Create a beautiful paper gingerbread house to hang up at home and get in the spirit. You can add all kinds of decorations to make it your own. Sparkles, candy, even snow! What kind of environment can you create for your gingerbread house? What kind of environment will you hang it up in when you leave today?
We usually picture a simple little cabin when we think of what a gingerbread house looks like. Your template for this project looks like a simple house, too! But, as the entries in the 2023 Gingerbread Invitational show us, you can make any kind of special place out of gingerbread! It might be a ship…or a castle…or a whole city street!
Check out this year’s gingerbread creations for inspiration:

Materials:
- 12×12 sheet of colorful paper
- Gingerbread house template
- Scraps of wrapping paper or other art paper
- Cotton balls
- Glue (liquid or glue stick)
- Crayons, markers, colored pencils, or paint
- Winter or holiday-themed stickers (optional)
- Hole punch
- Yarn
- Tape
Directions:
- Print out the house template >> To print it full-size, you will need to print it on three pieces of paper. Cut the black house shapes out of each piece of paper, and tape them together to make a full-sized house.
- Trace your house template onto the 12×12 paper, and cut it out.
- Use the wrapping paper scraps, crayons or markers, stickers, and other supplies to decorate your house how ever you want.
- When you are happy with your decoration, punch two holes on either side of the house’s roof.
- Make sure your holes are not too close to the edge of the paper, and are also not too close together.
- Loop a piece of yarn through the holes.
- Tape in the back with masking tape to secure.
- Hang your house up somewhere special!