It is the time of year when people begin their holiday decorating, and for many families, that means setting up Christmas villages. As beautiful as they are, the various buildings and pieces can cost quite a bit of money. You do not have to spend much to make a personalized winter village scene by making your own Paper Chain Village.
Creating paper house chains is fun, easy, and something everyone in the family can enjoy. It does not matter if someone cannot stay in the lines, create perfect shapes, or remember to put windows and doors on the building. Imagination is the key, and the outcome will be something everyone can enjoy looking at all season long.
Taking paper crafts a step up from garlands you put around a tree; a paper chain village is an accordion-style chain of houses and other buildings. You can get creative and create trains of cars, trees, bushes, and other items to build on your scene. Go a step further and make people paper chains to bring your village to life.
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Creating unique decorations from scratch can make life fun during the holidays. These are items you can add to each year. Your village can be as large or as small as your space. Do not be surprised if your child wants to add little figures, animals, or play furniture to the display. There is no limit to what the imagination can create.
How to make a paper chain village
Begin by gathering the following items:
- Heavy-duty construction paper, card stock, or poster board – it needs to be thick and sturdy to help it stand up
- Scissors (safety ones if your child can cut out the shapes themselves)
- Pencil to outline the shapes
- Crayons, markers, or paint
- Wax paper to lay down under the paper to protect the table
Here are the steps to make a paper chain village [2] once you have your supplies:
- Cut your chosen paper in half lengthwise, resulting in two long strips
- Fold your paper in half a few times until you reach your desired width (if you are making multiple chains, make each chain different sizes for added dimension)
- Trace your house, car, tree, or other shapes
- Cut out the paper chain, keeping the chain intact – do not separate the houses (you can also wait and cut it out after your child adds their creative flair, especially if you are worried about paint going everywhere)
- Paint, color, and decorate the chain
- Set up your paper chain village by folding the paper like an accordion and place on your table, mantle, or anywhere else you choose
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You will find links to information about making paper chain villages and paper chain dolls (to add people to your display) below.
If you are crafty, you can up your game by creating a more detailed display featuring paper houses with roofs [4] and cut-out windows. Displays such as these require significant effort and some glue. If you have a cutting machine at home, we provide a link to a blog that provides some free printable templates. You can also use these templates to print stencils to trace on your cardstock and cut them out by hand.
While these paper villages take longer to create, the result is spectacular. You can even use string lights to make your houses come to life.
Resources:
https://www.pinkstripeysocks.com/2016/11/diy-paper-chain-christmas-village.html [2]
https://www.hometalk.com/posts/decorate/christmas/diy-cute-paper-christmas-village-44449553 [4]
https://www.kiwico.com/diy/art-creativity/fun-functional-projects/paper-doll-chain [5]