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Wren Houses were only used in a few parts of Wales. It is believed that a dead wren was placed in the house and carried around the neighbourhood to wish a happy new year. Today this local custom, like the Mari Lwyd, has been adopted as a national tradition by many Welsh societies. (Text from Oriel 1 exhibition at St Fagans National Museum of History)

A wooden house with two glass windows and a central door. Across the top is a carrying handle, there is also a steel rod running beneath the handle, attached to this are red, white and blue strips of cloth. The roof has been made from a piece of cardboard with an outer layer of blue paper. It is held in place by strips of purple card (now faded to off-white), which have been nailed over the sides (down the slope of the gable). The windows are glass and are held in place by strips of leather which have been nailed to the wood. The door's hinges are also leather. There is a red strip of cloth wound around the handle. On the back is a written inscription. The wooden surface has been given a wax coating.

More detailed description of the fabrics: Ribbon-like strips of blue, white and red, tabby woven, cellulosic fabric; most have raw edges, but one blue, one red as well as a white strip have a selvage edge - the selvage on the white strip was part of a turned seam - the fold lines, stitch holes and remains of threads are still evident; two of the red strips are cut on the bias, one of these is joined together from two pieces of fabric with a hand-stitched seam. Two lengths of cream silk ribbon; one length of tabby-woven yellow silk ribbon with a fragment of a black printed inscription starting with the letter 'R' or 'K'; 10 short strips of pale yellow satin (white cotton wefts + yellow silk warps); one length of red woollen braid; four narrow braids of cream and red (cream = cotton, red = wool); three narrow braids of cream and black (both silk). Not all of these are knotted to the steel rod that runs across the top of the roof (underneath the handle): some of them are knotted to a red fabric strip which, in turn, has been looped and knotted around the raised section of wood above the gables (to which the handle is attached).