Christmas Eve window shadow box SVG
The view from a window on Christmas Eve: snow falling on the firs and the village church, a snowman and a street lamp in the lane, and on the windowsill a cat watching it all beside three lit candles. 5 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.
5 sheets at 8 × 10 in, zipped, with a note on putting them together.
Free for personal and commercial use, no sign-up. What you can do with it.
The 5 sheets
Sheet 1 is the back and sheet 5 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 “Blue dusk” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 2, “Far firs”, the slowest: at 0.8 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 5, “Windowsill”, fills the most of the view, 43% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Moon and snow | A whole sheet with holes for: 12 × Plain disc | over 2 mm | 21% |
| 2. Far firs | Rolling ground, with: Pine forest on a hill and Three Christmas trees in a row | 0.8 mm | 7% |
| 3. Church | Rolling ground, with: Country church with a picket fence and Classic pine tree | 1.5 mm | 12% |
| 4. Snowman and lamp | Rolling ground, with: Waving snowman and Lantern on a lamp post | 1 mm | 15% |
| 5. Windowsill | Flat ground, with: Cat sitting from behind and Three candles | 1.3 mm | 43% |
Measured from the files at 8 × 10 in. 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 8 × 10 in. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 × 10 in | 203.2 × 254 mm | 0.8 mm | 17 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 arched frame is the window and the front sheet is the sill, so cut the front sheet in your darkest card and everything behind it reads as outdoors. The cat and the candles are bold shapes, with nothing under 1.3 mm at 8 by 10 inches. The far firs are the fine cutting, at about 0.8 mm, and the arms of the snowman come next at 1 mm.
- Cut all 5 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 5.
- 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 5 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:
Questions
Can I swap the cat for a dog?
Yes. Select the cat in the maker and choose Swap. The sitting dogs under Animals fit the same sill, and so does the kitten.
Does it need a light?
No, but it suits one. The moon and the snow are holes in the back sheet, so a string of warm white lights behind it makes the night outside glow while the sill stays dark.
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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