Joanne Seelig: Welcome back, my name is Joanne Seelig and I am the Family Programs
Coordinator at the National Building Museum in Washington DC and I am
teaching you how to build a gingerbread house. Now that you know a little
about the history of gingerbread, I think you are ready to become a
builder.
So, let us put our house together, the first thing to do is to put your base
down. Remember, this is going to serve as the floor of your house and will
also enable you to actually pick up your gingerbread house. Remember
that you have your two triangles, either cut from your template or pre-
bought and your two rectangles cut from your rectangle template.
The first thing I am going to do is I am actually going to put a strip of
icing on the side of my triangle. This royal icing is going to serve as my
glue and really hold the gingerbread pieces together. Now, remember this
icing is made with raw eggs. I am not going to eat it because it might
make me feel little bit sick. I am icing the side of the triangle all the way
down and I make sure I actually press nice thick stretch to really hold it
together. Okay and I am ready to go.
I am going to put the triangles on the long side of the base. I am going to
lean my rectangle piece of gingerbread along it and glue it together with
my royal icing. It will be a little tricky, it helps to have another set of
hands, but if you do not I will show you a little trick that I like to use.
Take some soda cans or any kind of cans that will really do and I actually
put it inside the house to lean against the wall, so that I am able to glue on
another triangle.
If you have a helper you may want to have them hold your house together.
The next thing I am going to do is glue some more of that icing on to the
rectangle. last but not least you have got to put the last rectangle on by
adding a little bit of our icing or glue onto each side of the triangle and
then we have got our house. Walla, you have finished your house, good
job builders. Now, do not be discouraged if there is a little bit of an
opening in your house, you might be able to see some spaces, no
gingerbread man will escape. In fact your house might shrink because it is
made of natural materials and these spaces you can cover them up with
icing. Make a really nice roof and a snow effect or you may wish later to
put some materials on top like a piece of candy on your roof. But, you are
ready to go; the most important part is done. Your house is built, so now it
is time to be artistic and decorate.
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