peaceful, winter putz house in the country

October 15, 2024 – 9:28 pm

This ORIGINAL size, winter putz house features two bottle brush trees decorated with faux snow, tiny snowflake sprinkles and clear glitter. It is listed in my Etsy shop.

I like the simplified look of this one. The light colors, inspired by the colors of the Christmas card used to make the base, give it a quiet, country home feel.

The base is made from a Christmas card with two chickadees on a pine bough. The house has the traditional hole in the back, allowing the use of an LED light string.

The post and board fence is handcrafted from wooden, coffee stir sticks. My tutorial for making wooden picket fences can be found here: Making picket fences for putz houses

The bottle brush trees are embellished with tiny snowflake sprinkles. The faux stepping stone sidewalk is made by painting “stones” on the base. Faux snow is used to outline the stones. The steps at the front door are made from balsa wood.

A puff of smoke is included, just in case you want to snuggle up in front of the fireplace.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. My blog can be searched, as well. Some of the turorials haven’t been listed on the tutorial page. Working on that!  https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses | Tagged , | Comments (0)

TINY MINI winter putz … one of three sizes

October 14, 2024 – 12:30 pm

The last three putz I made were made from the same pattern, but in different sizes. In general, ORIGINAL size putz are 5″-6″ tall. MINI tend to be 3″-4″ tall. TINY MINI are most often 1″-2″ tall. Sizes will vary slightly depending on the pattern. Churches will be taller due to the steeple height, but the main body of the church follows the general heights of the three sizes.

Below are different sizes of the same pattern. I also make spring, Easter, summer, and Fourth of July houses, barns, churches, etc.

A TINY MINI house can be more difficult to make, due to the small pieces. Creasing poster board in such a small size is harder than in the larger sizes. Window frames become quite narrow and the little doors require slow and patient cutting. The smaller sizes are adorable, though, and worth the effort.

The base measures 4 1/4″ wide by 6 3/8″ deep. The Putz is 2 3/4″ tall as measured from the bottom of the base to the top of the chimneys.

Puffs of smoke are included, for those chilly winter evenings. Grab your favorite hot beverage and cozy up in front of the fire.

Two tiny deer stand near the front gate, which is covered with an arch. The arch is twined with silver garland.

It’s a winter wonderland, with twelve, handcrafted evergreen trees made from evergreen stems. Some of the stems are made from upcycled, artificial Christmas trees and some are made from evergreen garland.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. My blog can be searched, as well. Some of the turorials haven’t been listed on the tutorial page. Working on that!  https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses, winter putz | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

mini size winter putz house

October 9, 2024 – 12:06 am

My Etsy shop is low on MINI sized putz houses. I decided to use the same pattern to make a MINI winter house as I just used for an ORIGINAL size autumn house. The autumn base is 6 1/2″ wide by 4 1/2″ deep, and the house is 5 1/8″ tall. The base for the winter house is 5 3/4″ wide by 4″ deep. The Putz is 4″ tall.

To make a pattern in a MINI size, I copy it at 75% of the original pattern. The smaller size is a bit harder to work with. The hardest part for me is to make sure the window and door frames aren’t too wide for the size. That’s even harder with a TINY MINI size which is copied at 50% of the original. I cut one of those out today, in this same pattern. I’ll be constructing it tomorrow. Stay tuned!

The base is made from an upcycled greeting card. The picture doesn’t show when the house is displayed, but it is a fun surprise when the house is picked up and the picture is discovered. I use the colors on the card to determing the colors of the putz house. This card features a vintage town scene, with Santa in attendance. The back of the house has a hole to permit the use of an LED light string to bring the house to life.

The barren, snow-covered tree is made from an armature. You can see my tutorial for leafed armature trees on my blog. I plan to write a tutorial for making snow-covered trees soon.

There are two bottle brush trees on this putz. The larger one is decorated with pearl beads in a coordinating shade of blue. The smaller tree has snow and clear glitter. A tiny snowman stands nearby.

The fence is made from poster board, cut with scallop scissors. When I cut poster board for fencing, I cut a 1″ wide strip of poster board, divide it in half the long way with a pencil line, then cut along that line to get two pieces of fencing. When using a scallop scissor, the result is a rounded, scallop fence on one strip and a pointed fence on the other. I trimmed the flat side of the strip to shorten the fence a little bit to keep it in proportion for the MINI size house.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. My blog can be searched, as well. Some of the turorials haven’t been listed on the tutorial page. Working on that!  https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in winter putz | Tagged , | Comments (2)

bright autumn house with sunflowers and tiny pumpkins

October 6, 2024 – 5:10 pm

Pictures don’t do this little putz house justice. This is a bright and cheerful autumn house.

The base is made from a beautiful autumn card. On the back of the putz, a tiny, flat, black cat is playing in the shrubbery.

The fence is made of poster board, cut with decorative scissors. Puffs of smoke are included, in case the evenings are cool.

The autumn garden is packed with paper and velvet flowers. There are a couple of handcrafted pumpkins, too. The fallen leaves add a soft touch to the scene.

So very cute.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses | Comments (0)

paint a pip stem for any color you need

October 6, 2024 – 12:07 pm

Today, I’m talking about pip stems. If you aren’t familiar with them by name, you may recognize them when seen below. These are my drawers of pip stems, mostly organized by color. There are two sizes of pip stems. The larger size is most often found. The mini size is harder to find. You can see the sizes side by side in the picture on the right. I can find red and pink mini size pip stems in the Etsy shop Silky Blossom.

TIP: I divided the pip stem drawers with boxes I made from foam core with a poster board bottom. I cut them to fit the width snugly so they wouldn’t slide up and down the drawer. I put them together with hot glue. Because I didn’t make enough boxes to fill the drawer, I can move the boxes so I have various size spaces between them. They stay where I put them because they fit snugly.

To see more examples of how pip stems can be used to make budding trees and budding vines, check out my blog post about storing floral supplies. Pip stems are discussed at the end of the post.

I ordered teal pip stems to make a spring budding tree for this spring church. In person, the darker color of the church roof is more green and does look like a dark teal.

The teal ones I ordered were not the right color. Teal / turquoise / aqua is a hard color to find in the right shade online. The pictures may not show the true in-real-life colors. I didn’t want to order another batch and find them incorrect as well, so I decided to paint the teal ones the right color.

To paint pip stems, spread the attached stems apart to make them easy to access. Use a small, soft brush that will smoothly slide over the pip. Using acrylic craft paint, paint one side of the pip, dry, then paint the other side. When dry, inspect the pips and touch up as needed. If the brown stem has paint on it, use a brown to match the stem and cover the paint. When dry, the individual pips can be gently moved to allow access for touching up spots that were missed.

When the pips were painted, inspected, and touched up as needed, I applied water soluble, clear varnish to give them a bright gloss.

This tree was made with three stems. Each stem had four stems of pips, as you can see in the above picture. I cut the bottom of each pip stem to make the tree the height I wanted. I glued the three stems together, then glued the tree to the base.

The last step was to add the necessary embellishments to finish the landscaping.

You can see this putz church in my Etsy shop.

If you have any questions about creating pip trees or putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Comments (0)

cute autumn house with handcrafted pumpkins

October 4, 2024 – 9:54 pm

I cut the pattern for this house yesterday. I painted and assembled it, and did a little bit of landscaping. I finished the landscaping today, It went together quickly because it’s a fairly simple pattern. There aren’t as many pieces to paint as some other patterns have.

The base measures 5 1/2″ wide by 3 1/2″ deep. The Putz is 5 1/4″ tall as measured from the bottom of the base to the top of the chimney.

The base is made from an upcycled greeting card featuring a garden bench with pumpkins. The card reads “Give thanks with grateful hearts.”

A hole in the back allows the use of a small LED light string for lighting this and other glitter houses in a glitter house village.

Three tiny, handcrafted pumpkins can be found in the yard. Four steps lead to the front door. The doors on my Putz houses are open, so guests know they are always welcome to stop by. Wish them a gratitude filled Thanksgiving!

A puff of smoke is included. Autumn evenings can be chilly. The small tree-like shrubs are from a bouquet stem I found on Etsy. I pulled it apart and cut the “trees” to the length I wanted. I really like the way they look. The final touch is leaf litter. The tiny fallen leaves lend a softness to the landscape.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses | Tagged | Comments (0)

add fallen leaves for a soft autumn touch

October 2, 2024 – 12:15 pm

I set this little house aside because it needed something extra. I knew it needed sunflowers, so I ordered those. I also thought it needed something above the second floor window over the door. I added a decorative beam, and called it good. I photographed the needed shots and posted them to the blog on Sept. 22. Later, when looking at the photos, I realized I had neglected to add the “leaf litter.” Here’s the before and after.

Leaf litter is made from the dried, dyed scales of birch tree seed pods. They make great tiny leaves. Check different sources for different shades of green, brown, red, orange and yellow. Some are brighter than others. If you have a silver birch, you can make your own. I don’t know if all birch trees make the same kind of seed pod. Silver birch is the only one I’ve seen mentioned online for making leaf litter.  Making Miniature Leaves from Birch Seed Pods I made the mix shown below by adding yellow, red, and brown leaves together.

Following are some pictures to demonstrate how much difference the addition of fallen autumn leaves can make to a putz house. To apply them, I use a 1/4″ paintbrush to cover the area with white glue, then sprinkle loose leaf litter over the glue. I don’t press the leaves into the glue. I want a soft look, without matting them together. I add them where I think they would pile up naturally. Along the side of a walkway, against a fence, or against shrubbery.

In the second picture, you can see the fallen leaves on the doorstep and along the sidewalk. Little details like that can make a big difference in the overall appeal of your putz house.

The leaves add a softness to the lines of the house and yard.

It doesn’t take a lot. A subtle touch of fallen leaves, even on the outside of the fence below, can add an extra touch of the season.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses | Tagged , | Comments (0)

autumn putz house, sprinkled with fallen leaves

October 1, 2024 – 9:41 pm

A sweet autumn house, with a yard bursting with flowers and littered with fallen leaves.

A beautiful card makes the perfect base for the autumn / Thanksgiving house. The back of the house is fitted with the traditional hole for the use of an LED light string to brighten the house after the sun goes down.

The picket fence was handcrafted from wooden, coffee stir sticks. These fences can be made in many different designs. This one has double pickets.

I made the pumpkins from Fimo clay, then painted them in various hues of orange, white, green and yellow.

The house is supplied with puffs of smoke, in case the autumn evenings are chilly. In the back, a tiny black cat can be found, playing with the fallen leaves.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses | Tagged | Comments (0)

two new putz houses, celebrating autumn

October 1, 2024 – 7:20 pm

These autumn putz houses are listed in my Etsy shop. Two autumn houses, two looks. One with an autumn tree, one without.

The bases on both houses are made from vertical greeting cards, rather than horizontal cards. If the house isn’t more than three inches wide, it should fit well on a vertical card. Wider houses usually need a horizontal card. That is the general rule of thumb. There are always exceptions, of course.

The cards I use are donated to me by family and friends. Sometimes I get an oversized card. Love those! Sometimes a large card will have room for two buildings, but it doesn’t happen often. Shout out to everyone who has donated cards for my projects! You are very much appreciated! If you’re wondering, yes, I can always use more cards. They are a constant source of inspiration. They are made into bases for my putz houses, and many are used to make Christmas ornaments.

The tutorial for making trees using armatures, as the tree shown below was made, can be found here: tutorial / make leafed trees using armatures, part 1 The tutorial includes the link to part 2.

The house on the right has a handcrafted, wooden picket fence, made from wooden, coffee stir sticks. That tutorial is here: tutorial / making picket fences for Putz houses / 2024

The house on the left has a fence made from poster board, cut with decorative scissors. The house on the right has a wooden picket fence. There are a lot of ways to change up a putz house. Fencing is one way. I’ve used cinnamon sticks and twigs from the yard as fencing. Also, I’ve made stone fences, using foamcore board.

If you have any questions about creating putz houses, please ask. I am happy to share what I have learned about the art of putzing.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Putz Houses | Tagged , | Comments (0)

winter putz house in yellow and black green

September 24, 2024 – 3:26 pm

This winter putz house is listed in my Etsy shop. It features a large bottle brush tree, decorated with faux snow, vintage red mercury beads and clear glitter. Puffs of smoke are included for those chilly winter evenings.

The base measures 6 1/2″ wide by 4 1/2″ deep. The Putz is 5 1/2″ high, as measured from the bottom of the base to the top of the chimneys.

The base is made from an upcycled Christmas card featuring two chickadees perched on a branch of red berries. A hole in the back allows the use of a small LED light string for lighting this and other glitter houses in your glitter house village.

A light brown poster board fence, cut with decorative scissors, bounds the yard. Note the curved corners at the front of the fence.

Two steps lead to the front door. The large bottle brush tree is decorated with red, vintage mercury beads.

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

ChristmasNotebook.etsy.com

If you are interested in crafting Putz houses of your own, check out my Putz tutorials for more information. https://christmasnotebook.com/putz-little-glitter-houses/

All proceeds from my Etsy shop benefit Kenya Mercy Ministries. They work with the urban poor of Nairobi, Kenya, particularly the children and their families who live in Kibera, the largest urban slum in Africa. Thank you for your part in helping these children when you purchase items from my shop!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in winter putz | Tagged , | Comments (0)