The holidays are a great time for making memories, while creating a warm and cozy atmosphere in your home. But let’s be honest, sometimes our old Christmas decor could use a modern update. Case in point: Christmas Villages.
Porcelain Christmas Villages have been with us for decades! To some they hold cherished memories and to others they are outside of the realm of their décor aesthetic and are nothing more than a stored hand-me-down. Fear not my friends- whichever camp you fall into we have a fantastic way you can upscale this holiday staple and make it your own without making your mother mad!
If you don’t happen to own a Christmas village, consider a quick trip to your local thrift store and peruse those shelves. In fact, we found these for 99 cents a piece! Score!
Once you gather your goods, all you need to do to give them a fresh look is paint them white! But before you get to work, here’s our advice:
Step #1- Use Primer- We picked up the brand “Kilz” in a can from Home Depot. DON’T SKIP THIS!! It is imperative to this transformation. This product is unlike other primers and bonds to non-porous surfaces like nobody’s business. Once this coat of Kilz has dried your village is ready to receive a coat of paint.
Step #2- Chalk Paint- We used Rustoleum Chalk spray paint. This product leaves you with a beautiful matte, yet texture appreciative finish. Those of you who are familiar with chalk paint will fall in love with this product…. Two words: Spray. Paint.
Step #3- Glitter Spray- This step is completely optional, but we used white Glitter spray paint on top of the dried chalk paint. We added this layer so the houses so we would have a little extra bling to catch the light, give some movement, and add a bit of whimsy.
Step #4- Display- We gathered last year’s Christmas trees from Target (Fear not- they have these Willow Wood Trees this year! ). Then we collected sprigs of greenery and these battery-operated twinkle lights, also from Target.
Another tip: grab your glass punch bowl/cake stand that you received as a wedding gift, and use it to create a beautiful vignette for your village. Talk about adding whimsy! It creates an ethereal, snowglobe-like effect.
As you can see, this creates a stunning table scape and the best part about it is…it took a total of two hours, including shopping, painting and set up. PLUS, it was super cheap! Our costs came in under $100. You cannot get a custom Christmas village for that price, my friends. So, feel very, very free to take your own village and usher it in to the 21st century with these simple steps! We can’t guarantee your mother won’t be mad, but we assure you she’ll be in awe and you will feel like a Holiday BOSS!
For more on this idea along with more great ideas to update tired decor, visit our Facebook page to watch our live video on #Holidayhacks.
Happy painting!
xoxo,
Abbie and the ShineUP Crew
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