Mini Gingerbread House Template for Mugs
A tiny house with a notch in each side wall, so it perches on the edge of a mug. Type in your mug and print it.
Mug-topper basics
Mini houses are rolled thinner, 4 to 5 mm, so they bake quickly and stay light enough to hang from a rim. Handle them gently: small pieces snap easily, so bake a few spares.
The notch
The notch is cut from the bottom edge of each side wall, 7 mm deep. Both side walls are the same piece, so you cut two. The notch sits slightly off the centre of the wall, by the amount the rim curves across the width of the house.
Hot chocolate warning
Keep the house out of steam. Set it on the rim after the drink has cooled a little, and leave it there for a photograph, not for an hour.
Questions
How does a mug-topper house stay on?
Each side wall has a notch in its bottom edge, as wide as a mug rim (4 mm, plus a little clearance). The notches slide over the rim and the house hangs there, half in the mug, half out.
What mug diameter do I enter?
Measure across the top of the mug, outside edge to outside edge. The default is 3¼ inches (8.2 cm), a standard coffee mug. The notch moves toward the inside of the mug a little for a smaller mug, because the rim curves more.
Can I make the mini house bigger?
The house width can be up to three quarters of the mug diameter. For a bigger house, use the classic style.
Does the template allow for the thickness of the dough?
Yes. Enter the thickness you roll to. The front and back walls stand outside the side walls, so each side wall is shortened by two thicknesses; the roof panels are sized to the sloped gable edges. The house you describe is the outside size you get.
Is the template generator really free?
Yes. The Classic gable house, the Log cabin and the Mini mug-topper are free at any size you type in, in inches or centimetres, as a PDF or straight from the print button. Free pages carry one small line at the bottom saying where they were made. The Pattern Pack ($2.99, one-time) adds the other four styles, the extra pieces and a clean page.