A Dimensional Christmas Shadow Box Card

There is something about a shadow box that instantly makes a card feel extra special. Instead of building all of the elements on a single flat surface, the recessed background and raised layers create natural depth—and for this Christmas card, I leaned into that dimension even further.

I paired the Holiday Treasures suite with the Shadow Box Frame Die to create three shelves filled with tiny holiday treasures. Stacked die cuts give each shelf a substantial, almost chipboard-like appearance, while a hot-foiled Starlit Strands background adds subtle shine behind the scene. Rather than reaching for traditional Christmas reds and greens, I used soft aqua, pink, yellow, and green with matte silver accents for a lighter, fresher holiday palette.

There are several layers at work here, but the finished card is really about three simple ways to create dimension: recessing the background inside the shadow box, stacking die cuts for substantial raised embellishments, and layering the shelves at different points across the frame. Let’s put it together!

How to re-create this card:

1. Die cut the Shadow Box Frame Die pieces from white cardstock and assemble the shadow box frame.
2. Hot foil the Starlit Strands Press Plate onto an A2 panel of white cardstock using Matte Silver Foil.
3. Ink blend Ocean Breeze and Aquamarine over the hot-foiled panel, creating a soft aqua background while allowing the silver foiled details to remain visible.
4. Adhere Matte Silver Pearls to the centers of the star clusters on the Starlit Strands background.
5. Adhere the completed background panel to the back of the shadow box frame, creating the first layer of depth within the card.
6. Ink blend Rocky Slope onto white cardstock and cut it into 1/2" strips.
7. Adhere the Rocky Slope strips over the front of the shadow box frame, cutting mitered corners for the side pieces to create a finished gray frame.
8. Hot foil the Holiday Treasures Press Plate onto white cardstock using Matte Silver Foil.
9. Add color to the Holiday Treasures images using the coordinating stencils:
    • Stencil 1: Ocean Breeze, Aquamarine
    • Stencil 2: Lemon Whip, Marigold
    • Stencil 3: Coral Reef, Passion Fruit
    • Stencil 4: Fresh Pear, Sage
    • Stencil 5: Sage, Olive
    • Stencil 6: Passion Fruit, Berrylicious, Warm Buff, Doe
10. Die cut the three shelf images and sentiment with the coordinating dies, then die cut three additional blank white layers for each piece.
11. Stack the die cuts together with liquid glue to create thick, dimensional pieces with a chipboard-like appearance.
12. Adhere the three completed shelf pieces across the shadow box, spacing them vertically to create a layered holiday display over the recessed background.
13. Adhere the sentiment to the center shelf.
14. Add three Matte Silver Pearls to the front of the card for additional shine and dimension.
15. Create a top-folding A2 card base from white cardstock and adhere the completed shadow box to the card front.

I love how much depth this card has while still keeping the overall design light and airy. The dimensional shelves make all of those tiny Holiday Treasures feel like objects arranged inside a miniature Christmas display, and the recessed Starlit Strands background gives them a beautiful setting without overwhelming them.

The softer palette was also such a fun departure from traditional Christmas colors. Aqua, pink, yellow, and soft green paired with matte silver create a sweet, fresh holiday look, while the foil and pearls add just enough subtle sparkle.

If you have a shadow box die in your stash, try thinking beyond simply placing an image inside it. Recess the background, build up your focal pieces, and use the frame itself as another layer in the design. Those three levels of dimension can completely transform a card.