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DIY Christmas Village and Castle from Children's Blocks
© Stephie McCarthy
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Our Christmas village began with a plan for a castle made of children's blocks with Christmas ball perched on the towers.
Smaller houses made from leftover blocks create a village at the base of the castle.
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We left the blocks raw wood, but added a second shade of brown for contrast. The village can be used year round, by keeping the colors neutral.
BEAUTY SHOT 1
The castle is staged on floral foam and a concrete pot, so that plants can be arranged around and in back.
BEAUTY SHOT 2
We found our castle block set on eBay with 75 pieces for about $30. There are larger sets and they appear now and then on second hand markets like Facebook Marketplace and Etsy. Similar sets sell under different brand names.
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As we designed and sketched ideas, we decided to incorporate additional raw wood pieces like these wooden candlesticks.
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The floral disk is about 2" x 10", found at Michael's Crafts for about $3.00
More pieces: this spare finial shown below became one of the towers.
The small blade was borrowed from our reciprocating saw to use in trimming some of the wood. We also used a limb saw to trim the spindle so that it had a flat bottom.
Scraps of lumber were called into play too. These odd chunks of two by fours would help make the base sturdy.
As we finalized the design, we took photos and made a sketch so that we could remember the plan.
Then it was a matter of gluing the pieces together. For this step, we used TiteBond Glue.
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The glue will slide and leak a bit from between the blocks as it sets quickly. We held the wood in place for a moment while the glue set. We also wiped glue leaks away with baby wipes.
Layer by layer, the castle took shape. Scraps of 2"x 2" were used for the two center towers, while the blocks with windows were placed on the outer towers.
The concrete pot and foam disk, before, shown below. The arrangement will also fit on a large flower pot.
By cutting part of the foam, we can insert stems into water below support and decorate the castle. First we marked a cut line, then used the reciprocating saw blade to make the cut.
The hole in the foam will be hidden by the castle. Notice how the castle towers will be sturdy with extra blocks attached to the backs.
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Finishing Touches
How to Connect the Christmas Ball Ornaments
A Christmas ball will sit at the top of each tower by sitting on a piece of chopstick.
We cut a chopstick into 2" long pieces then hot-glued them to the top of each tower.
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Lighting
We used paper lantern lights through out the village and on the castle. Pull the tab from the tiny globe and the light will glow for about a week.
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The Village Houses
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The Santa Figurine
Santa is a gnome figurine from Michael's Crafts and with a bit of red chalk paint ...
The Christmas Village Boat
Our boat began as a kit from Walmart craft department for about $4.00. By adding lots of spare blocks, sticks, and string, we've made a one-of-a-kind decoration.
The mantel is covered in aluminum foil and drifts of white batting so that the village, boat, and castle are part of a river landscape effect.
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