Winter village shadow box SVG
A village in the snow seen through a round window, like a snow globe: firs on the far hill, a church with its spire in the middle, cottages below it, a stone bridge between them, and a snowman in a bobble hat beside a street lamp 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 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 “Snow” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 2, “Far firs”, the slowest: at 0.7 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 6, “Snowman and lamp”, fills the most of the view, 45% 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 | 0.7 mm | 8% |
| 3. Church | Rolling ground, with: Church with a steeple and Log cabin house in the pines | 0.7 mm | 7% |
| 4. Cottages | Rolling ground, with: Cute house with a scalloped roof and Village row of five houses | 0.9 mm | 9% |
| 5. Stone bridge | Rolling ground, with: Stone bridge with three arches, Classic pine tree and Simple pine tree | 2 mm | 9% |
| 6. Snowman and lamp | A gentle slope, with: Snowman with a bobble hat and Lantern on a lamp post | 0.7 mm | 45% |
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 round window makes it a snow globe, and it also fits under a glass dome if you trim each sheet to the circle. Cut it all in white card and put a light behind: the church windows and the falling snow glow. The far firs on the second sheet are the finest cutting, 0.6 mm at 8 inches, which is as thin as card will go: cut that sheet slowly with a new blade, or choose a larger size. The church comes next, at 0.7 mm.
- 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 have a square window instead?
Yes. Choose Rounded or Square under Window in the maker. The corners of every sheet are already drawn, so the hills and the trees carry on to the edges.
How is the snow made?
Every flake is a small hole in the back sheet. With a light, or white paper, behind it the snow shows through the whole box.
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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