A Fairy Tale Christmas Village

Hi! I’m eating a Twinkie as I write this *snif*.  RIP Twinkie.   Anyway, as always, if you have any questions, please let me know.  Jules xo.

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Ever since Gale began offering the wee houses in the Paper Whimsy shoppe, I’ve been dreaming of creating my own tiny village.
The tradition of the Christmas village (or putz) is rooted in the culture of the Pennsylvania Dutch people.  The villages began during colonial times as a nativity scene placed under the Christmas tree, but later expanded to include other pieces.  Some even feature Noah’s Ark and his passengers.

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The word putz derives from the German verb”putzen” meaning “to decorate”.  (Music to my ears!)  The villages have now found a place on the mantle or designated display stand in addition to under the tree.  Personalize your village with family treasures and a new tradition will be born.

 

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(A word about theme.  I chose one of the Paper Whimsy image sheets(Sheet 067) as a sort of “design board”.  It helped to keep me focused on color and embellishment choice.  Also, I did a bit of a culture mash-up by including children in paper crowns which is an old English Christmas tradition.)

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Instructions:
1. Before you begin to assemble the houses,trace around the front and back pieces (include the front cut-out) to use as patterns.  Don’t forget the roof.  🙂

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2. Using a small amount of wet glue,attach the side pieces to the back piece, and then add the bottom  Do not attach the front at this time, although it may be dry fit to front to keep the other pieces in place as they dry.

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3. After the glue is dry,paint the inside desired color.If you plan to attach an image to the back wall,do that now.

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4.Attach the front piece.

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5. Cut out and glue paper to the outside surfaces.Back and front first,then sides and bottom.I didn’t necessarily use the same paper on all surfaces.Some of the sides and backs are covered with ephemera from the Ancien Papers sheets.

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6. Attach roof pieces.If you intend to paper the roof,do that now.If using glitter,undercoat with silver paint,and when dry, apply glitter with wet glue.  Work carefully around the edges.

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7. Distress all edges with ink, if desired.

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8. Attach trim to the roof edges front and back.

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9. If using Spanish moss, add that to the inside of the house.  You don’t need much.  I like to leave a little trailing out.

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10. Insert other elements into the house or attach focal image to the front.

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(Spanish moss nests: Pull several strands of moss from clump and wrap like string around two or more fingers.  Pull off fingers, and using thumbs, push the top edge down into the inside to form the nest.  Shape as desired.  These can be used for lots of things.)

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11. Add the rest of your decorative elements.  See my photos for ideas.

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Enjoy! As always, we would love to see what you create!

Jules xo

Suggested Materials & Supplies:

Enchanted Village:
Wee House
Wee House Star
Wee House Moon
Tea Chest House w Niche
Fancy House M
Fancy House S
Find the entire assortment of houses and reliquaries here

Fancy Shapes:
Fancy Cogs
Fancy Escutcheons

Other:
Glitters (color of choice)
Stickles Glitter Glue (colors of choice)
Metallic trims
Distress Inks for shading
Charms, gems, game tokens, punched out shapes
Buttons
Brads
Shells, eggs, miniature trees
Spanish moss
Medallions (diecut or make from scratch)

PaperWhimsy Images:
Sheet 067
Sheet 124
Sheet 002
Mushrooms 01
Mushrooms 02
Butterfly 01
Digi 157
Botanique 22
All Ancien Papiers
Ancient Pages Suite
Antiquities 07
Antiquities 10
Antiquities 06

Old papers: maps. ledgers, book pages, dictionary pages.