Let’s make a Retro Christmas Card Shadow Box! I have created a fun project for you based on our Retro Christmas Cards. Many of the cards from our collection will make super cool shadow boxes. I display mine on the bookshelves in my living room. Here are four examples, utilizing these Retro Christmas Cards: Holiday Windows Retro Christmas Cards, Country Store Christmas Cards, Santa’s Vintage Camper, and Mid-Century Modern Romantic Christmas Cards . I will walk you through the steps of creating the Holiday Windows scene using snapshots below. This turns out nicely but be aware, it is a bit like putting a ship in a bottle. Especially the smaller versions.
Your SuppliesThe supplies: ( I found everything I needed at Hobby Lobby)
• A pack of Retro Christmas Cards – Holiday Windows Retro Christmas Cards
• 8″ X 10″ Shadow Box (for the #10 cards) – or 5 x 7″ box if doing an A6 card
• Bottle Brush Tiny Trees
• LED Rice (flexi) Lights warm white
• Faux Tree Branches
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue
• Poly-fill pillow stuffing
• Glitter if you choose
• Exact-o Knife
• Tooth picks or Kabob Picks – to help you position the poly-fill, etc.
• Styrofoam strip 10″ long x 2″ high
• Wire Cutter
• White artists tape
• Spray glue low tack
Trim the back off of the Holiday Windows Retro Christmas Card and trim away blue sky area so that you have the outline of the rooftops. If you choose to add glitter to your Retro Christmas Cards now is the time. If you need instruction on this phase of the project please see the tutorial here:
How to Add Glitter To Retro Christmas Cards
Using a second card, trim out Santa and the shoppers using the Exact-o knife. I trim out roughly at first then go back in and cut away at the details, keeping the white outlines on the figures. Tape or glue a pick onto the back of each figure. These make the scene have a fun 3-d feel.
Take the back off the shadow box. Cover it with a sheet of white paper, I choose a paper that had speckles printed onto it to add a bit of texture. Cut a piece of blue paper to fill the area behind the rooftops of the building.
I used spray glue to hold these in place.
Next cut a hole into the bottom right corner of the back to allow the lights to pass through. String the lights along the bottom of the scene, doubling back once. Then go up one side of the frame and make a scallop shape of the wires, doubling back until the wire is used up. I used artists tape in white to hold the lights in place. Once it is perfect you can secure it with hot glue if you choose.
Place the trimmed out card roughly in the center of the 10 x 8 back, covering the edges of the blue paper sky. Allow the lights to overlap the rooftops. Tear bits of poly-fill to cover the light string. Make it fluffy and allowing the lights to glow through.
Add the Foreground
On the front of the frame hot glue bits of faux tree branches into the top corners. Test place them to see if they are the right size and shape. Next, fit a strip of styro-foam into the bottom of the front of the frame. Place a tiny tree in the front corner in front of Rudolf’s Toy Shop. Then place more poly-fill to cover the styro-foam, use a pick to push it down into the front between the glass and the foam. I also tossed in a bit of iridescent glitter on top of my snow for more bling. Place your characters into the foam by pushing the picks
they are taped to into the styro-foam.
Tape the battery pack to the back of the frame, so you can turn it on and off.Put it all together
Assemble the box back together, folding the prongs over to secure the front to back. Turn on the lights, Let the Christmas magic begin!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Santa’s Vintage Camper Shadowbox
To create the Santa’s Vintage Camper Shadowbox you will need:
• An order of Santa’s Vintage Camper Christmas Cards
• 5 x 7″ box for an A6 card
• Bottle Brush Tiny Trees
• LED Rice (flexi) Lights warm white
• Faux Tree Branches
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue
• Poly-fill pillow stuffing
• Glitter if you choose
• Exact-o Knife
• Tooth picks or Kabob Picks
• Wire Cutter
• White artists tape
For this card, I lifted the trimmed out card off the frame backing by using strips of foam-core. Then using artists white tape, secure the lights under the headlights to shine through the card. On the front of the frame hot glue bits of faux tree branches into the top corners. Test place them to see if they
are the right size and shape as compared to the image on the card.
Glue a tiny tree in the front bottom right corner of the frame.
Surround the edges of the card with poly-fill, concealing the tiny light strings. Next cut a hole into the bottom right corner of the back to allow the lights to pass through. Line up the back to the frame and fold over the prongs. Be sure to allow enough wire form the lights to pass through the back of the frame and give you a bit of length for the battery box. How fun is that!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mid-Century Modern Romantic Christmas Cards Shadowbox
To create the Mid-Century Modern Romantic Christmas Cards Shadowbox you will need:
• An order of Mid-Century Modern Romantic Christmas Cards
• For LGBT couples…Find the cards here: https://tinyurl.com/y8384g7d
• 5 x 7″ box for an A6 card
• Aluminum tree look faux branch
• LED Rice (flexi) Lights warm white
• Faux Tree Branches
• Removable Mounting Putty
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue
• Poly-fill pillow stuffing
• Glitter if you choose
• Exact-o Knife
• Tooth picks or Kabob Picks
• Wire Cutter
• White artists tape
• Sharpie markers in green, yellow, blue, + red
•Dollhouse ornaments, gift box and 1″ craft mirrors (For Romantic Couple only).
Mid-Century Modern Romantic Christmas Shadowbox.
This one is rather involved, and it is cramped quarters fitting it
all in the 5 x 7 box, but have patience, you can do this!
Hobby Lobby has these cool floral picks that look like tiny aluminum tree branches. Cut a long forked piece of the aluminum tree look faux branch, add several trimmed off branches for the floral pick to create a tree form. Glue a few tiny ornaments to the tree front only. Then, create a tree stand Using putty that will also stick to the inside of the frame. Place the tiny gift top at the base of the tree glue into place. Take a tiny mirror, using sharpies color in the 4 colors of the color wheel pie shapes. Unfold a paper clip to create a support for the color wheel and hot glue into place. Glue at base of tree. Position the ornaments box and glue into place as well.
Glue the Mid-Century Modern Romantic Christmas Cards card onto the frame back in the upper right position. You may want to use light tack glue for this like spray glue or double sided tape. Then, Wad up the rice lights to the left of the card on the frame back, so that the bulk of them will be hidden behind the tree. Next, place the rest of the line of lights along the bottom of the frame back, and out the back.
Next cut a hole into the bottom right corner of the back to allow the lights to pass through. Line up the back to the frame and fold over the prongs. Be sure to allow enough wire form the lights to pass through the back of the frame and give you a bit of length for the battery box. This couple will light up the night!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Country Store Christmas Card Shadow Box
Supplies:
• 5 x 7″ shadow box for A6 card
• Bottle Brush Tiny Trees
• Faux Tree Branches
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue
• Poly-fill pillow stuffing
• Glitter if you choose
• Exact-o Knife
• Tooth picks or Kabob Picks
For the Country Store I choose to not add lights. On the front of the frame hot glue bits of faux tree branches into the top corners. Test place them to see if they are the right size and shape. Glue a tiny tree in the front bottom right corner of the frame. Glue the trimmed out Country Store Christmas Card onto the frame back.
Delicately place poly-fill along the edges of the card to hide the borders and frame back. You may want to cover the back of the frame with white paper as in the previous boxes. Seal the front frame to the frame back using the prongs.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
