I have become so enamoured of the Putz-style houses that were popular during the 1940's.....that I decided to make my very own village of what I call Glitter Holiday Houses. I will tell you from the get-go.....this is a messy project.....operative word here.....GLITTER!!!
Glitter, glitter, everywhere...
glitter, glitter in your hair...
glitter, glitter, please don't despair!!!
Sorry for that bit of cornpone there!
You can actually work on several of these houses at one time.....one can be in the painting stage.....another getting glued and glittered.....then one can be drying while waiting for the next step.....and then another can be sitting off to the side with it's future paints and glitters at the ready. I have really found these little glitter houses to be addicting.....so much so.....that I'd like to share my process of creating them with you!
As a side note.....I purchased my papier-mâché houses at Hobby Lobby, and at an online site, Sunshine Discount Crafts. I really did search high and low for the papier-mâché houses, but there aren't very many places that carry them. On occasion, you may find some on Etsy, but I found they were a bit overpriced. If you're so inclined.....have at it yourself, and make your own papier-mâché house from scratch.....something I don't have the time nor patience for.
Glitter Houses
You'll Need
- Papier-mâché house
- Paint (various colors to match corresponding glitter)
- Glitter (various colors)
- Quik-Dry Adhesive Glue (for applying glitter)
- E6000 Glue (for applying doodads)
- Sponge brush
- Paintbrush
- Clear acrylic sealer
- Doodads (trees, wreaths, Santa's, etc)
The first thing you'll need to do is glue the top of the house to the bottom, and then let dry. That is if your house comes in two parts.
Something I would do differently is not glue the top to the bottom of the house prior to gluing some velum windows and a brown cardstock door on the inside of the house. If you do take the time to apply some windows and a door; once that's complete, then glue the top of the house to the bottom...then let dry.
The next step is painting the various parts of the house . Make sure your paint coordinates with the color of glitter that will be going over the top of the paint (you don't want a contrasting color to show through the glitter). Also, don't worry if your painting isn't perfect, because the glitter will cover up any mistakes.
Now it's time to start applying the glitter. Apply lots of squiggles of glue over the area that you are going to glitter. Do one color at a time, and one section at a time! Once you've applied your glue, use your foam brush to smooth it out.
Make sure you wipe up any glue that got onto another color before applying the glitter.
Make sure you have a manila file folder under your house during the glittering process. This will make returning any excess glitter back into it's container much easier.
Liberally sprinkle the glitter all over the glue, and let it sit. Once the glue is dry, then you can shake off the excess glitter. Pour the excess glitter back into the container.
Now you're ready to move onto the next section. Glue.....spread to smooth.....glitter.....let dry.....shake off excess.....repeat.
Continue the same process for each section of the house.
The part of the roof that has the snow on it, I did a bit differently. As instructed previously, apply the glue and smooth out.
Then sprinkle the fine white glitter over the glue and let dry.
Once you've completed adding the fine white glitter to the roof, then let it dry completely.
Now add another layer of glue over the fine white glitter, and apply some chunky glitter that looks more like thick snow. By having the fine-grit glitter applied first, it guarantees a nice snowy effect on the roof.
Work in small areas while applying the chunky glitter.
Once all the chunky glitter has been applied, lightly press it down with your finger to make sure the glitter has taken to the glue.
The final glitter step is to outline each of the windows and the door. Apply a bead of glue around the door and windows (do one side of the house at a time).
Liberally sprinkle the glitter over the glue, and let dry. Once the glue has dried, shake off any excess glitter.
Take care to carefully brush off any excess glitter before spraying with the clear acrylic sealer.
Spray a light coat of the clear acrylic sealer over all the sides and roof of the house. Let dry.
Repeat the sealing process two more times, making sure to dry completely between coats.
You may notice that I don't have the windows and door glittered in the following picture. I took care of that prior to spraying.
Now you can apply any type of doodads that you desire to your house. I used E6000 glue to firmly apply the doodads. Let dry completely.
Now you're ready to display your little glitter house.
In the coming days, I'll share more of my glitter houses on this blog entry.
Glitter House #2...
Glitter Church...
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| This one turned out so blah looking...will need to doody it up some more! |
