It was about this time last year, and it all started with an exploration of SVG files for the Cricut Maker and especially the finding of Jennifer Maker’s blog.
And then with discovering Lucy’s Paper Glitter Glue site.
And from there so much more about Putz Houses and Christmas villages. Or rather, this one aspect of glittery, cheerful Christmas villages.
And of course, being added to both of these ladies’ Facebook groups. I’ll admit I’m not a big poster on FB groups, but just having that community of like-minded crafters is wonderful. Especially when you’re sitting in your little crafting cave unsure of where you should be going with your project.
So what about this little homestead?
Its creation dovetailed in a lovely fashion with many crafts and projects I’ve done over time and my unceasing fascination with miniatures. Add to that my recent discovery of mixed-media techniques, and the acquisition of an electronic cutting machine.
The Process
First, I needed a picture of what I wanted to do. So of course, there was a lot of Internet browsing… I mean, research. Of course it was research, and not idle image-browsing on the Internet.
And because using the Cricut involved the computer, I couldn’t be satisfied with plug-and-play (and you can do that with great results, don’t get me wrong), I had to figure out how to create my own models, therefore I had to learn all about SVG files, and how to use Inkscape (because Adobe Illustrator is too big and expensive right now).
Was it necessary? Not exactly to create a little homestead. I could have used one of the many available patterns, designs, and vector files that creators generously offer for free on the Web.
But that’s not what I wanted to do. I wanted to start at my computer. Then cut it on my Cricut. Then put it together with some good old fashioned messy crafting. Just because that’s where the fun is.
The materials
I used what I had on hand. I’ve made miniatures and dollhouses before, and I prefer to use findings and recycled materials — or at least use what I already have unless I absolutely have to have a specific something.
If I were to change things, I’d buy some vellum for the windows (I had rice paper, so that’s what I used, and I discovered that the type I have doesn’t play well with Cricut mats, even the fabric mat).
For the rest, the body of the house is 300 gsm watercolor paper with a coating of gesso. The roof shingles are cut (on the Cricut) out of recycled kraft paper painted with acrylic paints to vaguely resemble dark, weathered wood. The pattern of the shingles isn’t mine, I used Lucy’s from Paper Glitter Glue. The door and trim is cut out of the same sheet of painted paper. And then of course I forgot to add the trim at the end. I guess I need to fix that.
The corrugated cardboard I had was too thick for the Cricut, so I used the Cricut to cut out a pattern instead and traced the base with a center cut out for the LED candle, then used an old fashioned box cutter to get the right size and shape for the base. It was going to be covered and painted anyway.
I did the stone texture pretty much the way Lucy describes it in her excellent post. I used the Ranger Texture Paste I had on hand, and I made the stencil I used, which allowed me to resize it just right in Cricut Design Space.
The fence is made on the Cricut out of leftover chipboard I also had on hand and then stained and painted until I was happy with the look of old posts.
The crumbling stone wall is again some recycled corrugated cardboard covered with remnants of copy paper. The some more of the Ranger Texture Paste and another application of my own stencil, plus some paint, created the illusion of weathered stone.
Model-making and miniatures is more than a craft, a hobby, or even an art form. It is a representation of the world in exquisite detail — or in symbolic detail — reduced to a scale we can grasp at one glance.
While I tend to start with actual scale measurements, since my workflow involves computers and the Cricut Maker, once I start working on details and decorations, I become much less concerned with realism.
Folktale illustrations from my childhood, playing with Legos, animals that talk and interact with people — these set up your imagination to skew reality and accept that imaginary places and creatures don’t have to follow the rules of reality — much less the scale of reality.
They only have to be attractive and fun.
Or scary, as you may like, but I prefer my stories fun, suspenseful, and with a happy ending.
