Please drop a photo of your gingerbread creation

We had our first Coffee Hour today. It was great to see you Jeneve! Thanks for showing your most recent gingerbread construction ready for decorating. Maybe next time we meet you'll have it completed. I WOULD LOVE TO GET TO KNOW OUR GROUP A BIT BETTER. WOULD YOU PLEASE SHARE BELOW WHAT YOUR EXPERIENCE LEVEL IS? :) Today I shared my main resource book that I expect to use to sharpen our skills. https://www.amazon.com/Gingerbread-Architect-Recipes-Blueprints-American/dp/0307406784?ref_=ast_author_mpb I highly recommend adding this to your library. In case you're asking yourself if you have the required equipment, let me assure you that the most basic mixer will suffice. Many people imagine that a heavy duty mixer is required for the gingerbread dough, but in fact, the gingerbread recipe I use is a stove top variety. So the only time a mixer is used is for the royal icing preparation. Another fun and useful tool is a turntable/lazy susan: https://vxb.com/products/12-inch-dia-black-plastic-lazy-susan-turntable-as1?variant=43580499886315&srsltid=AfmBOooveFMsKFJLT6jumYf5AqPPEzXIPkXDq4txnIaKCEDZ_HdZBzlTo3Y You may find anything similar, but I recommend finding a flat version as opposed to one on a pedastal. Those are more prone to tipping with the unbalanced nature of a gingerbread house. And lastly, start collecting candies! At this time of year you can still find holiday clearance pricing for many useful gingerbread projects. Mainly peppermint candies. Think Red/White for Valentine's Day!

As I refine my vision for this group, I am reminded to ask myself WHY? And I can honestly say that I wish I had a group like this years ago when I was flailing as a gingerbread house maker. I had ideas, but needed help with execution. I read baking books cover to cover, but nothing was as beneficial as actually getting into the real life building of gingerbread houses. So, I hope to be the group I never had for myself. I hope this will save you hours...maybe years...of frustrating builds.