5 DIY Nativity Scenes

With Christmas fast approaching I am brainstorming ideas for DIYing the Nativity Scene. In the past I have created various nativity scenes like in 2008 I used wood and created a very simple DIY Nativity Scene. I purchased brown & black paint from a DIY shop & a green mat as grass.

Started with a base

And this is the completed set

In 2009 I created a scene using soft white clay to put together a ‘White Christmas’. I used a cardboard box to build a stable & added a light to enhance its appearance.

Thermocol was used as the base for my DIY project

DIY projects are a handful & at times take patience & hours of labour — the satisfaction is so worth it!

A complete DIY Nativity Scene

Notice the light on the roof of the hut, it changes colours

I created a star shape in the hut & put in lights through the hollow to show off the Star. In 2010 I was in India & missed the opportunity to DIY a nativity theme for Christmas as we already had one.

In 2011, I went for a “Straw” theme — I managed to source straw in Singapore & created a theme using the basic black clay & hay. I added a few pillars wrapping them with brown & green coir. I also added green dust in some places as grass. I created a backdrop for the sky and clouds out of chart paper. I made a couple of layers which enabled hide LED lights under them. I purchased stars from ‘Spotlight’ & some shiny paint for effects on the sky.

Took some small sticks & made a fence of it.

Each year, the project grew bigger & better. I was inspired by the scene from at ‘Church of Saint Ignatius’, Singapore. In December 2012, I used sandy brown clay as a basis the nativity scene. I also used medium sized pebbles to give the nativity scene a rocky effect. I created a well which denotes “Living Water” representing Cleansing & Purification I placed a Shepherd near a warm fire signifying Light & the presence of the Holy Spirit.

The Scene from The Church of St. Ignatius, Singapore

Minor details add effect — notice the fresh leaves on the well

I used tissue paper & created a bucket

The Shepherd keeping himself warm by the fire

In 2013, the DIY theme was “Ice Age”. The first job was to add lights as the foundation to the landscape. I stuck them on the chester draw using double-sided tape. I bought some marbles & different pieces of gravel that is used as a base for the fish tank. I placed a thin layer of glue on the chester drawer & pasted the stones & marbles on them. For the shed, I got a basin from a local shop, pasted some clay on it and dusted coloured sand to it. For the backdrop I used light blue paper & stuck felt paper for clouds. I used the stars from the past year & kept it simple so that the focus would be on the ice & the nativity scene.

This is how I created the ice effect

Different shades of Blue!

Its 2014 and am yet to come up with a theme for my DIY Nativity Scene.

Any ideas?

Originally published at georginameyne.blogspot.sg on October 6, 2014.