The Aylmer-Malahide Museum & Archives Tour of Homes Committee would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who made the Tour of Homes such an incredible success! We had a record year, raising over $21,000 for our general operating fund, and we couldn't have done it without your support.

A special thank you to the homeowners for showcasing their homes on the tour!

  • Julie and Chris Cox
  • Jodi and Adam Gardner
  • Mary and Frank Giesbrecht
  • Tracy and Pat Goris
  • Nicole and Jeff Wiebenga
  • Cathie and Ron White

The Tour of Homes Committee & Decorators

  • Bozena Boadway
  • Linda Charlton
  • Julie Cox
  • Yvonne Gavey
  • Jacquie Jeffery
  • Larry Jeffery
  • Sandra Nesbitt
  • Barb Pede
  • Kara Stanley
  • Michele Toth
  • Gail van Kasteren
  • Tricia Van Gorp
  • Deb Waite

Merchants, Contributors, Sponsors, & Ticket Sellers

Thank you to the myriads of volunteers who staffed the homes even though not members of the museum. Thank you to the local businesses who placed advertisements in our ticket, donated door prizes, and provided samples. Finally, thank you to the community and tour-goers; without your support and enthusiasm, the tour would not have been such a success!

Please check back again next year to join us for our 21st tour!

The 20ᵗʰ Annual Christmas Tour of Homes

The volunteers of the Aylmer-Malahide Museum & Archives are pleased to announce that the Annual Christmas Tour of Homes will be returning in November of 2024. We’re so excited to show you what we have in store!

The 2024 Christmas Tour of Homes is scheduled to take place from Friday, November 15ᵗʰ to Sunday, November 17ᵗʰ. Tickets will be for sale in advance on this website, at 14 East St., or through participating retailers, and for sale during the tour itself at 14 East St. and at each of the four participating homes. Tickets will be for sale for $25 each.

Please be aware that the homes are not within walking distance this year.

The Tour of Homes Committee kindly asks that tour-goers remove their shoes while in the homes. In an effort to reduce single-use plastic, we ask that you bring your own reusable shoe bag.

Tour of Homes Logo

Date and Time
Friday, November 15ᵗʰ
4:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Saturday, November 16ᵗʰ
1:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Sunday, November 17ᵗʰ
1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Tickets
$25 each
Available at the museum and the four houses

About the Tour of Homes

The Aylmer-Malahide Museum Volunteers' annual Christmas Tour of Homes began in 2002. This fundraiser was developed to benefit the museum's operation and raise awareness of local businesses. It is now a Christmas tradition for many locals and visitors from all over Ontario and beyond. Four unique, interesting and/or historical homes are chosen in the Aylmer Area. These homes are decorated for Christmas and then opened for participants to tour. This is a major fundraiser for the museum. Many volunteer hours and support from homeowners and local businesses go into making this an annual success.

Old Imperial Market Gift Card Giveaway

Show your Tour of Homes ticket to market staff during their Christmas market on November 16th (8:00 am to 3:00 pm, 516 John Street North) to be entered into a draw for a gift card!

Tickets to the 2024 Christmas Tour of Homes will be $25 each.

Children (aged 12 and under) may attend the tour for free and do not require a ticket.

During the Tour

During the tour, tickets will be for sale at the museum or at each of the four participating homes.

13654 Putnam Road. Two ranch-style buildings with red siding and grey roofing, the foremost of which has a wraparound porch. The door is painted yellow, and a sign that reads

13654 Putnam Road

The current homeowners purchased this property in 2015 as an 80+ year-old, small, single-family farmhouse. Extensive remodelling and decorating transformed the old farmhouse into their home. A new addition of a two-storey attached dwelling in 2016, for the homeowner’s parents, has created two homes to be used by generations of the family to come. The property has been upgraded with extensive gardens, trees, a pool and swim spa, and the much-loved wood-fired pizza oven.

11480 Springfield Road

Built in 1870, this century home has undergone major renovations prior to the current owners’ purchase in 2021. Sitting on six acres, this property boasts a large barn which provides much-needed storage and a home for laying hens. In the backyard, check out the lovely pond and volleyball court. This home is the perfect venue for hosting family and friends.

11480 Springfield Road. A two-storey yellow brick home with beautiful modern upgrades. Features a balcony, a wrap-around porch, and bay windows.

26 Lawrence Crescent. A mid-century, red, brick, single-storey building with a two-car garage.

26 Lawrence Crescent

This home is tucked away on a serene crescent, with sweeping views of trees, a creek, and parkland stretching behind it. Since 2016, the homeowners have been infusing their space with a minimalist, clean design that shines throughout the light-filled interior. The combination of concrete countertops and solid maple cabinets adds a touch of natural elegance. With a screened-in porch and an outdoor pool, the home offers the perfect retreat for all seasons.

200 Caverly Road

This raised bungalow, with its dramatic stone block façade, was built in 1994 by Mark Minor Homes. The current owners purchased the home in 2023. The lower level of the home features a large family room and adjoining games room. The upper level features a large living room, three bedrooms, and an eat-in oak kitchen. The beautiful two-tier deck allows for a bird’s eye view of the backyard.

200 Caverly Road. A modern two-storey grey brick home with a double garage.

Christmas Light Display

50928 Lyons Line

When the owners of this home married 17 years ago, the two started decorating their first house with lights, slowly growing their display every year. With an ever-growing display, they are currently sitting at just over 50,000 lights on the property. This comes with a good mixture of homemade items (from hand-painted wooden displays to other DIY projects) to over 550 vintage blow moulds (the hard plastic figurines from as far back as the 1960s).

Please note that this home is not open for viewing. Enjoy the wonderful display of lights outside of the home.

Christmas Light Display at 50928 Lyons Line.

Photograph of the Aylmer-Malahide Museum's building at 14 East St. A two-storey red brick building with a gabled roof and a white portico.

The Museum

14 East Street

Visit the museum for the chance to win a free door prize!

Gift Basket Raffle
Six tickets for $5
Tickets for our gift basket raffle will also be available for purchase. Buy six tickets for $5 and put them toward any baskets of your choice! Consider trying your luck and treating yourself or a loved one to a wonderful gift.


Featured Exhibit
The Roaring Twenties: Flappers, Fashion, and Freedom
Join us to learn how the social and societal landscape of the 1920s was reflected in women’s fashion.
Refreshments Available
November 15 • 6-10 pm
Ryan’s No Frills
November 16 • 1-4 pm
Spicer’s Bakery
November 16 • 4-9 pm
Miller’s Your Independent Grocer
November 17 • 1-5 pm
Aylmer McDonald’s

The museum is unable to serve alcohol this year. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Cookies on display at the 2019 Tour of Homes

For each annual Tour of Homes, volunteers with the Aylmer-Malahide Museum & Archives assemble a series of gift baskets to raffle off to tour-goers. Buy six tickets for $5 and put them toward any baskets of your choice! Consider trying your luck and treating yourself or a loved one to a wonderful gift.

Winners have been drawn and contacted. Thank you so much to everyone who purchased tickets!

Basket Theme #1: Scratch Tickets

Winner: Tina G.

Basket includes:

  • Selection of scratch tickets

The winner of this basket must be over the age of 18 to claim the prize.

A series of scratch tickets suspended from floral picks within a red and green basket.

Basket Theme #2: Spa Day

Winner: Raquel W.

Basket includes:

  • Natural luffa
  • Bath salt
  • Hand and body wash
  • Linen and room spray
  • Shea butter soap
  • Bathroom spray
  • Foot butter
  • Foot scrub
  • Foot file
  • Bath bombs
  • Hand sanitizer
  • Hand and body lotion

Image of a metal basket with green decorative shed, containing the below-listed items

Basket Theme #3: Date Night

Winner: Ron S.

Basket includes:

The winner of this basket must be over the age of 19 to claim the prize.

A brown wicker basket with white decorative shred containing the below-listed items

Basket Theme #4: Basket of Booze

Winner: Jackie M.

Basket includes:

  • $25 LCBO gift card
  • Bottle of white rum
  • 2 bottles of icewine
  • 3 bottles of vodka
  • Bottle of tequila
  • Bottle of whisky

The winner of this basket must be over the age of 19 to claim the prize.

Selection of miniature alcohol bottles suspended from skewers above a white box

Basket Theme #5: Tea Lover

Winner: Donna E.

Basket includes:

  • Loose-leaf teas
  • Blooming teas
  • Two tea infusers
  • Tea scoop
  • Glass teapot
  • Two mugs
  • Tea bag rest

Wicker basket containing the below items

Basket Theme #6: Movie Night

Winner: Monik C.

Basket includes:

  • $50 Cineplex gift card
  • Christmas movies
  • Popcorn bucket
  • Popcorn
  • Candy
  • Chocolate
  • Pop

A plastic popcorn container containing the below-listed items.

Basket Theme #7: Book Lover

Winner: Lynn C.

Basket includes:

  • Three novels
  • Gratitude journal
  • Bookmark
  • Portable LED humidifier
  • Pillow spray
  • Peanut brittle
  • Lindor chocolate
  • Biscottini
  • Green tea
  • Teacup

Green tote basket containing the below-listed items

Basket Theme #8: Coffee Lover

Winner: Lisa K.

Basket includes:

  • Pair of artisan mugs
  • Keurig pod coffee
  • Clovermead honey
  • Handmade coasters

A wicker basket decorated with metallic shred and faux greenery, containing the below-listed items.

Basket Theme #9: Hockey, Beer, Wine, and Snacks

Winner: Carol C.

Basket includes:

The winner of this basket must be over the age of 19 to claim the prize.

White and grey plastic basket containing the below-listed items.

Basket Theme #10: Arts & Crafts

Winner: Jacquie J.

Basket includes:

  • Two paint-by-number kits
  • Two jewellery-making kits
  • 500-piece jigsaw puzzle
  • Knitting kit
  • Crocheting kit
  • Felt flower kit
  • Selection of yarn
  • Selection of fabric

White plastic basket containing the below-listed items

Basket Theme #11: Car Wash

Winner: Susan H.

Basket includes:

  • Gift card for an oil change and tire rotation from Arrow Motors (courtesy of Arrow Motors)
  • AmorAll automotive cleaning wipes and sprays

Blue plastic bucket containing the below-listed items

The Aylmer-Malahide Museum & Archives relies on our community to support an event of this size. We are more than happy to accept sponsorships in the form of advertisements. Each advertisement will be printed in the Tour of Homes ticket booklet, which reaches approximately 700 tour-goers, and will be featured on this webpage (below) with a link to its respective business. Please note that ticket advertisements will be printed in black and white, and website advertisements will be featured in colour. We are pleased to offer two sizes of advertisements: a half-page ad (5" x 3.5"), a quarter-page ad (5" x 1.9") and an eighth-page ad (2.5" x  1.9"). Local businesses are welcome to fill out the below form to advertise with us, or to otherwise contact us at (519) 773-9723 or info@aylmermuseum.ca.

The deadline to confirm an advertisement with the 2024 Tour of Homes is August 1ˢᵗ, 2024.










    Thank you for your interest in advertising with the Aylmer-Malahide Museum & Archives'
    Annual Christmas Tour of Homes. Museum staff will review your submission and
    contact your business regarding next steps and billing.



    The Aylmer-Malahide Museum & Archives is proud to showcase local merchants and businesses in each home on the Christmas Tour of Homes. Merchants who participate in the tour will have their merchandise prominently displayed in each home. Museum volunteers work with the merchants to select a series of products to borrow for the duration of the tour and will return those products to their respective merchants as soon as possible after the tour. Volunteers will provide merchants with a detailed loan form indicating agreed-upon pickup and return dates. The Tour of Homes ticket booklet will include explicit credit and thanks to each merchant, and each merchant is entitled to two complimentary tickets for their participation.

    Merchants of the Aylmer, Malahide, or East Elgin areas are welcome to fill out the below application. Should museum volunteers be interested in using your merchandise for the Tour of Homes, committee representatives will be in contact.






      The Tour of Homes relies on the generosity of local homeowners to operate. We would love to hear from you if you're interested in showcasing your home on the tour!

      Please note that homes on the tour must be located within Aylmer or Malahide.

      Homeowners work closely with the Tour of Homes Committee to ready their homes for the tour, and are entitled to two free tickets to the tour and a gift card to a local restaurant.

      Should the committee be interested in partnering with you to showcase your home, a committee member will be in contact to discuss details and the next steps. Thank you for your time and consideration!


         

        2024 Tour of Homes Sponsors & Supporters

        Thank you so much to our generous sponsors and supporters.
        Join the list here!
         

        Johnny's Restaurant
        Canadale Nurseries
        Oswell Chiropractic Centre
        Graham Scott Enns Chartered Professional Accountants

        Goodwill's Used Cars
        IGPC Feeds and Ethanol

        Yoh Issaraanatipong WMIC
        Advanced Stainless Fabricating

        Doug Tarry Homes

        McTaggart Armstrong Dewar and OwenDriver Realty

        Nadia Verhaeghe, agent with Salus Mutual Insurance
        Doyle Prendergast Barristers and Solicitors
        Gay Lea Dairy Museum
        Aylmer Pet Valu
        Butter Me Up Soap Company
        Scotiabank