How to Make a Layered Shadow Box using Cricut Design Space

Learn to make a shadow box using Cricut Design Space. Shadow boxes make for attractive home decor. All you need is some solid core car stock, a Cricut machine, Cricut Design Space and a shadow box frame. The process for creating the layered shadow box effect is much easier than it looks. You can do this with text or shapes. Either will produce a lovely layered look indoor shadow box. You can choose an image from the Cricut Access or the Cricut Design Library or create your own using text and shapes. This is a fun paper crafting project. If you would like more paper crafting projects head over to my paper crafts page for more.

I used my Cricut Maker 3 for this project but you could use another Cricut machine. I designed this using Design Space exclusively so anyone can make their own. For my project, I used text but the process for using images is similar. This post contains affiliate links that if you click on them and make a purchase I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

What you will Need: How to Make a Layered Shadow Box using Cricut Design Space

Cricut machine
Cricut Design Space
Various colors of solid core card stock
Adhesive Foam Squares
Shadow Box — I used 8″ x 8″

Step 1: Decide on your Image

Open Design Space and select your image or text. I chose to do text and an image without any embellishments for my shadow box. It is important that your image is like a silhouette or just an image without embellishments.

Step 2: Arrange your Text

Arrange your text in the order you want it to appear on your shadow box. Use a nice square font for this process. I chose a system font called Code Bold. Change the color to the lightest color of the range of colors you are choosing.

Step 3: Select Offset

Select the first letter or image and click offset. From the offset menu make sure that you select square corners and that your offset is set at 0.2 then click apply. The default color is black. Select the offset and change the color to the next darker color in the color range. Do this for each of your text and images. Continue to do this until you have four offsets. Group the offsets by highlighting the letters and clicking group in the top right menu in the layers panel.

Step 4: Align your Text and Image

If you are using text like I am highlight the two letters that are on top of each other and center them horizontally using the align tool on the top menu bar. Once you have centered them both horizontally highlight the two letters that are next to each other and click center vertically. Your letters should all be aligned. Group them together.

Step 5: Resize the Entire Image.

Resize the entire image so that it will fit in the center of an 8″ x 8″ square or whatever size shadow box you have. I resized my image to 6.5″ to have space around my image when I put it in the frame.

Step 6: Create Five Squares

Create five 8″ x 8″ squares or whatever size shadow box you have using the shapes menu option on the left menu. Make the squares the same colors that your layers are plus an additional background layer. Highlight all of the squares and center them using the align menu at the top of the menu bar.

Step 7: Place the Image onto the Squares

Move the image to the center of the squares. To ensure that the image is centered highlight both the squares and the image and go to the align menu and click center.

Step 8: Slice your Images

Highlight everything and click ungroup at the top of the layers panel. On the layers panel select one letter of a given color and the square of the same color and click slice at the bottom of the layers panel. Select the next letter of the same color and the square and click slice again. Do this for each letter until the entire image has been sliced from the square. Move the square off the top of the stack. You will see that the letters have been cut out. You will also see that there are two remaining images of that color for each letter. Select them and delete them. Repeat this process for each layer.

Step 9: Make It

You should have four slice results in the layers panel. Click Make It in the layers panel, Choose on Mat and follow the instructions in design space to cut out the five layers.

Step 10: Put it all Together.

Take your cut pieces and lay the top layer face down on your work space. Add foam squares or dots onto the back of your top layer then place the next color onto the back of the first and continue until all layers are added using the foam squares or dots.

Step 11: Add the Stack to the Shadow Box

My shadow box has a lip around the inside so all I had to do was add the stack to the shadow box and close it up. Once I did that I finished my layered shadow box using Cricut Design Space.