Witch and moon shadow box SVG
A witch on her broomstick crossing a huge full moon, with her cat riding behind, crooked rooftops below, three cats on a fence and a cauldron bubbling among the pumpkins. 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 × 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 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 “Halloween night” set; cut them in any card you like. Cut sheet 5, “Cauldron and pumpkins”, the slowest: at 0.7 mm it has the thinnest part in the scene, and sheet 5, “Cauldron and pumpkins”, fills the most of the view, 29% of it.
| Sheet | What is on it | Narrowest part | Seen from the front |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Moon | A whole sheet with holes for: Plain disc | over 2 mm | 22% |
| 2. Witch and far hill | Rolling ground, with: Flying witch with a cat on her broom, Bare tree with even branches and Winter tree | 1 mm | 8% |
| 3. Crooked rooftops | Rolling ground, with: Haunted street of three houses and Haunted house silhouette | 1 mm | 13% |
| 4. Cats on the fence | Rolling ground, with: Three cats on a fence, Bare tree with even branches and Spooky iron fence with a crow | 1.3 mm | 12% |
| 5. Cauldron and pumpkins | A gentle slope, with: Witch cauldron with bubbles, Jack-o-lantern with a toothy grin, Three pumpkins in a row and Bunch of grass | 0.7 mm | 29% |
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 | 17 mm | Yes | Too fine: choose a larger size |
| 20 × 20 cm | 200 × 200 mm | 0.7 mm | 17 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 8 × 8 in | 203.2 × 203.2 mm | 0.7 mm | 17 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 23 × 23 cm | 230 × 230 mm | 0.8 mm | 17 mm | Yes | Fine detail: sharp blade, slow speed |
| 25 × 25 cm | 250 × 250 mm | 0.9 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 witch hangs from the top of her sheet on a thread of card, so cut that sheet in the darkest card you have and the thread is lost against the sky. The crooked houses have small window panes: cut them slowly, with a fresh blade.
- 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 light it from behind?
Yes. The moon is one large hole in the back sheet, so a string of orange or warm white LEDs behind it puts the witch in silhouette.
Can the witch fly the other way?
Yes. Select her in the maker and choose Flip. Her thread moves with her, so the sheet stays in one piece.
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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