Why yes, I was raised by an architect...

 The holiday card I'm currently working on requires a small house. Above, the front of the house (center) and assorted wall and roof pieces (to the upper left) as they appeared last night. Below, the current model with my hand for scale. The porch is still in-progress; I don't want to add it until the glue dries on the rest of the model. The windows are covered with wax paper so that they'll glow when a small light is placed inside.

When I was in elementary school, my dad put an addition on our house. He made a scale model of the existing house before he started working on the drawings, and it always amazed me to see our house in miniature. I've always loved architectural models. While I can read blueprints, there's something fascinating about a physical rendition. For one house project my dad even made a model with removable parts so that the client could see exactly how the proposed plans would change the existing house. Few architects still make models by hand, but it's incredible when they do. My model is not to scale (honestly, I haven't the patience) but it is based on the actual house of the family whose holiday card I'm making.