Paper boat on the waves shadow box SVG
A paper boat on a sea made of rows of cut waves: a big sun and a cloud at the back, three rows of small curling waves one behind another, the folded paper boat riding the fourth row with the sun behind its peak, and a row of large waves at the front. 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 “Sea” set; cut them in any card you like. No sheet has a part under 2 mm, so none of them needs special care, and sheet 6, “Near waves”, fills the most of the view, 29% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Sun and cloud | A whole sheet with holes for: Plain disc and Long flat cloud | over 2 mm | 26% |
| 2. Far waves | Flat ground, with: 4 × Wave border | over 2 mm | 6% |
| 3. Second row | Flat ground, with: 3 × Wave border | over 2 mm | 5% |
| 4. Third row | Flat ground, with: 3 × Wave border | over 2 mm | 6% |
| 5. Paper boat | Flat ground, with: Paper sailboat and 2 × Wave border | over 2 mm | 18% |
| 6. Near waves | Flat ground, with: 2 × Wave border | over 2 mm | 29% |
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 | over 2 mm | 20 mm | Yes | Cuts easily |
Depth needed allows 3 mm of foam between sheets and 5 mm for the card itself and the backing.
Making this one
How the waves are cut: every row is the same strip of four curling waves on a shared base, set side by side along the sheet, and each sheet has a larger copy than the one behind, from 15 mm tall at the back to 35 mm at the front. Nothing in the scene is under 2 mm at 10 by 8 inches, so it suits cutting by hand. With a craft knife, cut the hollow inside each curl first, turning the card rather than the blade, then the long backs of the waves. The boat is about 13 cm long, with its creases cut as lines that stop short of the edge. In the Sea colours the rows run from pale green to dark blue. Nothing hangs on a thread.
- 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:
Questions
Can I cut the waves by hand?
Yes. Print each sheet at full size, tape it over the card and cut through both. Start with the hollow inside each curl, then cut along the crests from one side of the sheet to the other. The smallest waves, on the second sheet, are 15 mm tall and about 3 mm at their thinnest.
Can I have a different boat?
Yes. Select the boat in the maker and choose Swap: sailing boats, a rowing boat and a fishing boat are under Vehicles. Stand it on the same sheet, so that it sits in the fourth row of waves.
How is this different from the other sea scenes?
It has no beach and no far shore: the sea is five rows of the same curling wave, with a folded paper boat on it. The Surf beach scene has two breaking waves and a camper van on the sand, and the Lighthouse beach scene has a lighthouse and sailing boats.
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.
Forest deer 
Christmas village 
Haunted house 
Under the sea 
Safari sunset 
Nativity