Fairy-tale Christmas magic in Woodlands with dwarfs village

Seven colourful dwarfs alongside seven cabins with snow-capped roofs in a Woodlands neighbourhood are seeking their princess this Christmas. And their creator, Mr Tan Koon Tat, hopes children can come dressed as princesses to complete the fairy tale.

A giant snowman, which lights up in the evening, along with six life-size reindeer, round off the elaborate festive scene in front of Block 178 Woodlands Street 13.

It is the latest creation by the long-time Woodlands resident, who has been putting up decorations in the neighbourhood for over 10 years during festive periods such as Deepavali, Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Chinese New Year. He pays for them out of his own pocket.

Mr Tan, a carpenter, hopes to unveil the complete set-up tonight.

He initially planned to recreate the popular fairy tale Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs, along with a life-size princess statue, but went with a rainbow-themed dwarfs village in the end. "I don't want to get sued by Disney," he joked.

"But maybe children can wear their own princess outfits and pose with the dwarfs to take photos."

Where last year's snow-capped Christmas log cabin took him two weeks to put together, Mr Tan had been working on this year's project for the past two months.

The rain over the past few weeks also hindered his progress.

For instance, he managed to set up the 2m-tall snowman, which has a mechanical head that turns, only last Saturday. He had completed it a week ago but did not want the heavy rain to ruin his creation.

"The dwarfs will be the last to be put up because they are a bit more fragile and I want them to look good on Christmas Day," he said.

Created from pieces of scrap wood padded with foam sheets, the dwarfs are dressed in colourful tops, boots and gloves.

As with previous years, Mr Tan plans to switch on his snow machine on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. He typically puts up a sign with the dates and times for neighbours to bring their children down to play in the foam-based "snow".

He has also bought 200 Christmas headbands to give out to children under 12 in the neighbourhood.

"Neighbours like the decorations and requested that I make it bigger and bigger each year, so I do," Mr Tan said with a smile. The Marsiling-Yew Tee Town Council grants him permission to do the set-ups.

Childcare teacher Lynn Ang, 30, who lives in the same block, said she looks forward to seeing Mr Tan's set-up each festive season.

"It is fun to see what the uncle is up to, and it also signifies a change of season. Christmas is usually the most elaborate, and he has definitely 'levelled up' this year," she said.

Mr Tan is not the only one spreading Christmas cheer to neighbours.

At Block 722 Tampines Street 72, a sled made out of a cardboard box and piping, a snowman and other ornaments greet residents at the eighth-storey lift landing.

Resident Andy Lim Beng Huat, 70, who runs an electrical works business, started working on his Christmas set-up in June, reported The New Paper. He plans to repurpose some of his Christmas decorations for Chinese New Year next month.