DIY Harry Potter Baby Shower Gift

This post contains affiliate links for some items below. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

When I found out my friend was planning a Harry Potter nursery for baby number two, I nerded out. Just think of the amazing, whimsical DIYs and decorations that could go along with a theme like that! I’m thinking flying keys, owls and bird cages, house flags, and magical quotes.

For her recent baby shower, I knew I wanted to theme my gift around Harry Potter. And while, yes, I did buy her this adorable chocolate frog pillow (I want one for myself!)…  I also decided to get crafty and make a Harry Potter shadow box that could be used in the baby’s nursery.

I love using shadow boxes in two different ways. Obviously they are a great option for holding a collection of mementos, but I also love leaving them empty! The extra depth between the decorated front glass and the textured backing is simple, clean, and elegant.

The next question was what design or quote should be included — which took me longer to decide on that I had initially thought! Etsy has so many cute Harry Potter designs, and ultimately, I landed on an “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good” design, because every baby deserves to get into a little mischief now and then, right?!

DIY Harry Potter Baby Shower Gift — “I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up to No Good” Shadow Box

What You Need:

• 11×14 shadow box (I used this one)
• Black vinyl (or another color depending on the background of your shadow box)
• Transfer tape
• “I Solemnly Swear” design file — purchased from Etsy (NOTE — the file I initially purchased from Etsy is no longer available, but this one is just as cute!)
• Cricut Explore Air II (or a similar machine) and cutting accessories (mat, weeder, scraper)

First, choose the perfect Harry Potter design file for you — there are a ton on Etsy.

Note — unfortunately the design file I purchased off of Etsy is currently not available, however, if you’re looking for a similar “I Solemnly Swear” design, I’d recommend this one.

Prepare your Cricut or other cutting machine and load your file into Cricut Design Space, sizing it to your liking. For an 11×14 inch shadow box, size your file at 8.5 inches wide. When preparing your cut, make sure to MIRROR your file, this will flip your file and allow for you to place the vinyl on the inside of your shadow box and still have the words facing the correct way!

Cut your file out on black vinyl and then carefully weed off the extra pieces.

Using transfer tape, adhere your vinyl words to the shadowbox glass on the inside of the frame in the center of the glass.

Place your glass back in the frame (if you removed it when placing your words on it) and secure the frame backing in place.

— Mischief Managed —