Warning: today’s post may cause cravings! 🍭

I’ve baked up five gingerbread house Christmas cards using my stash of house dies – all the fun of decorating cookies, but without the sticky fingers.

Welcome back to this year’s Same But Different Christmas Series (SBDC)!
Today, I’m turning simple house dies into a whole gingerbread village – sharing five festive card ideas (plus a cheeky bonus!) that are easy to recreate using your existing supplies. My goal? To inspire you to peek into your stash, grab some kraft cardstock, and whip up your own sweet little houses for the holidays.

If you’re new to the series or want to catch up, you can find this year’s playlist here – and last time, we created stunning cards using 10 stencil techniques!

Ready to see what’s been “baking” in the craft room?

I use affiliate links, which means that if you click on a product link, I’ll receive a small portion of the sale at no extra cost to you. It’s a great way to support me and the shops we love 🥰!

You can jump straight into the video here or watch it in HD on YouTube HERE. Scroll for more pics and details.

#GINGERBREADHOUSE

🏠 Seeing Your Supplies in a New Light

Have you noticed how many house dies sneak into our stash over time? From birdhouses to cozy cottages and even cuckoo clocks – they’re everywhere! Instead of using them just as “homes,” try looking at their shapes as blank canvases. With a little imagination (and maybe some faux icing), they can transform into the sweetest gingerbread house Christmas cards.

Now that you’ve seen the stencil techniques on the menu, let’s take a closer look at how I used each one to create today’s Christmas cards.

Card #1 – House-Shaped Gingerbread Card

Let’s start with the easiest design! For this first card, I used a house-shaped die as the card base and decorated it like a gingerbread house. Starting with kraft cardstock gives the perfect baked-cookie color, and the rest is simply layering die-cut shapes to create the roof, door, and windows.

You don’t need a specialty die for this – it’s easy to recreate with basic nesting shapes or even a few straight cuts with a paper trimmer. Once the main shape is built, add small decorative pieces for detail and dimension.

Tips:

• Use kraft cardstock as your base for that gingerbread-cookie look.
• Create a scalloped roof using small circle dies – a simple way to add bright detail and texture.
• Shade edges lightly with brown ink to add warmth and depth (Optional).
• Keep a limited color palette for a sweet, cohesive design (I used kraft, poppy red, aqua sky, powder blue, and pink lemonade)… unless of course you want a bright rainbow of color instead lol.

Card #2 – Partial Gingerbread House with Santa’s Chimney

For this design, I created just part of a gingerbread house rather than the full shape. The house was made with a triangle die and a decorative border to form a scalloped edge, and I added a pink chimney with Santa’s legs peeking out for a fun twist.

The background features a quick one-color stamped bauble pattern – simple, festive, and fast to make. I decorated the house using a white heat-embossed flourish stamp and a few leftover die-cut pieces from the first card to tie the designs together.

Tips:

• Don’t have the right colored cardstock? Color your own with alcohol markers to match your project.
• Use white heat embossing for icing-style details with extra shine.
• Make quick backgrounds to lift your design, or use patterned paper for a shortcut.
• Reuse leftover pieces from other cards to create a coordinated collection.

Card #3 – Gingerbread House in a Snow Globe

For this design, I created a small gingerbread house and added it in a layered snow globe scene. The decorations were hand-doodled with a white gel pen to give that frosted icing look, and the globe layers add lovely dimension without needing any special dies.

Layering your gingerbread house design in a snow globe is a fun twist on classic gingerbread house Christmas cards – especially if you love adding depth and a bit of winter magic. I paired the house with a few trees and a stamped snowflake background for a soft, wintry touch.

Tips:

• Keep proportions small so everything fits neatly within the globe frame.
• Use white gel pen or fine-tip markers for easy icing details.
• I added some tiny confetti hearts but these could also be hand drawn.
• Stamp a snowflake background to give instant holiday texture.
• Make quick snowy backgrounds or swap in patterned paper for extra texture without fuss.

PRO TIP: Don’t have a snow-globe die? No problem! Snow globes can easily be recreated using basic shape dies such as circles for the globe and rectangles for the base – just layer and trim to suit your design.

Card #4 – Shaker Gingerbread House Card

For this design, I used a house-shaped die (it’s actually a cuckoo clock!) and turned it into a shaker card filled with tiny sweets. I carefully cut out a centre window using my paper trimmer and craft blade, then layered acetate and foam tape to hold the shaker pieces in place.

The background is a two-tone striped panel – made by adhering angled strips of cardstock in alternating colors and then trimming the panel down with a rectangle die. It adds bold contrast and gives the sweet gingerbread house center stage.

The house itself was decorated with die-cut candy shapes and soft frosting details (die-cut snow), keeping that whimsical gingerbread look alive.

Tips:

• Try any house die (or even partial shapes) to build your shaker frame.
• Use clay sprinkles, sequins, or small die-cut pieces as shaker fillings.
• Layer cardstock strips for a quick and easy custom-striped background.
• Choose colors that coordinate with your house to keep the design cohesive.

Bonus Card – The Grinch Gingerbread House

And now for the cheeky one – the Grinch Gingerbread House! I used another small hand-decorated house, but this time, the scene took a hilarious turn. The Grinch’s arm is reaching in to steal the house right out of the snowy background, and the sentiment? You guessed it – “Bah Humbug!”

The sky was created with a spattered white ink spray, giving the look of falling snow. It’s a playful twist on the traditional gingerbread house Christmas cards and the perfect way to end this set of sweet designs with a grin.

Tips:

• Add a humorous element or character to give your card personality.
• Use white ink splatters for quick and easy snowy effects.
  No white ink spray? Dilute white paint with a little water and splatter it with a paintbrush to mimic falling snow.
• Try a darker background to make your snow and sentiment pop even more.
• A bold sentiment like Bah Humbug! adds instant charm and contrast.

The Gingerbread’s Baked and Ready to Share!

I never get tired of finding new ways to use the supplies I already have – and turning house dies into gingerbread house Christmas cards might just be my new favorite trick for the holidays.

I’d love to know… which one made you smile most? Or maybe you’ve got a fun twist of your own? Drop it in the comments – I always love seeing your creative ideas!

Happy Baking (the paper kind!),

Special thanks to my crafty assistant, Chad (aka ChatGPT), for helping me stay on track with my Gemini brain, grammar, and spelling… well, all the things! 😄

P.S. Need supplies? Here are the links to the products I used today (some of these are affiliate links, so I’ll earn a small commission if you make a purchase – thanks for supporting my channel 🥰)!

*Certain content that appears on this site comes from Amazon, this content is provided ‘as is’ and is subject to change or removal at any time. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Ink: Altenew – Sea Glass.
Cardstock: Altenew – Jet Black | Brushed Gold – Concord & 9th – Wheat (kraft) Poppy | Pink Lemonade | Aqua Sky | Sprout | Parsley | Powder.
Dies: Sizzix – Quirky Animals (retired) | Papertrey Ink – Border Bling: Scalloped Frame
Embellishments: Ellen Hutson – Heart Mix 2 (retired) | Trinity Stamps – Faux Candy Mix (retired)
Alcohol Markers: Copics – W7 | BG000
Stamps: Altenew – Peace Love Joy (retired)

Yuletide Lane Bundle SSS | OTH	Yuletide Lane Dies SSS | OTH	Yuletide Lane SSS | OTH	Holiday Charm SSS | OTH
Joyful Wreath Bundle SSS | OTH	Joyful Wreath Dies SSS | OTH	Joyful Wreath SSS | OTH	Sleigh Full of Cheer SSS | OTH
Chimney Caper SSS | SB UK | SB US	Nesting Triangles ALT | SSS	Through The Window ALT	Ornaments Turnabout SSS | OTH
All-In-One Turnabout Jig SSS | OTH	Seasons Greetings Bundle OTH	Seasons Greetings SSS | OTH	Seasons Greetings Die SSS | OTH
Cozy Homes ALT | SSS	Globe Builder Die Set ALT	Sleigh Full of Cheer SSS | OTH	Accordian Tree Farm Dies SSS | OTH
Cuckoo Cottage SSS | SB UK | SB US	Chiming Christmas SSS | SB UK | SB US	Jolly St Nick Bundle SSS | OTH	Jolly St Nick SSS | OTH
Jolly St Nick Dies SSS | OTH	Christmas Crackers Bundle SSS | OTH	Christmas Crackers Dies SSS | OTH	Christmas Crackers SSS | OTH
A2 Layers Die SSS	Home for the Holidays Stacks Dies SSS | OTH	Grinch Hand OTH	Merry Grinchmas OTH
Winter Village Die ALT	Neenah Solar 110 AMZ | SSS	Neenah Solar 80 AMZ | SSS	Altenew Cardstock ALT | SSS
Concord & 9th – Cardstock SSS | OTH	Nocturne SSS	Unicorn White SSS	Versamark Ink SSS | OTH
Mini Blending Brush Set ALT | SSS	Copic Markers SSS	Pure White Spray ALT	Gelly Roll White Pens SSS
Pure White ALT	Powder Tool SSS	WOW Heat Tool SSS	Magical Holiday Sprinkles OTH
Perfect Picker ALT | SSS	Tweezers ALT | SSS	Scissors AMZ | SSS	Triangle Tray OTH
Magnetic Glass Mat cm OTH	Perfect Align Tool OTH	Stampwheel ALT | SSS	9X12 Ultra Sticky Mat: Grid ALT | SSS
Media Grip Mat SSS	Bone Folder ALT	Score Board ALT | SSS	MISTI SSS
Mini MISTI SSS	Platinum 6 ALT | SSS | SB UK | SB US	9″ Fiskars Paper Trimmer AMZ	Precision Glue Press AMZ | SSS
Bearly Art Glue AMZ | SSS	Glue Tape ALT | SSS	Foam Squares – Black mix SSS	Foam Tape NEW sizes! ALT | SSS
Satin Masking Tape ALT