Christmas gnomes shadow box SVG
Three gnomes outside their pointed-hat house on a winter night, with a garland tree beside it, a fourth gnome bringing presents by lamplight and a crescent moon over the firs. 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 8 × 8 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 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 “Blue dusk” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 6, “Toadstools”, the slowest: at 0.7 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 6, “Toadstools”, fills the most of the view, 25% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Moon and stars | A whole sheet with holes for: Crescent moon and 7 × Plain disc | over 2 mm | 34% |
| 2. Far firs | Rolling ground, with: Three Christmas trees in a row, Three pine trees and Simple pine tree | 0.8 mm | 5% |
| 3. Gnome house | Rolling ground, with: Fairy house with a curled roof and Christmas tree with garlands | 1.2 mm | 12% |
| 4. Gnomes | Rolling ground, with: Three gnomes in a row | 1.7 mm | 12% |
| 5. Presents | Rolling ground, with: Scandinavian gnome, Stack of three presents, Tall pine tree and Lantern on a lamp post | 0.8 mm | 12% |
| 6. Toadstools | A gentle slope, with: Toadstool with a wide cap, Solid candy cane, Bunch of grass and Mushroom with a spotted cap | 0.7 mm | 25% |
Measured from the files at 8 × 8 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 × 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 × 6 in | 152.4 × 152.4 mm | 0.5 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Too fine: choose a larger size |
| 20 × 20 cm | 200 × 200 mm | 0.7 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 8 × 8 in | 203.2 × 203.2 mm | 0.7 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 23 × 23 cm | 230 × 230 mm | 0.8 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 25 × 25 cm | 250 × 250 mm | 0.9 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 gnomes are mostly hat and beard, so they cut cleanly; the lamp post and the ribbons on the presents are the fine parts. In reds and greens it is a Christmas scene, and in blues it will stay up all winter.
- 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:
- Crescent moon
- Three Christmas trees in a row
- Three pine trees
- Simple pine tree
- Fairy house with a curled roof
- Christmas tree with garlands
- Three gnomes in a row
- Scandinavian gnome
- Stack of three presents
- Tall pine tree
- Lantern on a lamp post
- Toadstool with a wide cap
- Solid candy cane
- Bunch of grass
- Mushroom with a spotted cap
Questions
Can I make the gnomes bigger?
Yes. Select them in the maker and drag the size up, then move the lamp post aside. They stand on their ground line whatever their size.
Is the gnome house a separate part?
Yes. It is the fairy house from Buildings. Its door and windows are holes, so they glow when the box is lit from behind.
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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