flo Arnold
June 8, 2019 at 8:53 am (5 years ago)I am having a hard time assembling. Where in the cut file is the gold base? what do I use for the top base? Giving up for awhile
Flo Arnold
June 8, 2019 at 5:46 pm (5 years ago)Hi, I found my answer looking at the PDF file for the names of the cuts. Thank you
Mandee
June 10, 2019 at 1:07 pm (5 years ago)Glad you were able to get it figured out! I know, it’s a lot of little steps. Hopefully I have some time to make a tutorial video in the future to better explain the assembly process.
Caro
June 8, 2019 at 11:12 pm (5 years ago)OMG I love this!!! I have an upcoming French Party for my dog and this is perfect!!!
One question though… on step #4, how do I attach the border to the center column?
Mandee
June 10, 2019 at 1:11 pm (5 years ago)How fun! Glad you can make use of this design. ^_^
As for step #4: you’ll want to glue the border pieces together first, then assemble the “top base,” then glue the border around the edge. After that, you can attach the “top base” to the center column using the slits and column tabs. I probably should have broken that part out into more steps—my apologies!
Susanne McCown
July 9, 2019 at 12:36 pm (5 years ago)I love the carousel it went together beautifully. The SVG only has column tabs on one end though making it a little confusing. In your picture above it has tabs both ends. I ended up cutting the tabs on other end by hand.
Mandee
July 9, 2019 at 4:06 pm (5 years ago)Yay! I’m glad to hear that you were able to utilize my design to create your own, special carousel!!
At first I only had the tabs on one side of the center column, but I went back and altered the file later on. Maybe you downloaded it before I changed it—I’m sorry! The files should be fixed now. ^_^
Margaret Ball
June 17, 2019 at 3:32 pm (5 years ago)Hi Miss Mandee!
I love your carosuel! I’ve downloaded it, but it will not upload into Cricut Design Space. I’ve used several of your files before without any difficulties. I’ve even tried saving it in Inkscape and then tried to upload to CDS, but I got the same error message “You have selected an unsupported file type.” Can you suggest how I might be able to get around this or know what is causing it?
Thank you,
Margaret
Mandee
June 19, 2019 at 8:43 am (5 years ago)Hi Margaret! I’m sorry that you are having trouble. Have you tried both the file that includes score lines and the one without? Do you get the same error with both?
Vincenza
October 2, 2021 at 11:27 am (3 years ago)Ciao i tuoi lavori sono stupendi . Io ho provato a scaricare ma non me li apre come mai. Grazie mille
Mandee
October 4, 2021 at 10:42 am (3 years ago)Sorry you’re having trouble! Take a look at my FAQ page for detailed downloading instructions and troubleshooting tips.
Karin
July 7, 2019 at 12:56 pm (5 years ago)It is so cute , i have to make this one , omg what a work this was for you to create but what a good job you did , greatings from Karin ( the Netherlands
Mandee
July 8, 2019 at 10:43 am (5 years ago)Aww, thank you Karin! I’m so glad you like it. This was definitely a big project for me, but I’m happy to share the results. Have fun putting it together!!
Vanessa L
July 7, 2019 at 12:58 pm (5 years ago)Adorable! Thank you for sharing!
Mandee
July 8, 2019 at 10:43 am (5 years ago)You’re welcome Vanessa! Glad you like it. ^_^
Mary
August 30, 2019 at 2:15 pm (5 years ago)This really looks incredible – thank you for sharing it! Apologies if I missed it, but do you know the approximate assembled dimensions? I’m thinking of using it as a cake topper for a 12″ round but wanted to first make sure it’s not too big! Thank you!!
Mandee
August 30, 2019 at 3:10 pm (5 years ago)You’re welcome Mary! I’m glad you like it!!
Finished, the whole thing is about 5.5″ in diameter and around 9″ tall. 🙂
Amanda
November 11, 2019 at 6:36 pm (5 years ago)Where do you find the cheapest lollipop sticks? This is gorgeous!!
Mandee
November 12, 2019 at 8:25 am (5 years ago)Thank you! I’ve bought them at my local craft store in the past; but, since then, have found them cheaper on Amazon. 🙂
Dee
January 1, 2020 at 6:49 pm (5 years ago)gorgeous project – as usual 🙂 Thank you!
Mandee
January 2, 2020 at 8:25 am (5 years ago)You’re very welcome!! 😊
Lyn
February 8, 2020 at 12:14 pm (5 years ago)Thank you i love it had a few issues as tabs on pink middle column as this was missing on file but i managed to make? This was my 1st project on cricket so could of just been me. i turned sticks into Bbq sticks with a straw over it which looked like twisted poles in white and silver also added a few diamond stick on as its for my daughters wedding centre piece as a Mary Poppins themed table. Loads of comments on how beautiful.
caroline
March 24, 2020 at 3:16 pm (4 years ago)hi, I found your beautiful 3D creations and I wanted to download them, but I tried and can’t open the files. do I need to have a circuit machine for this?
I’m sorry if my question is stupid….
Mandee
March 25, 2020 at 11:59 am (4 years ago)Hi Caroline! Sorry to hear that you are having trouble. Check out my FAQ page and see if any of the instructions there seem to resolve your problem. If not, feel free to contact me with more details, and I’ll see how I can help. 🙂
Tania
September 22, 2020 at 11:56 am (4 years ago)Lindo demais.
Mandee
September 22, 2020 at 9:29 pm (4 years ago)Thank you!
Sabrina B
August 10, 2021 at 12:19 pm (3 years ago)I was on the internet searching for 3D houses to cut with my maker and stumbled onto your site. I am amazed at the free designs you have available. Incredible designs and all of them are so beautiful. I cannot wait for my granddaughter to see them and make them with me. Thank you so much, I cannot express how much I appreciate the free designs.
Mandee
August 11, 2021 at 2:16 pm (3 years ago)Aww, that makes me so happy to hear! I’m so glad you stumbled upon my little corner of the internet. 😊
I’m always happy when my designs can bring people joy, and even more so when they have someone special to craft with and make memories!!
alaina
September 7, 2021 at 7:25 am (3 years ago)Hi Mandee, this is GORGEOUS! Can this be used in Silhouette Studio? Any tips for opening your files in that program would be hugely appreciated!
Mandee
September 8, 2021 at 11:38 am (3 years ago)Hi Alaina! If you have the Designer Edition of Silhouette Studio, then you should be able to upload the SVG files. If you don’t, then you may have to convert the file to a different format in order to use them.
SUSAN
January 9, 2022 at 8:33 am (3 years ago)Congratulations for your blog! 🙂 I downloaded the pdf file of the marvellous Carousel but I don’t know when I should use the paper in pink, in yellow, in white and in light blue in order to print them. I tried to study the image but for example if I print the last page with the horses in white then I don’t have the saddle of the horse in yellow?
Could you please help me? How colour should I print each page? Thank you very much! Susan
alaa
January 10, 2022 at 8:22 am (3 years ago)hi
thanks for a beautiful design carousel but I can’t down it plz help
Mandee
January 10, 2022 at 11:15 am (3 years ago)Hi There! Sorry you are having trouble. I suggest taking a look at my FAQ page for downloading instructions and troubleshooting tips. 🙂
libby
June 29, 2022 at 7:41 pm (2 years ago)Hi! I just love this! I cannot figure out how to add the score lines on the images in my cricut… I don’t know what I’m doing wrong and it would make it so much easier to have the machine do that- can you advise me?
Mandee
June 30, 2022 at 10:54 am (2 years ago)Hi There! Sorry you are having trouble. Check out this tutorial I made on how to set up score lines in Cricut Design Space. 🙂
Amanda
August 14, 2022 at 3:12 pm (2 years ago)This was my first paper craft project, and I don’t have a cutting machine so I’ve worked from the PDF and done it with an XACTO knife. Is there a reason why the PDF only prints 6 horses even though you need 8 to have one on each pole? Was I supposed to skip poles? Was I supposed to print 12 and plan to discard 4? I’m not a crafter, so maybe I’m missing something? Thanks for any guidance, I have had a blast working on this!
Mandee
August 16, 2022 at 11:05 am (2 years ago)Sorry Amanda! Yes, you do need 8 horses. I don’t know why I only included 6 in the PDF version, haha. You can just print off that last page again and disregard the extras.
Dawn
August 20, 2022 at 5:25 am (2 years ago)Hi Mandee, I love this, it would be brilliant made using unicorns for a little girls bedroom and the dragon one you made would be perfect for a dungeon and dragons fan, can you tell me what the height and width the carousel would be once it is made please x
Mandee
August 22, 2022 at 8:40 am (2 years ago)I’m glad you like it!!
Finished, the whole thing is about 5.5″ in diameter and around 9″ tall. 🙂
Dawn
August 22, 2022 at 10:22 am (2 years ago)Thank you Mandee
Debbie
November 1, 2023 at 9:51 am (11 months ago)Thank you so very much for this and your other projects that you provide and an especial thank you for the PDF files. I don’t have a cutting machine I do all my cutting by hand. Yes it does take awhile but as I am retired I do have the time . I am going to use this pattern and make it all white and silver with some snow on top and include it along with your ferris wheel (also in white) with my Christmas display. Looking so forward to seeing it all set up. Once again from a grateful person thank you.
Mandee
November 1, 2023 at 12:11 pm (11 months ago)Aww, Debbie, your comment has really made me smile! I’m very impresses that you have the patience to cut this all out by hand—I”m sure you’re going to do a lovely job with this project, and I think it will look amazing as a winter piece!!