Two Architects Spend Days Building the Most Insanely Intricate Gingerbread House, Putting Every Store Bought Kit to Shame

Every year, millions of people attempt (and usually fail) to make a gingerbread house. We've all seen the kits in Trader Joe's that have prefabricated walls, inedible candy decorations, and frosting that might be mixed with white glue. Not only are these houses nearly poisonous, but they also always end up looking like graphic scenes from a horror movie with their contorted surroundings, collapsing windows, and melty-looking townsfolk. The reason they're so ugly is because these houses are assembled by amateurs like you and me— so what would a gingerbread house look like if it were built by professionals?

u/a_huligan

Amanda and her boyfriend, Joe, two architects and professional home designers, took on the task this year of building the most incredible gingerbread house of all time. They expertly created blue prints of the design they wanted, bought an outrageous amount of supplies, baked the “walls” from scratch, and created a work of art. All it cost them was 3 days of their life, many hours of sleep, and 100% of their sanity. 

These two really took the details to the next level. Instead of building a traditional 4-walled gingerbread cabin, they made a gingerbread VILLA, with windowed glass, sweeping landscaping, and the home's very own lighthouse. After using a large piece of wood to support the base, they rolled tons of gingerbread out, measured cut outs, and got baking. Letting the gingerbread cool all over the house, it seemed the entire home was covered in either flour or spiced dough. 

After the walls cooled, they crafted tiny windows, with sugar glass inside, planning to have the structure be completely lit from the inside. 

After multiple broken pieces, collapsed walls, bad frosting texture, and hours of work, they seemed as if their spirits were broken.

The floor plan alone for this ginger mansion is insane. At this point in the build they were probably feeling like they got a little ambitious. But after two days of baking and preparation, they finished the ginger portion of the home build. With day three on the horizon, they restocked their candy-cache and focused on the fun part: decorating!

With sugar on every inch of their bodies and on every surface of their house, Amanda and Joe were nearing the end of their ginger-journey, excited to reap the benefits of having a 4ft cookie structure on their kitchen counter. 

We think they crushed it, honestly, blowing pre-made kits out of the water and making us all wish we were 4 inches tall so that we could live in a winter wonderland like this one.

Part 3: WE DID IT