It never feels quite like Christmas until I’ve done a few last minute just-cuz-I-want-to crafts. This year Nan over at Froggy Designs has kindly shared with me her templates for Christmas Village Houses, which she’s allowed me to share with you.

(Click here to see Nan’s way cool steampunk version of these houses.)

I decided to make my houses out of vellum which was first embossed with white embossing powder. (Click on any of the photos for a closer look.)

Why embossed vellum, you ask?  So I could put battery operated votive candles inside. Aren’t they pretty?

Cutting out all those little windows was a bit tedious (I used a craft knife) but I love the way they look.

The stamps I used for embossing:

• Inkadinkado 7-Piece Snowflakes A-Plenty Clear Stamp
• All Night Media Wood-Mounted Stamps – Splatter Pattern (this appears to be no longer available on Amazon)
• Tim Holtz Visual Artistry Collection Stampers Anonymous Clear Stamps – Urban Grunge
• Hero Arts’ Music Background

In order for the votive candles to fit I made the sides of the houses 1/4-inch longer than on the templates. Don’t forget to make the roofs 1/4-inch wider as well

Also, unless you cut out each roofline perfectly, I recommend you hold off on scoring all but the center line of your roof top.  Then hold it on your house and mark the next fold line.  This will make them fit better than on my houses, which are a bit wonky.

This was a fun project to work on while listening to some Christmas music, and I love turning off the lights and admiring my glowing little village.

Merry Christmas and Happy Creating!

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