Welcome to the Cardboard Christmas Forums
Family-friendly forums for discussing traditional cardboard Christmas houses, including their history, collection, restoration, recreation, and display.

How to Apply for Membership
Updated membership requirements.

Tools, Tips and Techniques
This forum is a place for our readers to pass on things they've figured out that will help other readers. Several folks who are experienced in building, collecting, and displaying putz houses stop by frequently, so check back for new ideas, and add some yourself. Any suggestions you have, things you've learned that you'd like to pass on, weird problems you need help with, all are welcome here. - Paul

Tell Me About My Putz House(s)
If you have an unusual piece that you have questions about, this is the place to post them. Photos are VERY welcome, though it helps if you reduce them to 800 wide before you upload them. If you can't reduce them yourself, post them anyway and I'll try to reduce them when I have time.

Please Post Your "House of the Month"
In honor of "Papa Ted," we're starting a new "House of the Month" forum for each member who wants to participate to post his or her own house of the month.

Putz Patterns
Here's a place to post patterns you want to share, link to patterns you find elsewhere on the internet, and request particular kinds of patterns you're looking for. I've moved a few existing messages here to get the forum started.

Putz Village Photos
Please use this forum for photos of your putz villages - some of you don't make your own houses, but you still display a lot of artistry when you combine and arrange them. And the rest of us would love to see your work. Again, it works best if you resize your photos to 800px wide or less before you upload them - Paul

Putz House Gallery Sites
Please post links to sites with lots of putz and putz house photos.

Who Am I?
If you would like to let the rest of us know a bit about you, especially if you have any special skills or knowledge that the rest of the group might be able to draw on, that would be good. Also, if you have a blog or other web resource that's related to what we do here. . .

Posting Photos on Forums
When you're talking about Cardboard Christmas (putz) houses, a photo is worth TWO thousand words. Here are some notes about posting photos on this forum.

Finding Supplies
Where do you get the materials and tools you use to build or restore putz houses, lufa trees, etc.?

Papa Ted's Sharing Place
This is a place for sharing photos, stories, questions, answers, and cheer, especially for those who have been readers, contributors, and friends of Papa Ted's Place all these years.

Coconut
A place for discussing "coconut" finishes on prewar putz houses, including experiments on "rolling your own."

Electric Train Questions
What trains do you use with your putzes? Do you try to match period? Color? Scale? Any other discussions regarding trains and putzes.

My Workspace
Please share how you organize your workspace, tools, and other resources for your putz-building and related projects.

Christmas Kitch
Please, no blue humor, when I say tastless I mean that whoever designed this stuff was without measurable artistic sensibilities. Okay, starting this forum is probably a bad idea, but there's some pretty silly stuff out there.