How To Make An Upcycled Gingerbread Village

There’s no time like the present to start working on holiday projects, and today I’m sharing how to make an upcycled gingerbread village. All this project requires is a little bit of craft paint, and a whole lot of doodling.

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How To Make An Upcycled Gingerbread Village

I bought a cute advent calendar set on sale before Christmas last year for a future project. The bright colors don’t work so well for me, but I like the size of the shapes.

My first thought was to paint all the pieces white, and work with a blank slate. Then, gingerbread village popped into my head, and that was that, as they say.

The set is made of MDF board with a smooth surface, and therefore it’s easy to paint over.

Supplies and shopping links

• acrylic craft paint in a medium brown
• craft brush
• white Gelly Roll pen

First step is to paint all sides of your pieces in stages, allowing each side to dry completely before moving on to the next.

If you’re painting something like I have, then it may take multiple coats for complete coverage.

Once all surfaces are dry, use a white Gelly Roll pen to add your details.

If you need inspiration, you can scroll through Pinterest for hundreds of gingerbread house images.

When I refer to doodling I’m talking about circles, hearts, squares, triangles, swirls, scallops, spirals, and zig zags. Oh and lots of dots.

Sometimes you have to think outside the box too, depending on the shapes you’re painting. I turned a gift box shape with a bow into a house with a tree, and another one into a house with chimney pots.

The largest piece that looks like a palace I reworked cutting off sections with a Dremel tool making it look like a row of buildings.

The triangle trees look sweet with strings of twinkle lights, and they will be fun to mix in with the houses. I’m still thinking about what to do with the snowmen, Santa and train, but I’m sure I’ll come up with something.

For more ideas check out my post Gingerbread House Tablescape.

Upcycling Projects

I love the concept of upcycling, giving new life to objects and reworking items to fit my needs and personal taste. Of course this is not a new concept just a different way of looking at household goods and decor.

I think about my grandmother’s quilts and all the fabrics they are made of, such as calico dresses, flour sacks, men’s pajamas and shirts. Maybe I inherited my craftiness from her.

There are lots of ways you can upcycle Christmas decorations, that you may think look out of date and no longer fit your style.

• update your Christmas wreaths with new bows
• spray paint a Christmas village or nutcrackers a solid color for a monochromatic look
• use plaid ribbon to update round ornaments
• turn old Christmas cards into gift tags
• update a mirror with Rub’n Buff
• spray paint an old wreath for a flocked look

Be sure to follow Thistle Key Lane on Pinterest, where the boards are up to date with seasonal inspiration that you can use right now!

Thank you so much for stopping by today to read my post How To Make An Upcycled Gingerbread Village. You’ll be seeing this little village again in just a few months when we start decorating for the holidays.

Cheer!

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