Doll News Winter 2021 - 137

Doll Dreamers of Illinois
Club Activities in the Era of Zoom

fter months apart, members of Doll Dreamers of
Illinois from Region 10 were excited to see each
other in September and October via zoom. The zoom
computer program is unfortunately not available to
all our club members and we greatly missed them.
After the business portions of the meetings were held,
we had show-and-tell in September and a German
Putz House program and project in October. Making a
Halloween-themed putz house together over zoom was
a rewarding accomplishment!
A putz house is a little decorated cardboard house. A Lovely Lady ready for
A dolly with three Putz houses.
Halloween.
Many houses together often make up a village for
Christmas displays. Pete Oehman, author of the
article The History of the Putz Village and Cardboard
Christmas Houses, writes that putz originates from the
German word putzen meaning to decorate or adorn.
Modern meanings of the word are to clean or polish.
Oehman's article notes that the putz tradition began
in Central Europe with putz villages being made by
family members. Putz villages made by the Morvarian
people have been traced to the late 1700s and often
included a nativity scene. Oehman provides a history
of Germany, Japan, and the United States producing
these enchanting little cardboard houses and villages.
Today, there are vintage and reproduction putz houses Three Halloween Putz Houses.
and villages available.
Our member Ellen Eleder presented the program
Eleder, Maurine Eleder, Chris Holmes, Kathy Lesnik,
and project on German Putz Houses. In advance of
Carol Narvick, Barbara Smit, Monica Thulin, Mary Voigt,
our October zoom meeting, Ellen cut the cardboard
and Carol Yeager, treasure their charming putz houses
pieces for our Halloween-themed houses, provided
knowing they have a distinctive history.
the materials and decorations, and mailed the kits with
With the success of our online club meetings, we
directions to members. The die cut for the Halloween
decided to continue our Christmas traditions of giftputz houses was made by Sizzix Company, a division
giving and ornament exchange. Plans were formulated
of Ellison, and the designer of the die itself was Tim
and names drawn for the ornament exchange at our
Holtz. The actual title of the die cut is Sizzix Bigz XL
October zoom meeting. The home of our Christmas
Die - Village Dwelling. Although this die cut has been
Shepherd, Kathy Lesnik, will be the drop-off and pickdiscontinued by Sizzix, it may still be available on eBay. up place for members' large Christmas bags of tagged
During our zoom meeting, Ellen demonstrated each
gifts and ornaments. Kathy will sort the gifts and
step of putting the putz house together and decorating
ornaments and place them in the bag of the person they
it. We chatted while working on our project and showed are designated for to be picked up prior to our December
each other our completed Halloween houses. The
zoom meeting. We will celebrate the season at our online
advantage of mailing kits to members was that those not Christmas Party by enjoying each other's company and
having access to zoom could also make the putz house.
opening our gifts and ornaments together. Although
We missed being together with all our doll friends yet
the pandemic places restrictions on all our lives, it is
discovered the joy of continuing club activities online.
wonderful to connect with each other online and carry
Our members, Madonna Broihier, Rita Coake, Ellen
on our doll club activities and traditions.
DOLL NEWS * UFDC.ORG

137

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Doll News Winter 2021

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