Artful Christmas Village

I sold a village kit a few years ago and every year people ask for it.  Sadly, it has been discontinued by the manufacturer so I thought I would attempt to make another.  I wanted it to be compatible with the original so I kept it in the same colors and style.  These houses are much bigger than the first village but I will find a way to mesh the two together.
I love how they turned out...my favorite part being the banner flying from the big house that reads "Wonderland".
Come with me and I will show you how I made it from scratch.

All the main pieces are cut using the Sizzix Alterations Artful Dwellings die and Grungeboard.  Once you know how to make one house, you can repeat the technique over and over again till you have a village or an entire county for that matter.

 I cut the Artful Dwellings die twice so I would have a front and back to each house.

Then I used my roller cutter to cut the sides and the roof pieces.  I will provide the measurements at the end of the tutorial but really you can make yours whatever size you want.

This is the largest of the house shapes plus the side piece.

I covered the front and back with vintage music paper.  As you can see, for each front and back piece I left a bit of paper on each side.  The extra paper will eventually wrap around the house to secure the side panels.

Then I covered two side pieces.

I decided to cut a few windows in this house.  Did you know there was a window die?  Well there is.  It's called Mini Openings.  I am going to use the one with the rounded top on the front of the house and the 4 pane die for the sides.

Since the window openings are a Movers and Shapers die (meaning you can move them wherever you want the opening or shape) I decide I needed to tape the die to the right spot on my house.  I just used some tissue tape but you could use blue painters tape if you like.

After running it through the Vagabond machine I took the tape off and just like that I have a nice clean window cut.  I did go on to cut the two side panel windows even though I did not photograph it.

I decided to use some of the Mirrored product for the window openings.  I just added some 3-d tape to the back of each opening.

Then cut the Mirrored to fit.  Super easy. (You could also use a transparency in the window shapes if you were thinking about using an electric candle inside.)

Okay, so let's assemble.
I recommend the 1/8" Wonder tape for this project...seriously the exact size needed.
Run the Wonder tape on each side of the front and back.

Then add one side at a time.

Use a collage glue stick on the paper edge.

Then roll toward the side panel.  Repeat for each corner of the house.  You might notice the edge of the paper is ripped and it wasn't when I folded it up.  I found that I liked the ripped edge better than the straight one.  So once I adhered it to the side panel, I just peeled the edge...(meaning I ripped it slowly till it wasn't straight anymore).  I found the paper to be more flexible when the glue was already on the backside.

Next, I added more Wonder tape to the roof line (don't pull the protective red covering yet)

I cut another piece of Grungeboard to fit the base.  No glue needed, it just fits snugly.

 

To make the roof I cut two matching pieces of Grungeboard and painted both sides with Metallic Dabber paint in Silver.

Then glittered them with Sticky Embossing powder and my "go to" platinum glitter.

Now remove the protective coating from the Wonder tape and add the roof to the house.

Set the house aside while we create a little vestibule or porch.
There was a 3/4" strip of Grungeboard left after I cut the sides and roof and I can't just leave that for the garbage.  So I covered it with the same paper wrapping around one long edge.

I used the round top house shape (from the original die cut) to create the front of the porch, covered it in paper and added a plaquette with 2 brads.

Once again, Wonder tape on the edge around the door.

Then add the long 3/4" strip around the whole thing (the wrapped side of the strip is facing up).

Clip off the excess strip and you should end up with this.  Geezzz, looks like a coffin so far.

Every door needs some Christmas decor, right?
I am using the wreath from the Woodlands tree set...I just used my finger to add some Glue and Seal.

Then dipped it into the Dry Stickles for the "snow" effect.  I dried it with a Heat Tool just because I am impatient.

Once dry I gave it a little haircut on the backside so the wreath would lay flat against the front door.

I added it to the door with hot glue.

Then added some vintage pearls with Glossy accents.

One more thing before we put the porch on...alcohol ink in gold on a fleur de lis from the old Adornments pack that I still love... (I just snipped off the ring at the top with my Tonic scissors).

And with the porch added onto the house...

To make this next embellishment you need heavy weight paper.  I used Ranger's Manila cardstock and it worked perfectly.  I cut the banner using the Tattered Banners die, then colored it with Distress Stain in Brushed Pewter.
I covered the entire banner with the stain....as it starts to dry, the stain pulls in towards itself.  Can you see that?  I quickly dried it with the Heat Tool without moving the banner.  Once dry, turn over and repeat on the back side.

The raw edge that was created gives you just enough room to add some Distress Ink.

I took a long quilting pin that has a flat top on it and added glitter, then a number cut from the music I covered the houses with.  I slid a big pearl onto the pin and then wrapped the banner around the pin, securing with hot glue and a bit of foam tape.  The word wonderland comes from the Seasonal Chitchat pack.

Once the glitter was dry I inserted the flag into the top of the roof then added a small bit of crinkle ribbon to the wreath.

House number 2 (with the key hole) goes together just the same as number one.  I just made one change...I covered the Grungeboard roof with a piece of Metal Foil Tape instead of glitter.
Just wrap the Grungeboard....

And run them through the Vagabond using the Riveted Metal Embossing Folder.  It does all the work for you!

I used Alcohol ink in Slate and Gold to color the roof pieces.  I love how they turned out and super easy to do if you have that embossing folder.

Seriously, how cool does that roof look?  I think I am in love.

For house number 3 I used the Mini Tickets die to cut a huge window in the front of the house...

The put the house together just like the last two except I covered the inside with paper and Mirrored since you will able to see inside.

I cut a Santa figure from the Seasonal Paper Stash.  I used Rock Candy Dry Glitter (with Glossy Accents) to embellish the fur on his coat and hat and boots.  It is subtle so it looks pure vintage.

I built up the back with two layers of cork and a piece of foam tape then added him to the house sicking him directly to the back panel.

I did add the mini gear and small game spinner using a mini fastener (it's tiny enough to go through the center of the mini gear) to the front panel before I added the roof.

A few extra shots...

 

All the trees are Idea-ology Woodlands.  I used two packages so I have two large trees, two small trees and one wreath for the door, with one wreath leftover for another project.  I painted all the tree bases with gold dabber paint then glittered them to match the trees in the original village.  To glitter the trees use a foam paint brush to add Glue and Seal to the tree then roll in Platinum glitter.  They look spectacular at night!

Measurements 

(cut two of each piece)

large house:

sides - 2 x 3 1/8"

roof - 2 1/2 x 3

Medium House:

sides 1 1/2 x 2 1/2"

roof 2 x 3"

Small House (with window):

sides 1 1/2" x 2 1/4"

roof 2 x 2 1/4"

Boy, I better get moving along after that long post...i've got real life stuff to do like laundry and dishes and maybe I should think about Christmas cards or a few presents, oh and maybe a tree.  What I do have is a darling village!

happy holidays!

paula

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