Learn how to upcycle thrifted ceramic houses into adorable gingerbread houses that are the perfect addition to any Christmas village!

It’s no doubt, at least to me, that Christmas really is the most wonderful time of year with all the beautiful decor, the magical lights strung on the Christmas tree and of course spending time with my family. And that’s why I get so inspired every holiday season to make our home even more beautiful and magical through DIY decor, fun activities and more! I love browsing websites like Pottery Barn and Anthropologie for inspiration and they almost never disappoint. This year I was inspired to transform thrifted ceramic houses into adorable gingerbread Christmas village pieces.

Because I frequent my local thrift stores often, I get to see all the Christmas decor that people donate and get first dibs on it all. I’ve found several Christmas village pieces over the last few years that work perfectly and look amazing with the rest of our village. A few months ago, I found some adorable miniature ceramic houses that I thought would be great to turn into little gingerbread houses and I was right. I always get so excited any time I have the opportunity to reuse home decor and other items and transform them into something more beautiful and fitting for my home, and it turns out this project was easy and only required a little bit of paint and some creativity!

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FAQs

Does it matter what kind of ceramic house I use?

You can use any ceramic house that you can find! Whether that be one you pick up at the thrift store or an estate sale, one that’s been buried in. your parent’s Christmas decor bin for the last decade or one you found discounted somewhere, it doesn’t really matter. You can turn any of those into the cutest gingerbread Christmas village piece. You can even use wooden houses that can be found at places like the Dollar Tree and Target.

What type of paint should I use for the base coat on the ceramic houses?

I love using a paint + primer combo spray paint when it comes to projects like this because it takes less coats, which means less time to wait before getting to the real fun, the decorating! My favorite is the Rust-Oleum brand ultra cover paint and primer in the color warm caramel. It’s the perfect gingerbread house color and you only need about two coats to cover your ceramic houses! You can also use a spray primer, followed by a brown colored spray paint if you don’t have the combo paint.

What paint should I use to decorate the thrifted ceramic houses?

I like using white puff paint because it has that 3D affect that makes it look somewhat realistic, almost like icing. However, you can use a paint brush and acrylic paint, specifically one that works on multiple surfaces, or an oil based paint pen.

How do I turn the DIY gingerbread houses into Christmas village pieces?

Once you’ve decorated your adorable gingerbread houses, if they have a hole on the back or even the bottom, you can add battery operated tea lights or even go all out and use these Christmas village lights to illuminate the houses and make them the perfect addition to your village.

Materials Needed

How to Upcycle Thrifted Ceramic Houses into Gingerbread Houses

Tools You May Need:

Paint brush (optional)

Materials Needed:

Thrifted (or not) ceramic house
Rust-Oleum spray paint + primer (warm caramel)
White puff paint

Directions

Clean the thrifted ceramic houses with a cloth to remove dirt and dust.

Spray paint the houses with a brown spray paint + primer and allow the paint to dry fully.

Use white puff paint to fill in any snowy areas, around windows and doors and more.

Add fun designs or colorful “lights” to add dimension if desired.

Allow the paint to dry fully before displaying them in your Christmas village or around the house for decor!

Notes

If you don’t use a paint and primer combo for the base coat, it’s important to first prime the ceramic houses then paint them brown.
You can use multi-purpose acrylic paint or an oil based paint marker instead of puffy paint if your prefer, but it won’t give the same affect of snow as puff paint.
Feel free to get creative and use colored puff paint to add a little something extra to the gingerbread houses, or stick with the white paint for a more traditional look.
Turn these upcycled gingerbread houses into actual Christmas village pieces with these lights or battery operated tea lights.

Upcycled Gingerbread Houses

Active Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour

Learn how to upcycle thrifted ceramic houses into adorable gingerbread houses that are the perfect addition to any Christmas village!

Materials

Thrifted (or not) ceramic house
Rust-Oleum spray paint + primer (warm caramel)
White puff paint

Tools

Paint brush (optional)

Instructions

Clean the thrifted ceramic houses with a cloth to remove dirt and dust.
Spray paint the houses with a brown spray paint + primer and allow the paint to dry fully.
Use white puff paint to fill in any snowy areas, around windows and doors and more.
Add fun designs or colorful "lights" to add dimension if desired.
Allow the paint to dry fully before displaying them in your Christmas village or around the house for decor!

Notes

If you don't use a paint and primer combo for the base coat, it's important to first prime the ceramic houses then paint them brown.

You can use multi-purpose acrylic paint or an oil based paint marker instead of puffy paint if your prefer, but it won't give the same affect of snow as puff paint.
Feel free to get creative and use colored puff paint to add a little something extra to the gingerbread houses, or stick with the white paint for a more traditional look.
Turn these upcycled gingerbread houses into actual Christmas village pieces with these lights or battery operated tea lights.

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Looking for more easy Christmas DIY tutorials?

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Did you try making these upcycled gingerbread houses? If you did, I’d really love to see it. Tag me on Instagram (@thesimplehomeplace) to show me your own recreation of this tutorial!