Snowy Cottage Buttercream Christmas Cake Tutorial (Step-by-Step Guide)

This is one of my favourite Christmas cake designs and I had so much fun making it. In this short video, I’ll show you how to create a buttercream Christmas cake featuring cosy cottages, Christmas trees, and a wintry night sky — all using different-coloured buttercream in piping bags with a small hole cut at the end.

Watch the Video 👇

Materials & tools

• Cake covered and chilled 

• Buttercream in several colours (white, blue, greens, pink, yellow for windows)

• Piping bags (one for each colour) with a small hole cut at the end

• Small palette knife or offset spatula

• Optional: edible glitter, white sprinkles or sanding sugar for snow

Colour choices & design note

You can make the cottages any colour — pastels, rustic browns, or jewel tones. I chose a dark blue night sky so the yellow windows really pop and feel cosy. The contrast between deep blue and warm yellow creates that magical wintry glow.

Step-by-step tutorial

1. Prepare and chill your cake

Cover the cake in dark blue buttercream and Chill it so the buttercream is firm — this makes decorating easier and cleaner.

2. Plan your layout

Lightly mark where cottages, trees, and snowbanks will sit. 

3. Pipe the cottage shapes

Use a piping bag filled with a cottage colour and a small hole at the tip. Pipe simple strands of buttercream (horizontal or vertical) for cottage walls & roofs. 

4. Create snowy rooftops

Switch to white buttercream and pipe along the roof edges.

5. Form the Christmas trees

Pipe layered, short strokes with green buttercream (narrow at the top, wider at the base). Add tiny dabs of white buttercream on the branches to mimic fresh snow.

6. Scatter snow

Dot white buttercream across border of the cake. For sparkle, sprinkle a little edible glitter or sanding sugar while the buttercream is fresh. 

Hope you liked this tutorial and hope you will try this design too :)

Happy decorating,

Neetha