Gingerbread House - 2011

I'm kicking off this holiday season with a festive gingerbread house! Each year I try to make my gingerbread house a little more elaborate and difficult that the year before, this years gingerbread house took a week to complete!

There are so many pieces that need to be carefully readjusted with a dremel (thanks dad!) and then iced together and left to dry before constructing.

To begin, I found a terrific haunted gingerbread house with a pdf template to download and a basic diagram for construction that I used for the pieces. Once all the pieces are cut out of gingerbread and baked, the construction begins with lots of royal icing to glue the pieces together. Canned foods are great for holding up walls while waiting for the icing to dry.

 

The window panes are made of crushed butterscotch candies that are spooned into the window openings of the baked pieces then placed back into the oven for another 15 minutes to melt and spread. Let cool in pan for several hours or over night before moving.

The wrought iron railings are made of royal icing piped onto a piece of mylar plastic set over a template. The icing is left to dry overnight and then carefully removed from the mylar and glued to the house using more royal icing. The potted plants are made of gingerbread dough that I squished into a few metal icing tips that I had sprayed with Pam and baked in the oven for around 15 minutes.

The little pieces come right out of the icing tips and my dad used a dremel to cut the ends off to make "pots" and carved out a little indent in the tops to fill with more royal icing. The "plants" are red and green candy covered sunflower seeds. The evergreen trees are sticks of rock candy with the sticks cut off the ends.

The supports for the porch and porch roofs are cut candy canes and round candy pieces. I hope this years gingerbread house will help inspire your holiday baking. Here is last years house 2010, and 2009 here and here, and my first house 2008. Happy holiday baking everyone!

Comments

[Hotmail login]

Hi. I like your method very much. Very good fixations. I hope you succeed.

[Vickie]

Thank you. I have down loaded the pattern and will start with a cardboard pattern then move on to the gingerbread house. I will get them next year. Ha Ha

Thanks again, Vickie

[Goodies By Anna]

Hi Vicki, there is a link to the downloadable pdf of the template in the blog post. There is also a link to the template at the top of the blog where is says templates

[Vickie]

I love this gingerbread house. We had our 1st gingerbread contest this year. I was disqualified because I made a train. The rules said house. Would you consider selling the templates to your house. I can't find ones I like on line. Awesome job on your house.

[Goodies By Anna]

Hi Valeria: I looked up wrought iron fence on google and found a pattern i liked, resized it in photoshop and used that for my template.

[Valeria]

Amazing house, but what is the template of the fence?

[Valeria]

Heyyy what is the template of the fence??

[eva hansson]

Hi, wonderful house, can you send me the pdf?

[Goodies By Anna]

the link to the pdf template for the house is in my post.

[Ann]

Love the design, I'm doing a gingerbread house for a benefit and wanted to know if you sell your template. I could not get the template on line. They want a large house ànd the template you used looks perfect. please let me know if you can help.

[Goodies By Anna]

looks like the site is no longer available. sorry

[Sylvia]

Hi i really like this house, but I can't open the link could you please send the template to my email? [email protected]
Thank you very much

[Goodies By Anna]

thank you! the icicles are piped royal icing.

To: [email protected]

[Joanna]

Hi awesome house! How did you make the "icicles" hang off the roof?

[Goodies By Anna]

Link to template is in post

Sent from my iPhone

[Robin isik]

My email i [email protected] send it there!!!

[Robin isik]

Can u send the templets to me plz!!!!!!

[Goodies By Anna]

The link to the wrought iron fence graphic that I modeled mine after is:
http://www.canstockphoto.com/wrought-iron-fence-1-5372520.html
You will need to adjust the graphic in photoshop, like i did, to fit your gingerbread house size.

To: [email protected]

[Victoria]

I CANNOT FIND THE WROUGHT IRON FENCE TEMPLATE!!!! On the photo you show lengths labeled...I just cant find it!!!!

[Goodies By Anna]

Hi eri
i think this is the one ive been using... i just adapt the graphic on the computer to meet my measurements then print and use as a template under a piece of clear acetate. I pipe directly onto the acetate and let dry overnight. When dry, lightly bend the acetate over the edge of a table and the fence should slide off... these pieces are super fragile and break really easily. I suggest making extras! Good luck with your gingerbreadhouse.
http://www.canstockphoto.com/wrought-iron-fence-1-5372520.html

To: [email protected]

[Eri]

Thank you so much for your reply! I'll google! I love your gingerbread houses. You're so talented! ;)

[Goodies By Anna]

Hi Eri,
I just googled wrought iron fence and looked for a style I liked then copied into photoshop and printed out the sizes i needed for my house. Hope this helps!

To: [email protected]

[Eri]

Hi! This is amazing! Could you teach me how I can get a template for the wrought iron railings? Thanks!

[Goodies By Anna]

the link to the template is in the blog post... but here it is again. good luck with your house!
http://www.haunteddimensions.raykeim.com/index506.html

To: [email protected]

[sabrina]

Oh My god !!
Amazing !!
Can you please send me the templates ??
[email protected]