Christmas Notebook

Putz houses, also called “glitter houses,” are little houses that make up a Christmas village. Popular from the 1920s on, they can be made from cardboard, card stock, and even old Christmas cards.

I drew the pattern for this house based on the pattern for the Stone Cottage on the Little Glitter House site, which has patterns for different kinds of buildings. I made it a bit smaller than the given pattern and made a few minor changes to it.

To make a house, using a Christmas card, choose a card that will accommodate the pattern. The card should be large enough, when open, to cover most of the pattern. Some fudging of the pattern can be done. An additional piece of Christmas card can be added to the side of the pattern, if necessary, or the roof section can be cut a bit shorter than the pattern because, after the house is assembled, another piece will be glued over the roof section of the pattern to make a roof with an overhang.

I open the card and place the pattern over it, then hold it up to the desk lamp so I can move the pattern to best fit the picture on the card.

Sometimes I change the pattern by switching the door and the front windows to accommodate the picture on the card.

Cut the windows and doors first, then cut the pattern, using an X-acto knife and a straightedge. On this card, I adhered the pattern to the front of the card, but I found as I made more that it works better to adhere the pattern to the inside of the card.

After the pattern is cut, score the fold lines, then remove the pattern from the card. Oops, I forgot to cut the windows and doors before cutting the pattern…

I glue the bottom and sides of the house first, then, when the glue is dry, I glue down the roof section.

When the house is assembled, I work on the roof. Following the size given on the pattern, cut a rectangle for the roof, crease it down the middle and glue it to the top of the house. This piece is usually from another card, as the cards I have aren’t large enough for the house pattern *and* the roof piece.

I cut a small piece (1.25″x1/4″) to make a roof over the door and glue it to the front of the house. The windows and door are outlined in glitter glue. The house stays on its back until the glue and the glitter glue (I used Stickles) is dry. Then the side windows are done, one drying before the next one is done.

After all the glitter glue is dry, the house is ready for the next step.

I use Mod Podge to paint a snow design on the house, then glitter it with a white glitter.

When dry, the Mod Podge will be clear and glossy under the glitter. I did totally glitter a few houses, but like the snow patterned glitter better. I also used a very coarse glitter on a couple of houses. Which do you like better?

Fishing line made good hanging loops.

I used my vintage ivory sewing stiletto to make holes in the roof for adding the loop to hang the ornaments. It worked better than anything else I tried.

The line went right through.

Knot it and it’s ready to hang.

Here’s a link to the ornament pattern. When it opens, click 100%. It may not print to scale, but the proportions should be OK. In that case, the roof, which is supposed to be cut 4.25″ x 2″ may have to be cut down by an 1/8″ or so. Cut it, place it on the house, and see what you think.

And here are the houses I made. 🙂

If you would like to see some of my more elaborate Putz houses, as well as other Christmas ornaments I have made from upcycled holiday cards, please visit my Etsy shop.

ChristmasNotebook at Etsy

~~Rhonda 🙂