How to build a brick gingerbread house
To build a brick gingerbread house, set a green plate between two white plates, raise tan walls with a red door and light-blue windows, add long white bricks as icing eaves, step a tan roof with white edges up to a point, and cover it with pink, green, yellow and orange candies. 47 pieces, 5 steps, ages 7–9.
The gingerbread house build at a glance
| Pieces | 47 (20 kinds) |
|---|---|
| Steps | 5 |
| Ages | 7–9 |
| Colors | yellow, white, orange, tan, pink, lime, light blue, red, green |
| Finished size | 8 × 8 studs, about 6.1 cm (2.4 in) tall |
| Special pieces | None: plain plates and bricks |
Parts you need
5× yellow 2×4 brick
4× white 1×6 brick
4× orange 1×1 brick
4× yellow 1×1 brick
3× tan 2×6 brick
3× pink 2×2 brick
3× lime 1×2 brick
2× white 2×6 brick
2× tan 2×4 brick
2× tan 2×2 brick
2× tan 1×4 brick
2× white 2×6 plate
2× light blue 1×2 brick
2× red 1×2 brick
2× tan 1×2 brick
1× green 4×8 plate
1× tan 2×3 brick
1× white 2×2 brick
1× green 1×2 brick
1× white 1×2 brick
Step-by-step instructions
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1 Snowy yard and first walls
Lay the green plate between two white plates. Add two long tan walls, a yellow middle and the red door!
Find: 2 tan 2×6 bricks, 2 white 2×6 plates, 1 green 4×8 plate, 1 yellow 2×4 brick, 1 red 1×2 brick, 1 tan 1×2 brick
Did you know? The biggest gingerbread house ever was big enough for grown-ups to walk inside!
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2 Windows and tall door
Lay a long tan brick across the back. Add light-blue windows on both sides and another red door brick.
Find: 2 tan 2×2 bricks, 2 light blue 1×2 bricks, 1 tan 2×6 brick, 1 yellow 2×4 brick, 1 red 1×2 brick, 1 tan 1×2 brick
Did you know? Some bakers melt hard candy to make shiny see-through windows in gingerbread houses.
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3 Icing eaves
Long white bricks stick out on both sides like icing. Fill the middle with tan bricks front and back.
Find: 2 white 2×6 bricks, 2 tan 2×4 bricks, 1 yellow 2×4 brick
Did you know? Gingerbread houses became popular in Germany after the fairy tale Hansel and Gretel.
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4 Pointy roof steps
Skinny white bricks make icing edges, with tan in the middle. Build two steps, each one smaller — a pointy roof!
Find: 4 white 1×6 bricks, 2 yellow 2×4 bricks, 2 tan 1×4 bricks, 1 tan 2×3 brick, 1 white 2×2 brick, 1 white 1×2 brick
Did you know? Royal icing is made from sugar and egg whites, and it dries hard like glue.
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5 Candy time!
Put three pink candies on the very top. Add green gumdrops on the edges and yellow-orange candies everywhere!
Find: 4 orange 1×1 bricks, 4 yellow 1×1 bricks, 3 pink 2×2 bricks, 3 lime 1×2 bricks, 1 green 1×2 brick
Did you know? Gingerbread is flavored with ginger, a spicy root that people have used for thousands of years.
Questions parents ask
How many pieces do you need for a brick gingerbread house?
47: 5 yellow 2×4 bricks, 4 white 1×6 bricks, 4 orange 1×1 bricks and 17 more kinds. The full list is in “Parts you need”.
Are these gingerbread house instructions free?
Yes. Every step is on this page. A print-ready PDF with the parts list and one big step per page is free by email.
What if I’m missing a color?
Use a brick of the same size in another color. The shapes hold the model together; the colors are only for looks.
