Paper Bag Gingerbread House

Paper Bag Gingerbread Houses

I recently had the pleasure of making centerpieces for our annual Jingle Bell Breakfast at pre-school. Last year, I did 70+ glittered cone trees for the Spirit of Christmas theme. This years theme was Gingerbread Adventure. The event is a fundraiser so keeping the cost of the decorations down is very important. I did a quick google look and saw this amazing idea from Craftberry Bush. I adapted my project from hers. I went with a more “kid” look since this is an event for 4 year olds.

I made one double-sided house for each table center. I also made the little recycled jar floral arrangements on the side.

I started with a large “cub” bag in kraft paper. I removed the paper strip and handles from the inside. I really like this bag because it is sturdy and it has a cardboard insert in the bottom.

I cut my own stencil for the doors, windows and heart shape.

I used FolkArt Acrylic paint for the snow look. To get the snow look, I just tapped the paint into the areas to create a frosted look.

Each bag was painted on both sides.

I freehanded dimensional paint around the windows. I was a quick and wanted the paint to look like icing.

I did dots, wiggles and lines.

I folded the top back and forth and used a bone folder to create a crease. Then I folded the flaps into a slanted roof shape. I do hope you love my manicure….. poor crafter fingers.

I stapled the bag closed at the top and sides.

For the roof, I used 1 sheet of felt. I cut a wiggle ling across both long edges. Next, I just folded in half and placed on the roof. After that, I stapled and trimmed the edge.

I decorated the house with foam stickers.

I made pipe-cleaner candy canes with red and white striped pip-cleaners.

I used hot glue to attach the candy canes to the sides of the front door.

I made 30 double sided paper bag gingerbread houses. I did an assembly line for the making. I can easily see this being a classroom craft. They would also make adorable gift bags.