As soon as I finished designing one of these adorable paper cottages, the girls went off to play with it while I made a bunch more! We had lots of fun playing with these, and then took them apart and stored them flat in a file folder for future play times. They are very frugal to make, and so bright and cheerful!
To make your own, you will need colorful cardstock, some strips of self-adhesive velcro, scissors, and an exact-o knife. For the house walls, on the colored card stock, print out the template I designed here. It’s FREE, but I would love if you kindly leave us some comment love if you use it! Cut it out on the solid lines, and fold on the dotted lines of the template. You will need an exact-o knife to cut open the windows (a grown-up job only!!). Use strips of adhesive velcro on the joints of the house. I had to cut the velcro tabs into smaller pieces. This lets your child experiment with different color combinations, and you can build and re-build your rainbow village over and over again!
For the roof, cut an 8 1/2″ x 11″ sheet of paper in half, and then fold it in half to lay on top of the house. I used decorative edge scissors to make our houses look a bit like cottages.
Time to play!!!
Our peg dolls enjoyed travelling from house to house and exploring all of the different colors!
Emily loved that she could pop open the roof on one side, and play with the peg doll inside the house. Hello, peg doll!
The girls enjoyed opening and closing the doors and windows!
Clara’s peg doll started to get a bit tired from all that travelling, so she took a nap for a bit inside one of the houses.
She came back out to play with one of the neighbors!
Have fun!!
I linked this post to:
Get Your Craft On @ Today’s Creative Blog
Works for Me Wednesday
Weekend Wrap Up @ Tatertots and Jello
Made by You Monday @ Skip to My Lou
August 9th, 2010 on 3:29 pm
OMG, I LOVE this. Just LOVE it.
Thanks so much!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:22 pm
You’re welcome! They are so much fun!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:03 pm
oohhh my goodness this is adorable!!!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:23 pm
August 9th, 2010 on 4:10 pm
Dear Valerie,
Can I be Godzilla later?
Love,
Mark
August 9th, 2010 on 4:23 pm
Not if Merlin beats you to it!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:12 pm
Hmmmm…… I wonder if it would work to trace it out and put it on fun foam for durability.
August 9th, 2010 on 4:24 pm
It’s worth a try!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:14 pm
Okay, I’m bookmarking these for homemade Christmas present ideas!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:24 pm
You really like to think ahead!!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:15 pm
Salaam! Very cute idea and I think my daughters would love it.
Oh my youngest just turned 2 and has the same dress as your little one.
(PS I just got a pink one for $1.50 on clearance at Target, woo hoo!)
August 9th, 2010 on 4:25 pm
It’s one of my fav dresses on her! We also got it on clearance at Target — I love that place!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:26 pm
I homeschool my children and this is a great way to explaining how to read a map, especially for children who are visual spatial. Thanks again.
August 9th, 2010 on 4:29 pm
That is a GREAT idea!!!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:37 pm
Oh, how adorable- it looks like Munchkinland! (“We represent the Lullaby League…”)
August 11th, 2010 on 11:57 am
Ha!!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:37 pm
This is so cute! Maybe I’ll be brave and try it out too – thanks for the printable!
August 11th, 2010 on 11:57 am
Be brave! I know you can do it!
August 9th, 2010 on 4:52 pm
Comment love, comment love! Thanks for sharing!
August 11th, 2010 on 11:57 am
August 9th, 2010 on 5:10 pm
That is just too cute. I can’t even stand it. Thanks for sharing the printable!
August 11th, 2010 on 11:58 am
You’re very welcome. They are fun to make (and play with)!
August 9th, 2010 on 5:46 pm
I’m bookmarking this one. Thank you for sharing the pattern. Its just the kind of activity that my children would love, again!
August 11th, 2010 on 11:59 am
Perfect! Have fun!! xoxo
August 9th, 2010 on 8:53 pm
You have so many cute ideas!!! My girls would be in heaven if I did all that. I need to start doing more! Love the little houses!!
August 11th, 2010 on 12:02 pm
You DO a lot already!! These are a lot of fun — enjoy!
August 10th, 2010 on 5:26 am
Thanks! It’s so cute
August 11th, 2010 on 12:03 pm
August 10th, 2010 on 5:27 am
These are so cool. The kiddos are going to love them! Thanks. Your site has become my go to place for ideas to do with the kids on my days off. THANKS
August 11th, 2010 on 12:01 pm
That makes me very happy!! xoxo
August 10th, 2010 on 8:40 am
Valerie these ae gorgeous! Great idea
August 11th, 2010 on 12:04 pm
Thanks so much, LJ! I might add other buildings/props to the rainbow village soon. They are so much fun!!
August 10th, 2010 on 9:15 am
Great idea, thank you!
August 11th, 2010 on 12:04 pm
You’re welcome, Viktoria! Enjoy!!
August 10th, 2010 on 10:00 am
I like that you used such vibrant colors! This project could be tweaked to add a post office, school, grocery store etc. Great thinking! Love this project because it is so economical and encourages imaginative play!
August 11th, 2010 on 12:07 pm
I totally agree — bright colors makes everything more fun!
And I’ve received some requests from the girls for more rainbow village props/building, so I’ll be busy for awhile… 
Fun!
August 10th, 2010 on 10:38 am
I like that they can be taken apart and put together in different ways. I may need to create a whole neighborhood for my kids.
August 11th, 2010 on 12:08 pm
It would work perfectly for a classroom — especially since they lay flat for storage and don’t take up a lot of space that way! The kiddos can decorate their houses and cut them out themselves too. Have fun!!
August 10th, 2010 on 1:23 pm
That’s gorgeous! Looks like it should be displayed somewhere. Every chance to play is a new adventure for your girls. So sweet.
August 11th, 2010 on 12:09 pm
I might do a Winter village around Christmas time and display with some lights inside. Now you’ve given me an idea!
August 10th, 2010 on 2:46 pm
I love these, I think I will make some on my next visit with my granddaughters.
August 11th, 2010 on 12:09 pm
Fantastic!! Enjoy!
August 10th, 2010 on 5:35 pm
These are super cute!
August 11th, 2010 on 12:10 pm
Thanks!!
August 11th, 2010 on 8:39 am
Holy cow. I am impressed.
August 11th, 2010 on 12:09 pm
August 12th, 2010 on 9:24 am
Valerie,
I LOVE your blog and all your great ideas. I am terrible about leaving people comments, but wanted to write and say thanks for all the great resources you provide. My boys and I are going to make your houses today. It is terribly hot where we live and we even postponed a trip to the zoo because of the heat index. This will be a fun activity to do while we stay cool inside. THANKS again!
August 12th, 2010 on 5:17 pm
I’m so happy you’re doing this! Hope the boys have fun! xoxo
August 12th, 2010 on 9:47 am
Thanks for sharing these, they’re comepletely adorable!
August 12th, 2010 on 5:20 pm
You’re welcome — enjoy!
August 12th, 2010 on 8:47 pm
These are amazing! I don’t know if I shoul make a bunch for the kiddos at school, or for my neices and son first. They are going to love these, especially the easy storage part!
August 13th, 2010 on 11:45 pm
Perfect!! They are all going to have a great time! My girls are very much still enjoying their village, and have made requests for other structures as well!
August 13th, 2010 on 12:09 pm
Thank you so much for sharing this project! The houses looks so adorable. I can’t wait to try it out with my daughter
August 13th, 2010 on 11:46 pm
Hippie!! Have a great time! xoxo
August 14th, 2010 on 5:36 pm
Love the Rainbow Village houses. My girls had a great time decorating them on a rainy day!
Thanks for sharing,
Monica
August 16th, 2010 on 11:27 am
Thank you so much! We’re just putting the finishing touches on our first one!
August 16th, 2010 on 7:29 pm
Those are so darn cute. Love the colors you used.
August 17th, 2010 on 12:11 pm
Too cute! I can’t wait to use this. Thanks for sharing.
August 18th, 2010 on 3:12 am
Thanks for sharing this! I have four children at home sick today and this has been a lovely project for us.
September 9th, 2010 on 12:35 pm
My five year old is cutting her houses out right now, thank you for sharing!
September 27th, 2010 on 3:18 pm
sooooo adorable! i’m going to use them for decorations for my nephew’s moose and zee birthday party!
November 17th, 2010 on 7:20 pm
Thanks for the pdf file of the paper doll house… am sure my daughter would love this!!!! best regards, Jeanne
November 26th, 2010 on 4:55 pm
I’m thinking about making a little Christmas village using your pattern. thanks!
January 22nd, 2011 on 9:48 pm
Thank you for posting the template. We are currently in assembly mode. The kids are excited to play with them.
February 9th, 2011 on 1:24 am
Thanks! I like it. Going to build plenty tomorrow for our town.
July 23rd, 2011 on 3:09 pm
Thank you from Russia!!! It’s beautiful!