Cardboard Gingerbread House Template
A play-house size pattern. Set the size you want, and the pieces that are bigger than a sheet of paper are split into tiles you tape together.
Planning a big build
A cardboard house is mostly an exercise in flat pieces: two gable walls, two side walls and two roof panels. Corrugated board is strong along the flutes, so cut the roof panels with the flutes running down the slope.
Tiling
A 24 inch wall will not fit a Letter page. The generator cuts the big pieces into tiles, 12 mm overlaps and corner marks included, and numbers them by piece: A1 to A12 for the first piece, B1 to B6 for the next. Identical pieces, such as the two roof panels, are printed once with "cut 2" on the label.
Joining cardboard
Hot glue is quick and strong. For a house the kids will play in, add tape along the inside corners and keep the door cut-out as a hinged flap.
Questions
How big can a cardboard house be?
Up to 2.4 metres in any direction, as long as the pattern stays within 60 pages. The preset is 24 × 18 inches with 18 inch walls, roughly a table-top play house.
How do the tiles go together?
Print every page at 100%. Each tile is labelled A1, A2 and so on, and has a 12 mm overlap with its neighbours. Lay tile A2 on tile A1 so the + marks line up, tape from the back, and continue. An assembly map page at the end shows the whole grid.
What thickness of cardboard should I enter?
Measure it: single-wall corrugated is usually 3 to 5 mm. The walls and roof are sized for it, the same way the dough versions are.
Where is the giant cardboard style?
Giant cardboard is a ready-made preset in the Pattern Pack with a door and windows switched on. This page uses the free Classic style at any size, in cardboard mode.
How do I print the template at the right size?
Print the PDF at 100% (Actual size) and switch off “Fit to page” or “Scale to fit”. Page 1 has a 1 inch square and a 2 cm square: measure them with a ruler before you cut anything. If they are exact, every piece is exact.