I really am genuinely sorry for drawing your attention to Christmas decor so early in the year, but this is a needs-must situation for the greater good of Christmas village lovers alike. If you're one of those people (like me) who has a Christmas village tradition and likes to add, tweak, and refine said village each year, then you've come to the right place.
While I absolutely love my Christmas village, I would be far more comfortable describing it as 'fun' or 'cute' than 'stylish' — Anthropologie's Christmas houses, on the other hand, are categorically stylish. I want each and every one of them, and I want to create towns, never mind villages, with them.
The thing about Anthropologie's Christmas Shop, however, is that it tends to sell out, and fast. So, ultimately, I'm doing you a favor by imploring you to step on board the Christmas train early, if only to store one (or many) of these beauties in preparation for when the time is right to begin deliberating your Christmas decorating ideas, before it's too late...
There is something magical about a Christmas village, in my opinion, especially when they're brought to life when lit up.
I actually have a dedicated cubby in my book shelves that I use each year to house my Christmas village display; all the books are removed and stored for the duration of the festive period (aside from those I use as part of my base for the village) and it brings me and my family (more me) a great deal of Christmas cheer, right in the center of our home.
You can see what I mean when we revealed how our interiors team decorates at Christmas — though, I repeat, my display is not currently stylish, which is why I’m in need of these Christmas houses from Anthropologie to add some much-needed flair to my village.
So whether you want to build a Christmas village from scratch this year, or will be adding to an existing village, or even if you just like the idea of having the odd one or two Christmas houses dotted about for decoration, these pieces from Anthropologie will bring a touch of class with a healthy dose of glittery magic to your festive decor.
Paper Christmas Houses
The Emily Taylor Christmas village houses are exclusive to Anthropologie, each painted by hand, and inspired by the historic buildings of Western Europe and old Toronto.
They're beautiful, they're colorful, and they're so detailed that you're getting true craftsmanship for a very reasonable price point. I am obsessed with all things miniature, so I can't cope with the cuteness of those teeny tiny Christmas lights: dreamy.
Loyal customers of the Emily Taylor x Anthropologie collection add the new selection of Christmas houses to their own collections each year, and I'm ready to start preparing for my chic display this year.
Color: Lavender
Color: Pink
Color: Mint
I have a wonderful selection of ceramic Christmas houses in my collection, too, (I have a separate Christmas entryway display, plus I use a few dotted about on the mantelpiece in my snug as well), and I have my eye on all of these, too — but which one? Can I justify them all?
Ceramic Christmas Houses
If paper Christmas houses aren't your thing, then these ceramic Christmas houses are just the ticket. Also exclusive to Anthropologie and painted by hand, these detailed pieces will bring a dose of Christmas cheer to any Christmas fireplace or festive display.
While these particular houses do not light up, you could arrange a set of string lights underneath the houses to bring a glow inside and all around them (like these Jsdoin Fairy Lights on Amazon).
You can cover the string with some faux snow if you don’t want the other lights on show, or else incorporate the lights as part of your overall display. I had a bag of cotton wool that I reuse each year for my display, which does the trick, but you can buy Fluffy Snow from Amazon that you could reuse each year, too.
If I had to pick just one Christmas house from the ceramic selection on Anthropologie, I think it would have to be the 'Winter Ballet' house; there's just something about it, and I've always associated ballet with the Nutcracker at Christmas time. It also gives the impression of having a glow to it, even though it's not lit
Color: Brown
Color: Purple
Color: Red
Christmas Village Essentials
If you're building a Christmas village display for the first time, here are a few essential items to add to your shopping list along with your stylish Christmas houses:
- Artificial snow — Set the scene: this Fluffy Snow from Amazon that I mentioned earlier would work well, or if you have any cotton wool, this could work just as well, and is what I have used and reused for the last several years.
- Miniature Christmas Trees — These are also a must! The Emily Taylor Christmas houses above do have two miniature trees on each house, but I personally think you need plenty more to make a proper festive scene; this 18 Piece Miniature Christmas Tree Set on Amazon, of varying colors and sizes, is perfection.
- Miniature Street Lanterns — Not technically an essential, but I do love them and have them in my own display; mine don't actually light up, but you can get this Set of 8 Lanterns on Amazon that do!
- String Lights — For the unlit variety of Christmas houses, having a set of string lights you can position in and around and under your houses will do the job perfectly to make the scene come to life, like the Jsdoin Fairy Lights on Amazon I mentioned earlier.
- Extra Decor Pieces — If you're going for more of a maximalist design, you can find a whole host of additional pieces for your Christmas village to suit your taste in Amazon's Christmas village decorations selection.
Noteworthy Mention
In the spirit of being organized and securing your favourite new season Christmas pieces before they sell out, I couldn’t not highlight this Anthropologie Christmas Advent Calendar of dreams.
Depicting the Christmas traffic, but in all the best ways (with vehicles overloaded with presents), this could be part of a wider Christmas village display or a lovely, practical decor item to count down the days with — it lights up, too.
There's even a Train Advent Calendar, too, which could be another great addition to your festive decorations — the train even has little Christmas houses on top of the carriages!
If you’re interested in partaking in a full-scale plan-ahead decor shop to snag the crème de la crème of Christmas pieces to add to your collection before they sell out, then I also recommend checking out John Lewis’ Christmas shop, which recently opened for festive buying joy. Happy shopping!
