22 DIY Dollar Tree Wooden Houses

22 Dollar Tree Wooden House Ideas That Look Expensive

Those little wooden houses from Dollar Tree may look plain on the craft-store shelf, but they can become some of the cutest seasonal and everyday decorations in your home.

I first found the Dollar Tree wooden shadow-box houses in 2019 and immediately started experimenting with different ways to paint, fill and style them. Since then, I’ve collected 22 creative wooden-house ideas—including colorful printable inserts, Halloween houses, Christmas villages, tiered-tray décor, key holders, birdhouses and personalized signs.

Below, you’ll find projects I’ve made along with inspiring ideas from some of my favorite Dollar Tree crafters. You can also download my free buffalo-plaid house inserts, watch the project video and find even more ideas in my complete wooden-house craft eBook.

Shopping note: Dollar Tree inventory changes frequently, so these exact wooden houses may not always be available in stores. I’ve included similar wooden-house blanks and online options in the supply list.

 

 

Originally published in August 2020; updated in July 2026 with new project ideas, shopping sources and helpful crafting resources.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies for Dollar Tree Wooden House Crafts

Each project uses a different combination of materials, but these are the wooden blanks, paints and decorating supplies featured throughout the post.

• 🏡Wood House Silhouettes
• 🐦Small Wood Birdhouse
• 🏘 Large Wood Cottage Birdhouse
• 🎨Acrylic paint Set
• 🖌️ Paintbrushes
• 🔠Stencils
• 🌸Mini Flower Pack
• 🪵Small Wood Slices
• 🧴Mod Podge Set
• 🖨️Color Printer (for Free Printables below!)
• 🎀Assorted Ribbon
• 🪚Decorative Wood Shapes
• 🚪Small Wood Windows & Doors

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

22 Dollar Tree Wooden House DIY Ideas

Wooden house blanks can be painted, stained, covered with decorative paper or filled with interchangeable printable inserts. You can style them individually, group several into a miniature village or customize them for different holidays and seasons.

Use the following 22 ideas as inspiration, then choose the colors, patterns and embellishments that best match your home and decorating style.

 

 

 

 

1. Colorful Buffalo Plaid Inserts for Dollar Tree Houses

I painted these Dollar Tree wooden shadow-box houses with charcoal chalk paint, then cut colorful buffalo-plaid paper inserts to fit inside them. The interchangeable inserts make it easy to change the houses for different seasons without repainting the wooden frames.

Start with Dollar Tree wooden houses or similar wood blanks, then choose the printable colors that coordinate with your décor.

Keep scrolling to download the free buffalo-plaid house inserts in several colors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Halloween Dollar Tree Wooden Houses

I reused the same painted wooden houses for Halloween by switching the colorful inserts for orange, black and white buffalo plaid. This is why I love using removable paper inserts—you can update the houses for a new holiday in minutes without permanently changing the base.

Style the finished houses with small pumpkins, bats, skeletons or other miniature Halloween decorations to create an inexpensive seasonal display.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Turn Dollar Tree Wooden Houses Into Mini Signs

Another easy way to customize wooden shadow-box houses is to print small images or sayings and cut them to fit inside the frames. Because the paper isn’t permanently attached, you can create different inserts for holidays, family names or everyday décor and switch them whenever you want a new look.

You can design your own signs or use printable artwork you have purchased and are licensed to print. Follow my complete tutorial for making printable farmhouse signs in Microsoft Word here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Buffalo Plaid Dollar Tree Houses

I used my Free Printable buffalo plaid inserts inside these Dollar Tree Wood Houses and I added some Dollar Tree crafts to create a fun Fall display. You’ll need a good hot glue gun — my favorite hot glue gun is super affordable!

–>Watch the Video Tutorial below to see how to make these Buffalo Plaid Dollar Tree Houses!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Buffalo Plaid Dollar Tree Houses for Fall

For this fall display, I placed my free buffalo-plaid printable inserts inside the painted wooden houses and styled them with inexpensive Dollar Tree pumpkins and seasonal accents.

Use a small amount of removable tape or adhesive to keep each paper insert flat, then switch the design when the season changes. If you add dimensional decorations, you’ll need a reliable hot glue gun like the affordable one I use.

These Dollar Tree Woodhouses made by Dollar Mom are adorable for year-round decor. Find the full tutorial on YouTube here. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Welcome Home Wooden House Sign

This “Welcome Home” project turns a Dollar Tree wooden house into a small farmhouse-style sign. Paint the inside black or add a dark paper insert, then apply white lettering and a simple decorative design.

This idea was created by Michele Hobek with Chalk Couture. Protect the finished design with Mod Podge or another clear craft sealer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Disney-Inspired Farmhouse Wooden Houses

My Joy Story gave these wooden houses a playful character-inspired makeover while keeping the black, white and neutral farmhouse color palette. Small silhouettes and familiar design details make the theme noticeable without overwhelming the display.

See the original project and tutorial from My Joy Story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Winter Dollar Tree Wooden House Display

Teresa styled Dollar Tree wooden houses with miniature Christmas ornaments, bottle-brush trees and snowy accents to create this cozy winter display. Grouping houses of different sizes helps the arrangement resemble a small Christmas village.

See Teresa’s complete Dollar Tree Christmas DIY.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Decorate the Back of Dollar Tree Wooden Houses

Don’t overlook the flat back of the wooden shadow-box houses. Crafty Cacti flipped the houses around and decorated the solid surfaces, creating another completely different style from the same inexpensive blanks.

Paint the backs, add lettering or attach small wood shapes to create freestanding signs that can be displayed on shelves and tiered trays. See more wooden-house inspiration from Crafty Cacti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. Make Wooden Houses From Dollar Tree Arrow Signs

If you can’t find wooden house blanks, look for unfinished wood arrow signs in the Dollar Tree Crafter’s Square section. Turn the arrows upright and use the pointed ends as rooflines to create a similar house shape.

Laurie R Creations used this clever substitute to make dimensional farmhouse houses with paint and decorative trim. See more projects from Laurie R Creations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

11. Christmas Tree and Red Truck Wooden Houses

Life of a Foosh created these Christmas houses with miniature signs, a red truck, small trees and tiny seasonal embellishments. Limiting the display to red, green, black and white keeps all the small details looking coordinated.

Add miniature florals or tiny wreaths to bring extra texture to small wooden-house projects. See the original inspiration from Life of a Foosh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

12. Gingerbread-Style Dollar Tree Christmas House

I transformed a Dollar Tree wooden house into a gingerbread-style Christmas decoration using festive colors and small holiday details. Display it individually or group it with miniature trees and other houses to create an inexpensive tabletop village.

Find my complete Dollar Tree Christmas décor tutorial here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

13. Character-Inspired Christmas Wooden Houses

My Joy Story gave the wooden houses a festive character-inspired theme using classic holiday colors, recognizable silhouettes and small Christmas embellishments.

See the original holiday-house project from My Joy Story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

14. Dollar Tree Wood-Block Barn House

This miniature barn from Dollar Mom looks like boutique shelf décor but is made with inexpensive wood pieces. Layering the blocks, roofline and trim gives the project a more substantial, dimensional appearance.

Watch Dollar Mom’s complete wood-block barn tutorial on YouTube.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

15. Turn a Dollar Tree Wooden House Into a Key Holder

Craft With Bri turned a wooden house into functional entryway storage by adding miniature hooks and a “KEYS” sign. This is a clever way to turn an inexpensive decoration into something useful.

Make sure the hooks are securely attached, then hang or place the finished key holder near your entryway. See the original project from Craft With Bri.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

16. Farmhouse Houses Made From Dollar Tree Wood Arrows

Laurie R Creations used unfinished Dollar Tree arrow signs to make a coordinating set of farmhouse-style houses. The pointed ends form the rooflines, while paint, lettering and layered wood details give each house a different personality.

See the original wooden-arrow house project from Laurie R Creations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

17. Personalized State Wooden House Sign

Makeup By Cynthia painted a Dollar Tree wooden house to resemble a real home, complete with a front door, windows, a state design and a personalized saying.

Recreate the idea with paint, vinyl, stencils or small wood pieces to represent your home, hometown or state. See the original personalized house from Makeup By Cynthia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

18. Make Decorative Birdhouses From Wood Arrows

Laurie R Creations transformed unfinished wood arrows into whimsical decorative birdhouses. The same idea can be adapted using wooden house blanks by adding a faux opening, perch, roof details and paint.

These are decorative craft pieces rather than outdoor birdhouses. See the original project from Laurie R Creations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

19. Make a Funny Wooden House Sign

Crafty Cacti used a house-shaped wood blank as the base for a funny freestanding sign. Add your favorite saying with vinyl, a stencil or hand-painted lettering, then finish it with small decorative details.

See the original funny house sign from Crafty Cacti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20. Summer Dollar Tree Wooden House Décor

Dollar Mom gave a wooden house a cheerful summer makeover with bright colors and a “Sunshine and Good Vibes” theme. Seasonal sayings are an easy way to update wooden houses for a tiered tray, shelf or summer vignette.

Watch Dollar Mom’s complete summer wooden-house tutorial.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

21. Character-Inspired Halloween Wooden Houses

My Joy Story decorated these Dollar Tree wooden houses for Halloween with playful character-inspired details, including a mummy design. The black, orange and white palette ties the different houses together as one display.

See the original Halloween-house project from My Joy Story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

22. Decorate Dollar Tree Wooden Houses With Paper and Stickers

Crafty Cacti combined patterned paper inserts, stickers, a small wood slice and miniature decorations to create these colorful wooden-house displays. This is an easy option when you want detailed designs without hand-painting every element.

The tiny DIY gnomes add another playful detail. Follow my Dollar Tree gnome tutorial to make your own. You can also see the original wooden-house inspiration from Crafty Cacti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Which Dollar Tree Wooden House Will You Make?

These projects show how many different ways one inexpensive wooden house can be transformed. Paint the blank, decorate the reverse side, add a printable insert or turn it into something functional like a key holder.

My favorite approach is using interchangeable paper inserts because the same wooden houses can move from fall to Halloween, Christmas and everyday décor without being completely remade. Choose one of the 22 ideas above, then customize the colors and details to fit your own style.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Print the Tutorial to Make the DIY Dollar Tree Buffalo Plaid Houses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Save These Wooden House Ideas for Later

Save this collection to your Dollar Tree crafts or seasonal decorating board so you can return whenever you find wooden house blanks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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