Have you noticed gingerbread items in every store this holiday season? Want to join in on the trend but have a limited budget? Save money and make these simple gingerbread DIY decor items!
Gingerbread is the “thing” for Christmas this year!
**Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. We appreciate your support. (disclosure policy)
Everywhere I look, from magazines to stores to online, is gingerbread!
I don’t have the budget to buy a lot of new decor to bring the gingerbread theme to my kitchen, so I decided to make five gingerbread DIY projects.
Here are the details so you can make them too!
1) How to make a Gingerbread House Wreath
Gather materials
Gather or purchase the following items to do this project:
- Wreath
- Faux houses- 2 sets from Walmart
- Paint – FolkArt in Nutmeg
- Paintbrush
- Puff paint- Tulip in white
- Miniature bottlebrush trees- Michael’s
- Hot glue gun
- Glue sticks
- Silicone finger protectors
Prep the faux houses
We need to turn these cute houses into gingerbread houses!
First, remove the greenery from the top of the house.
Next, pull the twine string off.
Paint the houses
To make the houses look like gingerbread, we will paint them brown.
I applied two coats to get full coverage.
Embellish The Houses
If you don’t know how to decorate a gingerbread house, look on Pinterest for inspiration.
Decorate each house with white puffy paint.
Attach Houses and Trees
I do not want my houses attached permanently to my wreath because I reuse mine and decorate it differently each year.
If you plan to keep your wreath, attach the houses and trees to it with hot glue.
If you want to be able to remove them, you can attach the evergreen-covered wire with hot glue and twist the floral wire like in the picture above.
Attach the houses to the wreath and add a ribbon to hang it!
Isn’t it adorable!
2) How to Make Gingerbread Faux Houses
If traditional gingerbread isn’t your thing, you might like this neutral version better!
Gather Materials
Gather or purchase the following items to do this project:
Paint Houses
Paint your houses brown.
I gave mine two coats to get complete coverage.
Embellish Houses
Decorate each faux gingerbread house with white puff paint.
3) How to Make Gingerbread Men & Women Ornaments
My original plan was to buy wood gingerbread cut-outs from Dollar Tree and paint them the same color as the houses.
Then, hang them on the tree for ornaments.
Unfortunately, I never saw them in my stores.
However, they did have these cute gingerbread shapes made from foam sheets.
They are larger than I wanted, but I pivoted and made them work!
Gather materials
Gather or purchase the following items to do this project:
- Gingerbread foam sheets- Dollar Tree
- Chalk marker- Dollar Tree
- Crop-a-Dile– or a hole punch
- Ribbon-Hobby Lobby
- Hot glue gun
- Glue sticks
- Silicone finger protectors
Prep gingerbread pieces
Punch a hole in the top of each gingerbread foam sheet.
Decide how long you want the ribbon and cut 11 pieces.
Pull the ribbon through the hole and glue the ends of the ribbon together.
Be careful because the glue is hot, and it can burn you.
We recommend using silicone finger protectors.
Draw gingerbread men & women
Use the chalk marker to draw gingerbread people on the foam sheets.
I searched Pinterest for inspiration on how to draw gingerbread men and women!
Make a topper
Save one gingerbread sheet to make a topper.
Cut out a piece of cardboard and attach it to the foam.
Insert a wooden skewer through the cardboard piece.
Then put it on top of the tree!
4) How to Make Gingerbread Cookie Cutter Decor
This year, I hung small Christmas wreaths on my kitchen cabinets.
I bought them on clearance after Christmas last year, and I only had six, so I needed something else to hang on the other doors.
My solution…
Gingerbread cookie cutters!
Gather materials
Gather or purchase the following items to do this project:
- Cookie cutters- 4 sets Hobby Lobby -50% off
- Ribbon- Hobby Lobby 40% off
- Yardstick
- Duct tape
- Hot glue gun
- Glue sticks
- Silicone finger protectors
Hang Cookie cutters
On cabinets
Grab a yardstick and find the center of your door.
Cut the ribbon to your desired length.
Wrap the ribbon over the top of the door and secure it with duct tape.
*Tip- I adhered hot glue to the bottom edge of each cookie cutter as a buffer so they could not scratch my doors.
On a Christmas tree
The cookie cutters came as a set.
I did not need the smallest ones for my cabinets.
So I made ornaments out of them.
I hot-glued the ribbon to the top and hung it on my tree!
5) How to Make a Gingerbread Garland
Gather
Gather or purchase the following items to do this project:
- Wood bead garland- Dollar Tree
- Gingerbread men and women- eight from Target Dollar Spot
- Gingerbread ribbon- Hobby Lobby
- Ruler
- Scissors
- Needle and thread- or hot glue gun if you don’t want to sew
Prep garland and ribbon
Divide the beads into equal sections.
I had eleven beads in each of my sections.
Cut the ribbon into eight 6-inch pieces.
Sew each piece of ribbon onto the gingerbread people’s heads or use hot glue instead.
Tie the ribbon onto the garland.
It turned out so cute!
In Conclusion
I had so much fun making these gingerbread DIY projects to display in our kitchen!
If you missed our Christmas kitchen decor post, please take a minute and check it out!
Are you feeling inspired to decorate with gingerbread this season?
Let us know in the comments below!
If you enjoy the blog, please sign up for our email list so you won’t miss a post!
Until next time, follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram!
Blessings, Donna and Rich
Pin It For Later
Don’t forget to pin this so you can remember it!
More Christmas DIY Inspiration
Don’t leave yet! If you love DIY Christmas projects you have to check out these posts!
- Pinecone Flower Christmas Tree DIY
- DIY Pinecone Ornaments
- Wooden Birdhouse and Lantern Ornament DIY
- DIY Advent Calendar
- Easy Decoupage Christmas Ornaments
**Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. We appreciate your support. (disclosure policy)
Oh my gosh, Donna, these are all so super cute! Love love love!
Thanks Marieza!
I had so much fun making each item and decorating my kitchen this year!!
Love the ways these came together, Donna. It’s such a fun and festive collection of gingerbread DIYs! We used gingerbread a few years ago and it was one of my favorites. It always feels like the happiest way to celebrate the season. Hugs, CoCo
Yes! Gingerbread is so festive and fun! I’m loving the neutral look of it this year! Hope December is going well for you!
These are all great ideas Donna! My favorite is that wreath, oh my goodness, it is so adorable. I wish I would have made more gingerbread men this year, they are a big hit, that is for sure. Maybe next year… you always come up with the best ideas, and I appreciate your budget minded projects. Hope you are enjoying the holidays.
Hi Cara! It’s always a challenge to figure out how to make cute decor inexpensively! I’m up for it though and I know you appreciate it! Hope you are having a happy holiday season as well! Thanks so much!