Winter Village Wood Set

With the winter snows upon us, we wanted to create a little frosted Winter Village to warm our hearts this season.  Most of December we are in our shop with Santa hats on making barn quilts, angels, and stars for our customers, but when night comes we get a little creative with the scraps left behind.   A few ends and shims, a couple of sawtooth nails and a darling little Winter Village was built.

The first thing we did was chop the wood into the shapes of houses and then painted them with a light coat of our Prairie Paints Homestead White.  Once the paint was dry, we took a hand held sander and scuffed the fronts and edges to give the houses a wintery snow drifted look.  If you don't have an electric sander, you can use a heavy grit sander.

Next we found some wood shims and cut them to the size of doors.  It was fun to alter the heights so they weren't all the same.  You know we're all about character.  I heated the old glue gun and glued the shims in place.  

To add winter night windows, I drew on little squares in random spaces, with attention to make them off center and slanted.  After they were drawn in place, I took a small brush and painted them in with our Prairie Paints Old Crow.  I let them dry.

For the details I used a white Sharpie pen.  Again, I drew little window panes inside of the black area with off-center whimsy.  I think this whimsy may become my new word!

Every home needs a roof and we made these roofs with the ends of the wood shims that we cut for the doors.  I glued them onto the pointed tops of the wood blocks with off set points again to give the homes a little character and whimsy.

To make the darling chimneys, we used a small hammer to pound in sawtooth nails that you can find at most large home supply centers.  A few medium strength taps and they were in place.  

Again we made the placement of each chimney different on each house.  One went in straight and the other two were pounded in at an angle to give it the look of an old little cottage.

Aren't those houses so cute!  I want to live in them all winter long.  You can see that each one is unique and very simple in style.  With this project simple is best.

Now for the trees!  We used scraps of the cedar that we make our barn quilts from. and cut them in varying heights with sharp points to make them look like they are reaching for those winter stars.

Using our Prairie Paints Homestead White and a small round sponge brush that I found at a local craft supply store I doted the snowballs onto the trees.  You could paint in random patterns, but I wanted mine to slope  in a faint line to look like each snow ball had landed on the sweeping limbs of the pine trees.

This was one of the most fun parts of this Winter Village.  Making those trees come to life was easy and sweet.

And there you have it, a perfect little Winter Village Set made from materials we had in our wood shop.  We loved them so much, we added DIY Winter Village Kits to Our Shop for you to purchase.  The kits contain everything you need to make your own village.  

If you are wanting to purchase a set already made we have them ready for you to purchase all ready frosted and ready to display on your mantle or side table.  They will stay with you though out the long frosty winter.  You can also catch us today on KUTV Fresh Living talking about these darling sets.  Tune in at 1:00.  

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Winter Village Wood Set

Momma's Farmhouse Chili

Last week was our Barn Quilt Class on the Farm and it was cold.  Too cold for words, so we knew we had to serve a hot comforting lunch.  The most requested soups from our kitchen to the farm table are Momma's Farmhouse Chili and Loaded Chicken Noodle Soup.  When we ate at 2:00 we were so ready for the hot and mildly spicy Chili!  That night I received several DM's asking for the recipe...so here it is.
Momma's Farmhouse Chili
2 Bear Creek That Darn Chili Mixes2 Large cans of Tomato Sauce1 Large Can of Tomato Paste2 Lbs. of Fresh Ground Beef2 Large Onion Finely, Chopped1 Garlic, Minced2 Large Cans of Kidney Beans2 Tbs of Chili Powder1 Teas Red Pepper Flakes1/4  Taco Seasoning1/4 Dark Cocoa Powder2 Tbs Ground CuminLiquid SmokeSea Salt and Fresh Ground PepperGrated Sharp CheddarCilantroSliced LimesFresh Salted Chips
1.  In a deep pot, add olive oil and heat.  Saute' garlic and onion until translucent.  Add ground beef and brown.  Drain off fat.
2.  Add Kidney Beans, tomato sauce, tomato paste and mix in.  Continue to heat.  Add all spices except for the cocoa.
3.  Add water to the spicy beef mix and heat to a high simmer.   Add the Bear Creek That Darn Good Chili Mix and simmer for 10 minutes.
4.  Turn down to low and slow cook for a half hour.  Add the cocoa and four dashes of Liquid Smoke.
5.  Cover and slow simmer on low until thickened and ready to serve.  This can be kept warm in a slow-cooker and served with brats, potato wedges, as a nacho topping or with a big bowl of goodness.
6.  My favorite way to east this is scooped into bowls with grated sharp Cheddar Cheese, chopped Cilantro and a squeeze of Lime for freshness....and a side of good tortilla chips.
So, there you have it!  A really thick chili recipe that starts with the base of a mix and becomes something spectacular.  We make this big batch and freeze it for BBQs in the summer and sledding parties in the winter.  It is so thick you can spoon onto burgers, brats or on a study chip.  
I hope you enjoy this!

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Momma's Farmhouse Chili

Prism Star Barn Quilt

Prism Star Barn Quilt

Our newest barn quilt in the Tweetle Dee family is bursting with 54 shades of perfectly vintage inspired colors all from our Prairie Paints collection.  The Prism Star Barn Quilt is now in In The Shop in four sizes, including a big glorious 55" framed beauty.  
All of our barn quilts begin with treated reclaimed wood, hand picked and coated in our Prairie Paint base colors.  Each design is hand drawn and painted with special attention to the character of the wood beneath.  Once the paints have cured, frames are added and the entire piece is sealed in a special oil that brings luster to each color and any exposed wood.  This treatment insures that your one of a kind barn quilt will last for years whether you display it inside or outside your home.

All of our paints are available on our site as well as this gorgeous barn quilt.  Use code: thankyou to receive 10% off your order for being one of our loved blog subscribers.  We will be releasing a pattern for this newest barn quilt at the first of the year, so watch for it if you are wanting to paint one of these for yourself.  

We wish you a wonderful day full of things to celebrate, dream over, and create together!  xo

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Prism Star Barn Quilt