Mother’s Day windowsill shadow box SVG
The view from a kitchen window on a spring morning: trees and a fence of flowers at the end of the garden, a butterfly, a peony and a rose in the border, and a jug of flowers, a pot of tea and an orchid on the windowsill. 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 “Blossom” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 3, “Fence and butterfly”, the slowest: at 0.8 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 5, “Windowsill”, fills the most of the view, 50% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Sun | A whole sheet with holes for: Plain disc | over 2 mm | 14% |
| 2. Far trees | Rolling ground, with: Round tree with leaf cut-outs and Round tree silhouette | 1.8 mm | 6% |
| 3. Fence and butterfly | Rolling ground, with: 2 × Picket fence with sunflowers and Simple butterfly with teardrop wings | 0.8 mm | 10% |
| 4. Peony and rose | Rolling ground, with: Peony silhouette and Rose silhouette | 1.2 mm | 15% |
| 5. Windowsill | Flat ground, with: Cotton stems in a jug silhouette, Teapot and tea cup silhouette and Orchid plant in a pot | 1.2 mm | 50% |
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: cut the front sheet in your darkest card and the garden behind it reads as outdoors. The fence of flowers and the butterfly on the third sheet are the finest parts, about 0.8 mm at 8 by 10 inches, so cut that sheet slowly, with a fresh blade. The jug, the teapot and the orchid are sturdier, at 1.2 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 change the flowers in the border?
Yes. Select the peony or the rose in the maker and choose Swap. Tulips, lilies, poppies, sunflowers and daisies are under Flowers and plants, so you can make it her own garden.
Does it need a light?
No. In pinks and creams it reads well in daylight. With a light behind, the sun in the back sheet is the only hole, so the garden glows and 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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