Putz House with Silver Leaf & German Glass Glitter

Whew! Finally done with my latest Putz house. When you first get started and have a fresh vision of it in your mind, it seems like it will be done in no time at all. But when you're as detail-oriented as I am, that couldn't be further from the truth......

Behold.....

I'm a bold color and contrast kinda girl, but I thought it might be a nice change to give it a dreamy wintry wonderland vibe and paint it white-ish. I chose a warm off-white so the snow would still be noticeable.

I knew before I started it that I wanted to use some thin-fluted corrugated wrap I've had for a while. With so many treatment options, in the end, applying silver leaf was the winner.

I used it for the roof and the awning over the door. 

I aged it with warm brown and black alcohol inks, leaving most of the ink in the grooves, and wiping the excess off the raised areas, then sealing it in gloss varnish. I love how it turned out. It has so much more character than leaving it bright silver.

I used the same stucco texture on the walls again, but this time, after painting it, I lightly dusted it with the clear German glass glitter. So soft and twinkly.

I went further to make it a full-fledged Putz house by giving it 2 bottle brush trees. I chose not to leave them a bleached cream color, because they didn't seem to hold their weight against the silver roof and black and silver windows. But before I coated them with anything, I “pruned” them with a slight spiral pattern. The totally straight line sides were really bothering me, and I felt the spiral gave them a more natural shape. I started with metallic champagne paint, pushing it deep into the trunk of the tree, then while it was wet, I pounced silver powdered pigment into the paint to give it a good base for the glass glitter. Finally, after brushing white glue deep into the trees, I poured on copious amounts of silver German glass glitter. Oh, how they twinkle now! And they totally match the elegance of the silver leaf roof.

Rather than cutting out intricate window panes, this time I cut the window form, painted it black, then drew white glue lines and poured on the silver glass glitter. Since the glitter is so thick, it mimics raised window panes perfectly.

I made the same glue/white paint mixture to use as snow. I don't really measure the ratio, but it's close to 1/3 glue & 2/3 paint. White glue shrinks as it dries, so layering the snow in stages may be necessary, as it was for me. The paint is thick artist's paint, not the runny craft paint in the bottle.

As incredibly time-consuming as these are to make, I am pleased with how rewarding it is. When it doesn't need to be absolutely architecturally realistic, the sky is the limit with designing them. That really speaks to my creativity, since I can get bored pretty quickly. And since I'm not making 2 dozen carbon copies of an ornament, I can make each house design drastically different if I choose to. 

I may just have to create these leisurely throughout the year, so I can sell more next Christmas without being in a mad rush! Mayyybe, I'll make one more before this Christmas.........Ciao for now, Maria

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