How to Decorate a Cute 2-Piece School Bus Cookie Set for Back-to-School

Back-to-school season is the perfect time to sweeten someone’s day—whether it’s for a teacher, student, or a first-day treat for the whole class! In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through how to decorate a 2-piece cookie set featuring an adorable school bus design with the cheerful phrase “Welcome Back.” It’s a fun and beginner-friendly set that makes a big impact, especially when paired with our recommended packaging options to create the perfect back-to-school gift.

The cookie cutter set used in this tutorial is available in our shop, along with greaseproof cookie card backers and coordinating gift tags to help you present your cookies beautifully and professionally. Let’s get decorating!

School Bus Cookie Cutter Set

Added to the shop for the back-to-school season is this 2-piece School Bus Cookie Cutter Set.

This pair of cookies will fit in this 4.5" x 7.5" x 0.75" clear cookie box.

Template for the School Bus Cookie Set

To help with the decorating process, I made a PDF template for this school bus cookie cutter set.

Click the link below for the downloadable template PDF file.

• 2024 Back to School Cookie Templates

If you have a Kopykake or Pico projector, just print it out (or pull it up on your mobile device) and you are good to go. For those without a projector, follow the suggested steps below by tracing the design onto the cookie with an edible food marker.

The Cookie Decorating Process

Decorating cookies always starts with a good royal icing recipe. This is my tried-and-true royal icing recipe that I always use.

For this school bus cookie set, you will need the following suggested colors:

• Yellow icing (I mixed Americolor Egg Yellow with a touch of Americolor Orange.)
• Light Blue icing (I used just a touch of Americolor Sky Blue.)
• Red icing (I used Americolor Super Red.)
• Orange icing (I used Americolor Orange.)
• Black icing (I used Americolor Super Black.)
• Gray icing (I used just a tiny touch of Americolor Super Black.)
• White icing (I used Americolor Bright White.)

Step 1

For the upper cookie piece, begin by filling in the center section with light blue icing. Let this icing set.

Then fill in the two side mirror sections with gray icing.

Step 2

Once the base layer had time to set, add the yellow bus frame, as shown. Let this icing set.

Then add the two black details at the top.

Step 3

Using a pico projector, I added the phrase "Welcome Back!"

I also added the red and orange lights at the top on the black accents.

Step 4

For the bottom cookie, begin by filling the bus body section with yellow icing. Let this icing set.

Once set, add the black tire sections.

Step 5

When the base layer had time to set, add the gray bumper and gray grill details.

Then add the white and black eyes and the black lines on the grill.

School Bus Cookie Decorating Video Tutorial

The steps above are summarized in this time-lapsed video I put together below.

Below is the completed set of the school bus cookie set.

To package this set, I first sealed each cookie in one of our clear heat-sealable cello bags to keep them fresh and protected. (I use the 5"x8" size.)

For the final presentation, I placed the cookies inside a clear cookie box with a green gingham cookie card backer to make the design pop.

To complete the presentation, I added our School Supplies Back to School cookie tag with a 12" red stretch loop to secure the box closed.

And there you have it, a sweet and simple school bus cookie set that's sure to bring smiles on the first day back! Whether you're making these for teachers, students, or classroom gifts, this design is a fun way to kick off the school year. Looking for more back-to-school cookie inspiration? Be sure to visit our shop for coordinating cookie cutters, cookie packaging supplies, and gift tag designs to help you create thoughtful and professional-looking cookie gifts all season long.