ginger 2011 – group 3

Can you feel it? Thing are heating up! Here are your Group 3 entries:

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Movita’s Pretty in Pink Cottage

Pretty in pink. Just like movita. How do you think I won 2.0 over? I mean, once you’ve drooled on your pants on your second date, you’ve gotta wear a lot of pink crap to make someone want to stick things out. This cottage is pretty big. Like, bigger than my head, if you’re looking for an idea of scale. I imagine a lovely elf couple residing there. A ballet teacher and a construction dude. With three soft, floofy cats. The cottage has likely been childproofed (as in: made perilous to any child who dares enter), and the sweet smell of cupcakes baking in the kitchen wafts from the windows. A vote for this house is a vote for the Cat Farm. I’m just sayin’.

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Luciana’s Winter Wonderland

This entry induced my second mini-stroke of the competition. Mostly because I love Luciana’s blog. I was all: I can’t believe she even knows I exist. You know, like in the weird way that high school girls act when some dude from the football team unexpectedly asks them to dance at the sock hop. (Kids still go to sock hops, right?) And then I was all: holy sweet mother of… she’s going to annihilate my shack. Hardcore. Oh, and apparently this is the first gingerbread house she has ever pumped out. Cripes.

Her entry came with the following note:

My name is Luciana from the blog Lulu’s Sweet Secrets. I would like to participate in the  gingerbread house competition with my first gingerbread house.

But, but… what? First off, I’m sad. Because Luciana hasn’t built a gingerbread house before now. Don’t they have gingerbread in Brazil? I guess everyone there is too busy being gorgeous to care. Secondly, WHO MAKES A HOUSE LIKE THAT ON THEIR FIRST ATTEMPT? The trees alone would have seriously compromised my sanity. And look at the wee heart details everywhere. The perfectly tied together colour scheme. The snow!

I need a moment.

(Want to know how to make your own? Luciana can help you.)

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Faye’s Amazing Candy Medley Gingerbread House

Faye is another one of my students. This kid is like, the sweetest person ever. That alone should convince you to consider voting for her house. I believe that is Santa up there on the roof. And a reindeer making a break for it down the side of the steeply sloped roofline. And here’s the thing about this house – doesn’t it remind you of when you were a kid? When design was important, but gobs of candy and icing were more important? That’s some next level whimsy right there.

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Emma’s MegaContender Manse

You know your house is big when it requires two chimneys. And Emma (of agates and madeleines) sent a lame-ass story for me to share with you!

Attached is my MegaContender for Ginger 2011. Now ensues my MegaLame-Ass story:

Inspired by my daily commute past Bangor, Maine’s finest abodes, and by the Vampire Weekend song of the same name, I decided to construct my ginger manse based on the theme of ‘Mansard Roof.’ My mailbox-meets-Portkey-that-later-became-a-tree-after-it-fell-down frolics in the front yard, near the nasty-tasting spicy sidewalk, while indoors, the prim and proper Ginger family wishes they had installed a curtain or five. All of Movita’s readers will now attempt to peer through their triple-pane windows; alas, if only they had foreseen this tragedy.

First off, Vampire Weekend does not have a song called My Daily Commute Past Bangor, Maine. I already checked. Next: holy crap! Look at that manse! A manse, by the way, is a house inhabited by a minister. Cripes. Maybe you should read a book or something. But I guess the religiously oriented inhabitants of this manse are exhibitionists. I mean what else would explain the lack of curtains? Look at the shingles on the lower portion of the house. And the bricks up top! And those are some huge-ass doors leading into the place. Brilliant!

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Kate & Company’s Ginger Mansion (Defending 2010 Champion)

Last year, Kate and Jo-Anne dominated Ginger 2010. They are both former students. And now Jo-Anne teaches alongside me. Technically, I’m almost her boss, so there’s a chance she’ll be fired if they win this here competition. But don’t fret about that. Kate acted as the foreperson of this project. Because she’s the foreperson of like, everyone. She’s basically a Martha Stewart clone – super talented and disgustingly creative. But, like Martha, she likes things done a certain way. Her way. Here’s the note she attached to their entry:

Hi, Here is my decorating team and I’s ginger house! I made it completely from scratch from a template I invented myself and it was decorated with the help of Jo-Anne, Poppy, Claire and Danielle. I have not thought up a clever story to go with this, however the main features that I would like to point out are the real edible glass (aka melted clear candy) windows, there are 5 in the front of the house 1 in the door and 2 on the side. Also, the white chocolate wafer shingled roof and the magical decorated forest.

Decorating team? Genius. That’s the kind of organization one needs to make things happen, people. And lest you think Kate is some sort of tyrant, I will tell you that she’s one of the kindest, most generous Martha-types I’ve ever met. (That being said, I wonder if her team had to wear matching khakis and blue shirts?) Poppy, Claire and Danielle are also dancers. I’ve taught them all. And organizing them is like trying to herd cats. Not impossible, but very challenging, so kudos on that, Kate. And look at the results. Perfectly decorated trees, edible glass windows, adorable rooftop. A gingerbread masterpiece!

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So, there you have it. I don’t know how you are going to choose. Get voting!

Votes must be cast by midnight Atlantic Standard Time (11 pm EST). The winner from this heat will proceed to the final round of voting on Thursday, December 22. For more on how the voting is gunna go down, click here.

Don’t forget to cast your vote for the Group 4 competitors!