Today I am excited to share another retro-inspired papercraft project! So, park that gas-guzzling car, give your neighbor a friendly wave, and step into this 3D mid-century house.
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As a fan of mid-century design and decor, this was a really fun project to work on! The hardest part was narrowing down the ideas that I had, and making sure that the end result was clean, and, of course, doable as a papercraft.
Follow along using the instructions below, or check out this tutorial video.
Supplies
- Cardstock
- Vellum
- Hot Glue
- Precision Craft Glue or a Glue Stick
- Foam Tape (optional)
- Bone Folder (optional)
- A Cutting Machine or X-ACTO knife
- My Free Template
How to Make It
1. Use your cutting machine or X-ACTO knife, along with my template, to cut out all of your 3D mid-century house pieces.
Note: If you are using the SVG files that includes the score lines, don’t forget to set them as such in Cricut Design Space and attach them to their shapes before sending them through your cutting machine. I used a lime green color to mark the score lines, so hopefully that helps! If you’re having trouble with the score lines, check out this video.
Prep Work
2. Start by layering the decorative pieces on the front and right side walls. Make sure to place the vellum window pieces on the inside and everything else on the outside.
Assembling the House Structure
3. Start by taking your two rectangular, pink pieces and folding them along the score lines. Use the long tabs to attach them around the perimeter of your house like so.
Note: I altered the design slightly after finishing this project. Now, included in the taller side wall are some little slits for the “beams” that go over the parking area later on. If you want to keep the tabs of those beams hidden from view and make your project look a little bit cleaner than mine, use those slits to attach them and glue the tabs inside.
With the three sides of your house attached, adhere the back wall of the house.
Assembling the Roof
4. Take your blue roof piece and fold the sides inward. Use the little tabs to attach the sides together and create the overhanging part of your roof.
Next, glue the whole thing to the top part of your house. keeping the overhang as even as you can on each side.
Note: There is a slit on the back side of the roof piece, be sure that you put the slit side on the back of the house.
Lastly, slip your long, rectangular “chimney” piece through the slit in the roof, and attach it to the back wall.
Assembling the Base
5. Layer your four, decorative strips on the sides of your base.
Fold the sides inward and use the tags to attach them together.
Final Assembly
6. Slip the tabs on the bottom of your house into the base and glue them down.
Next, take the intricate, blue wall and attach it to the base as well (on the left side).
If you attached the beams to the house in step 3, then you will just need to attach the other sides to the blue wall now.
If you didn’t attach the beams yet, that’s okay! You can simply fold the little tabs and attach them to the side of the house like I did here. Then, attach them to the blue wall.
Add some little, decorative plants around the house, and your house is complete!
I had SO much fun making this house! And it ended up being an even simpler project than I expected (always a nice surprise). Now I feel like I should put the rest of my projects on the back burner and dedicate the next month or two to making even more houses until I have an entire mid-century, suburban neighborhood!
I will restrain myself, though.
I use Adobe Illustrator for all my designs, and a Cricut Maker to bring my creations to life. For tips on creating fun paper cuts like this one, see the FAQ section on my website. Also, be sure to check out the other fun freebies available on my blog!
Enjoy making this 3D mid-century house for yourself! And, as always, be sure to share your finished results with me on Instagram.
*This post contains affiliate links. By clicking through my links to make a purchase, you are supporting this blog and the hard work that goes into providing free, quality designs.
Mandee is a professional graphic designer, amateur bird watcher, and rollercoaster enthusiast. She is a wife to hardworking high school teacher and mommy to three adorable little humans. She fell in love with graphic design when she started working on a comedy website with a guy she met her freshman year of college. Design wasn’t the only thing she fell in love with, and they were married a year and a half later. She created Designs By Miss Mandee to be a place where she could merge her passion for design with her lifelong love of crafting. 6 Comments on 3D Mid-Century House – 3D House Cut File
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Helen J Roberts
March 15, 2023 at 8:21 am (2 weeks ago)Love this! I am going to adjust the file size and make a Putz ornament for my tree with it. Thank you for another wonderful file.
Mandee
March 15, 2023 at 10:08 am (2 weeks ago)That will be so cute!! Have fun making it. 😊
Beverly Stewart
March 15, 2023 at 1:31 pm (2 weeks ago)Thank you for the adorable house! Looks like fun.
Mandee
March 21, 2023 at 2:42 pm (5 days ago)You’re welcome! I’m glad you like it. 🙂
Denise
March 15, 2023 at 9:22 pm (2 weeks ago)This is so cute! Thank you for your generosity in sharing all of these amazing files>
Mandee
March 21, 2023 at 2:43 pm (5 days ago)You’re welcome Denise! I’m so glad you like this design. 😊