I was wondering if anyone tried making his own 3-D cookies not using this fancy Nordic ware cookie cutters?
What kind of dough is hard enough and do you cut the openings before or after baking the cookies?

I have made 3-D cookies using cutters that were a promotional item from CRisco back in the 60's. I used a recipe similar to the NFSC on this site (it's about half the size). I had to use a serrated knife to enlarge the openings so that the pieces would fit together. My problem came when it was time to decorate them. I couldn't do them before assembly, or the pieces wouldn't fit. If I do them after assembly, the angles are all wrong for a nice end product. I'm still planning on baking them again...when I actually have enough time to figure out the puzzle of decorating them!