DIY Shadow Box Frames: Drawing a Day Gallery

A friend of mine recently created a summer drawing group on Facebook, with the idea that adults forget to make time to be creative and that we don’t draw like we did when we were kids. I loved the idea and immediately joined. Then I realized I had to draw. I can’t tell you how humbling this was. My head and hand ~~struggled~~ struggle to work together. My oldest; Riley who is 12; saw me scribbling away on some computer paper and asked what I was doing. I told him about the group and he said “I don’t draw anymore. I stopped when I was like 10. That’s when you lose it.” Ah, so that’s when you lose it. Age 10.

We talked about drawing and being creative at the advanced ages of almost 13 and, ahem, 39. The 6 year old (who hasn’t lost it yet) joined the conversation. Long story short, we all agreed to draw something, anything, every day for the rest of the summer. I’m loving this time with them. They are both so excited to share their work and take turns picking the suggested topic for the next day.

To keep the excitement and creativity going, I decided to create a gallery for our drawings. I thought about buying those really cool shadow box frames, but then I remembered these boxes that my mom gave me awhile back. She works in a lab and always brings me the coolest boxes and gadgets intended for the trash. I hang onto them with great intentions. And I finally put a few of the boxes to good use.

Here’s how to make your own shadow box frames from cardboard boxes:

Supplies:

If your mom doesn’t bring you cool boxes, you can use a shoe box or any smallish-sized rectangular cardboard box.
Fabric for inserts. I used a few pieces of the Briar Rose by Heather Ross layer cake.
Cereal box from the recycling
Glue or tape for attaching the fabric
Tacks or pushpins for your art
Sticky notes or scrap paper
Cup hooks – optional hook below frame
Soda tab – optional for hanging box on the wall

I cut the top lid off my box and gave it to Lola to use — she made a ring holder, jewelry box out of one. Then, I used a black sharpie to color my cut line. My box was already black so I went with that. I left the egg carton foam inside my box, but it doesn’t really serve a huge purpose, so don’t worry if your cool box doesn’t have it.

Next I cut a piece of the cereal box cardboard to be slightly larger than the width of my box. I wanted it to curve out a bit to give some dimension to the drawings.

I covered the cereal box rectangle in fabric. I wrapped the cardboard like a present and used some clear Tacky Glue to secure it in place. then I popped it into the box. Easy, huh?

Then I grabbed one of the push pins and poked it into the fabric wrapped cardboard. And I screwed a cup hook into the bottom for hanging drawings — you never know.

I also used a soda tab hot glued to the back for a hook. They are pretty light weight (provided the hanging drawings aren’t too heavy), so it should work fine.

I hung them in a row below our dinner conversation painting. I picked this one up for $4 because I love it and it sort of creeps me out. We entertain ourselves by creating stories and dialogue about it. Feel free to create your own!