Christmas decorations shadow box SVG
A wall hung with Christmas decorations: snow falling over firs outside a window of six panes, five baubles hanging in front of it, a shelf with candlesticks, a poinsettia, candles and a small tree, and at the front a garland of pine across the top and a line of six stockings below the shelf. 6 sheets of card, cut and stacked with a gap between each, make the picture. The files are free, and every part of the scene can be moved, swapped or resized below before you download.
6 sheets at 10 × 8 in, landscape, zipped, with a note on putting them together.
Free for personal and commercial use, no sign-up. What you can do with it.
The 6 sheets
Sheet 1 is the back and sheet 6 is the front. Each one is a single piece with the same frame round its edge, so they line up when stacked. The colours shown are the “Lit from behind” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 1, “Snow outside”, the slowest: at 0.7 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 6, “Garland and stockings”, fills the most of the view, 44% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Snow outside | A whole sheet with holes for: Simple chunky snowflake, Koch snowflake and 7 × Plain disc | 0.7 mm | 6% |
| 2. Snowy firs | Rolling ground, with: Three pine trees and Classic pine tree | 0.9 mm | 5% |
| 3. Wall and window | Flat ground, with: 6 × Rounded rectangle | over 2 mm | 19% |
| 4. Baubles | Frame only, with: Round bauble ornament, Onion-shaped ornament, Bauble with a snowflake cut-out, Teardrop ornament and Onion ornament with a star cut-out | 1.1 mm | 5% |
| 5. Shelf | Flat ground, with: 2 × Candlestick with a taper candle, Potted poinsettia plant, Three candles, Christmas tree with a star on top and Pillar candle with dripping wax | 0.8 mm | 21% |
| 6. Garland and stockings | Frame only, with: 2 × Christmas pine garland with bows and 2 × Stockings hung in a row | over 2 mm | 44% |
Measured from the files at 10 × 8 in, landscape. The narrowest part is the thinnest neck of card that holds anything on; sharp tips are not counted. “Seen from the front” is the share of the picture that sheet fills once the sheets in front of it are in place.
Will it cut at your size?
The download is 10 × 8 in, landscape. The scene maker above makes the same scene at any of these sizes; the thinnest part scales with it.
| Frame opening | Each sheet | Narrowest part | Depth needed | Fits a 12 × 12 in mat | Rule of thumb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 8 in, landscape | 254 × 203.2 mm | 0.7 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
Depth needed allows 3 mm of foam between sheets and 5 mm for the card itself and the backing.
Making this one
The five baubles hang on threads of card about 1.6 mm wide, each joined to the top of its sheet behind the garland. The stockings are two lines of three that meet in the middle and run into the frame at each side, and the garland is made the same way, so the front sheet is one piece with nothing under 2 mm at 10 by 8 inches. The wall is a whole sheet with six panes cut out of it. The snowflakes in the back sheet are the fine cutting, at about 0.7 mm, the things on the shelf are about 0.8 mm and the baubles about 1.1 mm. In the Lit from behind colours it runs from cream to dark brown. For a brighter one, cut the stockings in red and the shelf in green.
- Cut all 6 sheets from 160 to 220 gsm card at the same size.
- Lay them out in order, sheet 1 at the back.
- Put strips of 3 mm foam tape round the border of sheet 1 and press sheet 2 onto it with the edges level. Carry on to sheet 6.
- Fit the stack into a deep frame with the front sheet against the glass. For a light box, run a strip of warm white LEDs round the inside of the frame behind the stack.
The zip includes these steps as a text file, each sheet as its own SVG and all 6 side by side in one SVG. More on paper, frames and lights is on the shadow box page.
The parts, on their own
Everything in the scene comes from the free SVG library, where each has its own page and file:
- Simple chunky snowflake
- Koch snowflake
- Three pine trees
- Classic pine tree
- Rounded rectangle
- Round bauble ornament
- Onion-shaped ornament
- Bauble with a snowflake cut-out
- Teardrop ornament
- Onion ornament with a star cut-out
- Candlestick with a taper candle
- Potted poinsettia plant
- Three candles
- Christmas tree with a star on top
- Pillar candle with dripping wax
- Christmas pine garland with bows
- Stockings hung in a row
Questions
Are these decorations to hang on a tree?
No. It is a picture of decorations, in six sheets for a deep frame. For baubles, stockings and garlands to cut on their own, see the ornament, stocking and garland designs in the library, which include the ones used here.
Can I put names on the stockings?
Yes, by hand. Each stocking is about 6 cm tall at 10 by 8 inches, with room on the leg for an initial or a short name in pen or vinyl. The scene itself has no lettering.
Can I sell boxes I make with it?
Yes. Finished pieces are yours to sell. The files themselves may not be sold or shared; send people to this page. See the licence.
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