The Gingerbread House Hack Ever Mom Needs (+ our kids' holiday party tablescape)
Our Favorite Holiday Tradition
Every December, we host a kids’ holiday gingerbread decorating party. Ever since we moved to Utah four years ago, this has been a tradition we’ve done with our friends and each year we’ve added more! We make gingerbread houses, play secret santa (less gifts to buy!) and just have some fun hangout time with our friends and the kids’ friends. It’s a little party we look forward to every year!
But if you’ve ever decorated gingerbread houses with kids, then you already know the truth:
Gingerbread houses collapse.
Roofs slide off, walls tip over, and the icing never dries fast enough. It’s messy, sticky, and honestly a little chaotic…
…until we discovered the hack that changed everything.
The Gingerbread House Hack Every Mom Needs
Use hot glue instead of icing to assemble the houses.
It sounds a little wild at first, but it’s truly life-changing for holiday decorating with kids.
Why Hot Glue Works Better Than Icing
Icing takes forever to dry
Kids don’t have the patience to wait
Houses collapse mid-decorating
Roofs slide off
Tears happen (lots of them!)
With hot glue:
Houses assemble in seconds
They’re sturdy, actually sturdy
Kids can begin decorating immediately
Zero collapse, zero frustration, zero meltdowns
Important: We never eat the houses, they’re for decorating only. So hot glue is perfectly safe for this purpose.
How to Use the Hot Glue Hack (Step-by-Step)
1. Build the houses before the party
Use a hot glue gun to assemble the walls and roof of each gingerbread house.
2. Let them set for a few seconds
Hot glue dries almost instantly.
3. Place one house at each child’s seat
Kids get to jump right into the fun.
4. Use icing only for decorating
Not for structure, just for sticking on the candy.
5. Prep bowls of candy
Gumdrops, peppermints, sprinkles, marshmallows, M&Ms or whatever your kids love.
6. Watch the magic happen
Kids stay focused on creating, not trying to hold collapsing pieces together.
This one simple switch makes the whole party calmer, happier, and so much more enjoyable.
Kids’ Holiday Party Tablescape
Our holiday tablescape this year was simple, festive, and totally kid-friendly. Everything is linked below so you can recreate it easily.
Color Theme
Whites • Reds • Gingerbread Brown • Evergreen
What I Used
How I Set It Up
Each child gets a fully constructed house, a tray, and small bowls of candy.
The center of the table holds the “refill” bowls.
Mini trees and twinkle lights run down the middle.
Faux snow makes the whole thing feel magical.
It looks elevated but is extremely easy to pull together.
Gingerbread House Decorating Tips for Kids
Use ziplock bags bottles for icing →
We buy premade packs of icing and put them in one ziplock bag for each kid. Cut a tiny hole on the tip, tie the back with a rubberband and you’re good to go!
Pre-mix icing colors →
Red, green, white — kids love having options. Although if you want less work for yourself, white works great and the candy is colorful enough!
Keep baby wipes nearby →
Sticky fingers are guaranteed.
Matching Family Christmas Pajamas
We’ve never done this before but it came to mind I type this out How fun would it be if we made our party a holiday pajama party? The kids would love that! If you need some ideas, here are some matching family holiday pajamas we love this year:
Such a fun touch for the party and they make the photos extra special.
Shop Our Kids’ Holiday Party Setup
Want everything in one place? Shop the full curated collection here!
Final Thoughts
Hosting a kids’ gingerbread party doesn’t have to be stressful. With the hot glue hack and a simple, festive tablescape, this tradition becomes one of the happiest, sweetest moments of the entire season.
If you try the hot glue method this year, let me know — it truly changes everything.
All plates, decor and candy bowls and more → shop the tablescape here
