Storybook castle shadow box SVG
An open storybook with a castle rising from its pages: a crescent moon and stars, far hills with a wood, a castle with pointed towers, an oak and a fir at the sides, and at the front a big open book whose lines of text are cut through. 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 “Lit from behind” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 2, “Far hills”, the slowest: at 0.8 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 5, “Open book”, fills the most of the view, 49% 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 | 23% |
| 2. Far hills | Rolling ground, with: Pine forest on a hill and Round tree silhouette | 0.8 mm | 4% |
| 3. Castle | Rolling ground, with: Princess castle with pointed towers | 1.7 mm | 6% |
| 4. Trees | Rolling ground, with: Oak tree with a broad crown and Classic pine tree | over 2 mm | 18% |
| 5. Open book | Flat ground, with: Open book | over 2 mm | 49% |
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 book is the front sheet and fills most of the foot of the frame, so the hills, the castle and the trees on the sheets behind look as if they stand up out of its pages, the way a pop-up book opens. The lines on the pages are slits, and the sheet behind shows through them. The book is a bold shape with nothing under 2 mm at 8 by 10 inches. The castle is about 1.7 mm at its finest, and the far wood on the second sheet is the fine cutting, at about 0.8 mm. In the Lit from behind colours it runs from cream to dark brown, like an old book. Nothing hangs on a thread.
- 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
Is it a book that opens?
No. It is a flat picture of an open book in five sheets, for a deep frame. For a card that stands up when it is opened, see the pop up card templates in the library.
Can I change what rises from the book?
Yes. Select the castle in the maker and choose Swap, or add parts to the sheets behind the book: dragons, unicorns and fairies are under Figures, and sailing ships are under Vehicles. Keep each one tall enough to show above the top of the pages.
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.
Motorcycle on a mountain road 
Big wheel at the fair 
County fair 
Christmas wreath on the door 
Basketball hoop on the driveway 
Nutcracker guard