Pottery Barn Inspired Christmas Village

With a two year old, and all the other stuff going on in my life, I just know that waiting until December to start my Christmas crafting will result in a whole bunch of supplies piled up in the office, mocking me because I never got around to using them.  Believe me, I know this from experience.  I have quite a bit of stuff from last year, including an unfinished yarn wreath that is still tethered to the yarn ball, that I run across on a regular basis.  It's sad really.  So with that in mind, I've decided to start crafting in November!  I've already started making decorative ornaments that I will share a "how to" for you all, here on the blog in the near future.  Some of you from Instagram, may have already seen a couple of the finished products.  I just want to say how much I appreciate all the love I got from everyone about them.  Sometimes, the things you think nobody will take note of, get the biggest response!

So like most of you, I have received my Pottery Barn Holiday catalogue, and have torn through it for inspiration.  I mean they have amazing stuff, but I'm a firm believer that if I don't have to pay full price for something, I shouldn't.  Instead, I opt to buy discounted items, or make my own version of what I've been inspired by.  That's what happened when I saw these little houses.  How adorable is this village?  I want them all!
 

http://www.potterybarn.com/products/german-glitter-houses/?pkey=e%7Cchristmas%2Bvillage%7C2%7Cbest%7C0%7C1%7C48%7C%7C2&cm_src=PRODUCTSEARCH||NoFacet-_-NoFacet-_-NoMerchRules

 

So I had two options on how to make these floating through my mind.  One required me to cut paper, and glue, and even though that might seem easy, with a two year old, I just couldn't see it not being extra hard to manage.  So on to the other idea.  I have visited the Dollar Tree quite a bit in the past month, for Halloween decorations, and the last time I visited, I saw that they were setting out their Christmas Village items.  I didn't need them at the time, but as soon as I saw the Pottery Barn village, I knew they would be perfect for this project. 

 

This morning, Rordan and I took a quick trip to the Dollar Tree, and purchased a few of the houses, and churches.  Then, a quick trip to Michael's, for supplies that I didn't have at home.  I'll list everything below for you all.  This really wasn't hard to do, and I'm very happy with the outcome.  I just might make another trip for more, now that I know they turned out well.  I hope you like them!

 

 

 

 

Supplies Needed:

Christmas Village Houses and Churches (Remember, these are only a dollar at the Dollar Tree!)

White Paint (I opted to use spray paint.)

Sharpie Markers (I used the metallic series. LOVE!)

Glitter (Simple metallic, or wild colors, pick whatever makes you happy!)

Hot Glue/Hot Glue Gun (If you don't have one, you could opt for glitter pens, or puff paint.)

 

 

Here are the buildings before.

Some of the supplies needed.

 

I took them outside and spray painted them with white Krylon paint. 

They dried fairly quickly, and so I was ready to take my Sharpie markers and outline the details of the buildings that I wanted to stand out.  Honestly, I think they could have stayed this way and I would have been happy with them, but I had a goal, and so I moved on to the next step.

Here's an example of what I outlined. 

So being the crazy new blogger that I am, I didn't get a picture of the next step, but I did get a picture of the supplies!  Ha!  So at this point, you just take the hot glue gun, add the glue to the roof, and trees, and sprinkle glitter on top. This is the easiest part of the entire project, and you get to have a nice little snow globe experience in your house, if you are anything like me.

 

So that was it!  Easy, easy, easy!  Anyone can do it, and to top it off, I only spent around $15 for all the supplies that I didn't have.  Considering Pottery Barns village pieces, cost at minimum $29 each, I think I've saved a lot of money, and achieved a similar look.  I hope you take a shot at recreating this, and if you do, please come back and share it with me.  Happy Crafting!