Architecturally Inspired Gingerbread Houses

Whether you're a practicing architect or an admirer of those with an innate skill to construct beautiful spaces, building with candy as an alternative material is an activity anybody can get behind—no matter where your professional background lies. And while the gingerbread house kits are much appreciated by those who, uh, lack a certain technical precision, it's even more impressive to see when people are able to come up with an astounding building with their own innovation. Below are some examples of that very notion.

In their six year of their annual Gingerbread Build-Off, AIA Houston chose nine winners for separate categories. The Gingerbread Build Off Committee Members included Sean Cowan, Assoc. AIA, Rocio Subira, Geoff Smith, and Matt Wolff. Below are our picks for architectural aesthetic:

The Grand Budapest Hotel
Team: The Nuerons

Project Row Houses
Team: Rice University, Ricing on the Cake

Cinderella’s Castle
Kirksey & Canopy

City Hall
English & Associates The Boston Society of Architects celebrated their 3rd Annual Gingerbread House Competition, sponsored by The Community Design Resource Center of Boston (CDRC), featuring 11 craft submissions from local architect firms. To determine the winner, voters go the CDRC’s site to donate money—which counts as a bid—and the project that gains the most money is declared the winner. All of the funds are donated to support the work of the CDRC, which is a nonprofit. Here are our top picks taken from theirs: