Gingerbread Mickey Garland
Not only is this garland on trend this season, but it is made from those boxes that keep showing up at your door this holiday season!
(Plus this DIY comes with a bonus!)
Finding ways to hide my online shopping…
Okay, so you might have noticed that I’m on a bit of a Mickey-shaped trend right now and I promise it will be over soon (I blame Instagram’s algorithms). That being said, I had to do something with the ever-growing pile of boxes that my kids (and husband) are growing suspicious of.
If your holiday season has been anything like mine, then your doorstep probably has a box (or two or three) on it almost every other day! This year is running a bit more box heavy than normal due to…well you know.
With shipments coming in from different relatives this year, I practically have an endless supply of cardboard and I wanted to do something with it other than place it in my recycle bin.
While browsing Instagram one night (my bad habit is showing), I kept landing on these adorable gingerbread Mickey and Minnie Disney merchandise ads. A lightbulb went off and I thought why not try to DIY my own!
I already had the materials I would need for this project from previous projects, so this garland was like a free bonus! Those are some of the best projects! Even if I didn’t, the main material was free (essentially) and this project only requires a few more materials.
The best thing about this garland is that it has a secret side…you’ll have to wait and see!
Let me tell you how I did it!
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List of Supplies:
Makes quite a few depending on box size!
Estimated time: 1-2 hours if you choose to paint.
Empty cardboard box
White chalk pen, like this Sharpie one
Brown craft paint
Red craft paint
Black chalk or craft paint
Yarn of your choice
Yarn needle (Optional but very helpful)
How to make Gingerbread Mickeys…
Step 1:
Start off by disassembling your box and getting your template handy.
Step 2:
Trace and cut out your shapes.
***Pay attention to the grain of the cardboard. You want to trace your shapes so the ears are parallel with the grain (the corrugation in between the inside and outside of the box).
Step 3:
If your box has a design on one side, paint over it with black paint.
If you don’t have a pattern on your box, you can skip this step.
***This is where your bonus for this project is set up.
Step 4:
Use a chalk pen to outline and decorate the ears. The chalk pen acts as the royal icing on a real gingerbread cookie.
Have fun with the design in the ears. You can spiral, do a squiggly line, draw a star, a snowflake, or whatever comes to mind.
Step 5:
Paint on your eyes, ears, mouth, and rosy cheeks.
You can choose any design you want, but I chose to design them close to the gingerbread items I found online.
Additionally, you could place a bow on one to make it a Minnie gingerbread.
Congratulations! Your gingerbread Mickeys are complete!
Now, You have the option to add them to whatever garland you want!
To do this, I used a yarn needle and yarn to string up my garland. I also added pom-poms and tassels to add flair. You can decorate your garland however you desire!
Bonus Step:
Remember how we painted the back of the gingerbread black?
Use the same chalk pen to draw on some designs on the back. I used Scandinavian snowflake designs as inspiration.
This allows you to have a duel-designed piece of decor that you can change up when you want a fresh design.
Or you can alternate the designs to create a unique and complex garland.
Hot Tips
If you have a machine that has the capability to cut cardboard, then I would use that to cut out the Mickey shapes. Cutting this with scissors was a workout!
You could also use a machine like a Cricut to complete this entire design, from cutting to vinyl.
Cut your templates into small squares to make them easier to maneuver.
What I would do differently…
I really loved this DIY and I wouldn’t change a thing. I love the cute, smiling faces and how they look with the pom-poms and tassels. I made a batch of 12 for my first time. With those, I created two strands of garland (one gingerbread and one black Scandinavian-inspired design).
However, I will give some suggestions for what could be done to the ears.
You could decorate them so they look like each of the main Disney characters.
You could decorate them so they look like Disney princesses.
You could decorate them to match the Christmas theme of your choice.
I really hope you enjoyed this make! If you did please consider subscribing to my newsletter, so you never miss a new project!
If you make these gingerbread Mickeys, make sure to tag them with #DarkkFluriDIY so I can see your creations!
