- Categories:
- Special Interest
- Tags:
- BakingFestivitiesFun
- Where:
- United States
- Date change rule:
- Every December 1 through 7
- Holiday emoji:
- 🍪
National Cookie Cutter Week shapes up every December 1 through 7, inviting bakers of all skill levels to celebrate the art of cookie creation. This week is dedicated to the versatile tools that transform simple dough into delightful, festive treats. Grab your favorite cutters, experiment with new designs, and share your delicious masterpieces with friends and family.
Want to sponsor National Cookie Cutter Week? Learn how
Expected National Cookie Cutter Week Deals
As National Cookie Cutter Week approaches, home bakers can anticipate a flurry of promotions from kitchenware retailers and specialty baking brands. In past years, stores like Sur La Table and Williams-Sonoma have offered discounts on cookie cutter sets, bakeware, and decorating supplies. Major retailers such as Target and Walmart often feature holiday-themed cookie cutters and baking kits. Online craft suppliers like Wilton and Ann Clark Cookie Cutters are expected to launch special bundles and new seasonal designs. Even grocery chains like Kroger and Whole Foods Market may highlight ingredients and pre-made dough for easy baking. We will update this page with confirmed live deals as December 1 approaches.
Platform Guide for National Cookie Cutter Week
Tag @nationaltoday_ and use #CookieCutterWeek. Share vibrant photos and reels of your uniquely shaped cookies, from festive holiday designs to everyday whimsical creations.
TikTok
Tag @www.nationaltoday.com and use #CookieCutterWeek. Film short, engaging videos of creative cookie decorating tutorials, cookie cutter hacks, or satisfying dough-cutting ASMR.
Mention National Today (facebook.com/nationaltoday) and use #CookieCutterWeek. Create a community poll asking users about their favorite cookie cutter shapes or share a link to a new cookie recipe.
National Cookie Cutter Week Hero
The Unknown Baker
History of National Cookie Cutter Week
If you really want to delve into the origin of cookie cutters, you’d have to go a long way back to 2000 B.C. The tradition of molding sweet cakes into shapes began in Ancient Egyptians and was later adopted by the inhabitants of Greece, Rome, and Western Europe. In the 1500s, the Germans started baking molds with intricate designs, out of which emerged oodles of gingerbread people, houses, trees, mountains, and whatnot. And by the 1800s, American tinsmiths had built cookie cutters and introduced them into the market for sale.
The naming of this holiday week was initiated in 1996 by a lady named Paula Mullins from Kentucky. While collecting signatures for the petition to create the holiday, Paula designed a cutter in the shape of a horse’s head and gave it to each person who signed. She started this tradition for the members of the Cookie Cutter Collectors’ Club. Yes, you read that right! There’s a club for people who share an interest in cookie cutters and any cookie-related topics. What’s more, there’s a National Cookie Cutter Historical Museum in Joplin, Missouri, established for the public. All the varied cutters designed by the club members are featured there.
In 2007, when Mullins decided to retire, Lyn Linder took over the charge of the club and the museum, to continue this unique tradition of designing cookie cutters. Who knew there could be such a thing as a club that specializes in making cookie cutters? Now that there is, we think it’s quite intriguing.
How Businesses Can Celebrate National Cookie Cutter Week
Local bakeries and cafes can host cookie decorating workshops, providing cookie cutters and supplies for customers to create their own edible masterpieces. Kitchenware stores can offer discounts on cookie cutter sets and baking ingredients, perhaps even partnering with local schools for a ‘decorate-a-cookie’ event. Restaurants can feature special dessert menus with uniquely shaped cookies, or offer a complimentary shaped cookie with every children’s meal. Social media campaigns encouraging user-generated content, like a ‘most creative cookie shape’ contest, can also drive engagement and community participation.
National Cookie Cutter Week FAQs
When is National Cookie Cutter Week?
National Cookie Cutter Week in 2026 runs from Tuesday, December 1 through Monday, December 7, kicking off the festive holiday baking season. This week-long observance encourages everyone to get creative in the kitchen.
How many types of cookie cutters are there?
There are thousands of unique cookie cutter designs available, ranging from classic geometric shapes like circles and squares to intricate seasonal, animal, and pop culture figures. The variety allows for endless creative possibilities in baking.
What is the most popular cookie cutter shape?
While popularity can shift with trends, classic shapes like stars, hearts, and circles remain evergreen favorites for their versatility and ease of use. During the holiday season, gingerbread men, Christmas trees, and snowflakes dominate.
What is the history of cookie cutters?
Cookie cutters have a long history, evolving from early molds used in ancient Egypt and Rome to shape bread and pastries. The tin cookie cutter became popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, especially in Europe, allowing for decorative and uniform cookies.
How To Celebrate National Cookie Cutter Week
Make your own cookie cutters
While there are a million stores where you could easily find exquisite cookie cutters, it’s always gratifying to make a few on your own. Grab hold of a few clips, aluminum flashing, and glue, to hold them all together. Of course, you would need time and patience along with an idea of the shapes, but we think it’d be fun.
Visit the cookie-cutter museum
A great way to honor this holiday is to take a ride to the National Cookie Cutter Historical Museum and witness the story behind this whimsical baking tool. FYI, the museum gives away a plastic cookie cutter to every visitor.
Host a cookie exchange party
The holiday season calls for festivities! To mark the first week of December, why not host a cookie exchange party? Invite your friends and family and gorge on delicious cookies over laughter and hearty conversations.
5 Fun Facts About Cookie Cutters
What’s in a name?
There’s a shark named cookiecutter; its bite marks are like cookie cutters.
More than just a cookie cutter
This multi-purpose item can also be employed as a stencil, a bird feeder, a gift tag, a napkin ring, and whatnot.
Hail, Queen Elizabeth
Back in the 1600s, Queen Elizabeth I asked for biscuits made as miniature replicas of her most favored guests — this was how gingerbread cookies came into being, thus leading to the popularity and need for cookie cutters.
Multi-type
There are four main types of cookie cutters: detail imprint, cookie mold, cookie press, and cutting sheet.
Original Founder
The founder of the Cookie Cutter Collectors' Club was a woman named Phyllis Steiss Wetherill — she even wrote two books on the history of cookie cutters: "An Encyclopedia of Cookie Shaping" and "Cookie Cutters and Cookie Molds."
Why We Love National Cookie Cutter Week
To relive memories
There’s nothing as exciting as decorating cookies with your kids or grandkids. If you don’t have kids, relive your childhood memories with your friends and family. Spend quality time gorging on freshly baked cookies, with a tall glass of milk or frothy coffee.
Cookie making is an art
This holiday season, don’t just stop at baking round cookies. Get your creative juices flowing and let the artist in you come alive. Do you remember making gingerbread men, reindeers, and snowmen as a kid? Well, maybe now you can even trace a story with your cookie cutters.
Cookies cutters are a lifesaver
With a cookie cutter by your side, you need not worry about wasting dough. Bring out your baking tray and load it with an array of cute little cookies from your leftover dough.
National Cookie Cutter Week dates
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | December 1–7 | Tuesday–Monday |
| 2027 | December 1–7 | Wednesday–Tuesday |
| 2028 | December 1–7 | Friday–Thursday |
| 2029 | December 1–7 | Saturday–Friday |
| 2030 | December 1–7 | Sunday–Saturday |
Social Media Tips for National Cookie Cutter Week
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