As the air turns crisp and leaves begin to change colors, it's time to indulge in the cozy joys of fall. And what better way to celebrate the season than by creating a charming fall-themed gingerbread house? Whether you're a seasoned baker or a novice in the kitchen, decorating a gingerbread house can be a delightful activity for all ages. In this blog, we'll explore how to adorn your gingerbread house with adorable foxes, intricate leaf designs, and plump pumpkins using layons – edible decorations that will bring your creation to life.
Instructions
To make this house, we will be using a large, pre-made gingerbread house. Unpackage the house and set aside the smaller pieces, except for the chimney, as we will not be using them. Using flood consistency royal icing, outline the door section of the house. Then outline the top window and flood then use a scribe tool to smooth the icing. Pipe two diagonal lines with white icing for the window details. Next, outline and flood each window section, using a scribe tool to smooth the icing. While the icing is still wet, pipe the diagonal lines. Flood the door section and smooth it with a scribe tool. Then, mark the center of the window section above the door and pipe a curved line. Fill in this section with flood icing and use a scribe tool to smooth it. Set this part of the house aside to dry at room temp temperature for 10 minutes. Once the icing has crusted over, outline around the window and outside of the house with white, flood icing. Flood the remaining space of this cookie with white flood icing making sure to flood in sections. Be sure to work quickly on this step as the icing will begin to set up and you want the white icing to form a solid background. Set this aside to dry at room temperature for several hours. Next, outline the door and window with blue, medium consistency icing. Use this icing to pipe rectangle sections on the door for detail. Then, use a medium consistency white icing to pipe horizontal lines on the front of the house. Take your time when piping these lines to ensure they are straight and line up with one another as you move up the cookie. Pipe vertical lines that alternate on each row, adding small dots to either side to give it a wood plank look. Finish this cookie by piping blue, medium consistency icing around the square windows. To decorate the sides of the house, start by outlining and flooding the sections of the windows. Use a scribe tool to smooth the icing then pipe diagonal lines for some detail. Outline the windows and outside of this cookie then flood with white icing. Smooth the icing with a scribe tool then set aside to dry at room temperature for several hours. Finish this cookie by piping blue, medium consistency icing around the windows. Set aside to dry completely at room temperature overnight.
To decorate the roof, start by outlining each scallop with flood consistency blue icing. Allow this outline to set up at room temperature for 10 minutes. Flood the first and third scallops on the top row and use a scribe tool to move the icing to the outline. Repeat these steps for the second row and flood all three of the sections on the bottom row. You want to be sure the sections you are flooding do not touch one another as they will create dimensions once they are dry. Allow these sections to crust over at room temperature for 15-20 minutes. Next, flood the middle and outside sections with the icing, using a scribe tool to make sure the icing covers the entire section. Set aside to dry at room temperature for 15-20 minutes. Flood the remaining sections, using a scribe tool to smooth the icing. When flooding these sections, make sure the icing does not touch the next one. You can also flood the sections on one side then allow them to crust over before flooding the remaining area. Set this cookie aside to dry completely at room temperature overnight.
Next, outline and flood each brick section of the chimney then set aside to dry overnight. Once all of the house sections are flooded and decorated, you can make the icing layons. Using the fox template from the woodland pattern sheet set, start by outlining and flooding the top section of the head as well as the ears. Then, flood the belly and top of the tail with white icing and the bottom section of the tail with orange icing. You want your icing slightly thicker than a flood consistency so it holds its shape. Use a scribe tool to smooth the icing and move it to the right section. Repeat these steps for as many layons as you need then set aside to dry at room temperature for 15 minutes. Once the icing has crusted over, outline and flood the remaining sections of the fox then set aside to dry completely overnight. When the layons are completely dry, use a black edible marker to draw on the eyes and nose.use a polyblade to carefully remove the layon from the pattern sheet. If your icing is set up completely, they will come off very easily. To make the pumpkins, use flood to medium consistency icing to outline and flood every other section. We recommend starting with the outside and middle sections. Allow this icing to crust over before filling in the remaining areas. Pipe the stem of each pumpkin then set aside to dry completely at room temperature overnight. Once the layons are dry, carefully remove them from the pattern sheet with a polyblade. We will be making some leaves for our final layon. Start by outlining and flooding the section of the leaf then, while the icing is still wet, use brown icing to pipe the stem. Once all of the leaves are made, set it aside to dry at room temperature overnight. Remove the leaf layons from the pattern sheet using a polyblade.
The final steps are to assemble and decorate the house. Use stiff consistency royal icing to attach the house pieces. Pipe a shell border on the bottom and one side of the front of the house. Then, pipe a shell border on the bord for the side of the house. Attach these pieces to one another as well as the board. Repeat these steps for the back and other side of the house, making sure all pieces are lined up correctly. Add more icing to the inside of the house to make the connection more sturdy. Allow this icing to crust over for 5-10 minutes before adding the roof. Pipe a shell border on the slants of the front and back of the house as well as the top of the side wall. Attach the roof piece to this icing and hold in place while allowing the icing to dry. Repeat these steps for the other side of the house. If your roof pieces are sliding down, place an object at the base of the roof to hold it in place while the icing dries. Allow the icing to dry for 20-30 minutes. The stiffer your icing is for this step, the faster it will dry. Pipe a shell border on the slanted section of the chimney then attach to the roof. Decorate the house with the fox, pumpkin, and leaf layons by attaching them with royal icing. Let sit for about 20 minutes to allow the icing to harden completely and your creation is ready to put on display!
