Movie Inspired Craft: The UP House Pincushion

The movie, UP came out in 2009 and it's funny how often I still think about it. The last time I posted a movie-inspired craft, I was already thinking about this one. I knew I wanted a miniature version of the house that carried Carl and Russell away on their adventure. AND I knew I had to use my colorful glass head pins as the balloons that played such an integral role in this heart-warming film. I considered building a miniature version of the house out of clay or wood but still struggled with making it a tutorial that many people could follow. 

And then... I found THIS. That's right, Disney-Pixar actually made a paper house pattern available for alllll of us UP fans! Here's a direct link to the PDF pattern.

I do suggest printing out one full-sized PDF as-is (to actually see where all of the fold lines are), however, I opened the PDF in Adobe Photoshop and shrunk the image down to 1000 pixels wide at 350 DPI. (Making the main part of the house only about an inch wide when printed.) By shrinking it down so dramatically, we create a paper house small enough that the pins will look proportional and pass for the hundreds of balloons that carry the house away to new lands! 

Additional items you will need to make your own UP House Pincushion are:
- The house pattern printed out
- Scraps of upholstery or other foam (even a new kitchen sponge would work)
- A very sharp Xacto knife and cutting board
- Ruler or straight edge 
- Mod Podge
- Rubber Cement
- Old Paintbrushes
- A slice of tree branch any size (this becomes our "Tepui") 
- A few bits of dried moss
- A small container of dried Dillweed
- Toothpicks
- LOTS of glass head sewing pins

After printing out a few color copies of my mini house pattern, I used a ruler and Xacto knife to carefully cut out all of the paper house pieces. I then assembled them using rubber cement; dabbing a little bit of glue on all parts of the paper patten that would be touching, and letting them dry for a few seconds before pressing the paper together. This creates a MUCH stronger bond. 

Next, I used my Xacto knife again to cut thin pieces of foam to fit in each compartment of the house. I glued the foam bits inside the house using the rubber cement as well. 

When the house was completely assembled and full of foam, I used a generous amount of rubber cement on the center of the branch slice, and on the bottom of the house. Since the bottom of the house has so much exposed foam, and the slice of tree branch is quite porous, I applied the glue liberally.

Next, I sealed my entire house and the top of the wooden platform with Mod Podge. I wanted to increase the structural integrity of the house and begin creating the plant-rich environment of the Tepuis!

To create a miniature plant-scape around the house, I used tiny bits of dried moss and dill weed (from my kitchen cupboard!) and sprinkled the various greens around the surface of the wooden disk. Be careful not to sprinkle any on the house itself!

The addition of the green "plant-life" really seemed to bring the piece to life.

I *should* have let the house dry completely before jamming it full of pins, but I was so excited to see my pincushion in action, couldn't help but start jamming them in!

While I don't own QUITE as many pins as I would need to create the exact same look the movie poster has, I'm pretty pleased with my new, miniature, magical pin cushion!