Holiday: Gingerbread Village 2009

Calison Architecture created the "Muppet Christmas Carol" display at the Gingerbread Village in Seattle, Washington pictured on 23-December-2009

KENNEWICK, WASHINGTON - For seventeen years, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation has benefited from donations to the Gingerbread Village display in Seattle, Washington. Hosted again this year in the lobby of the Seattle Sheraton, it featured seven exquisitely decorated gingerbread houses.


"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" was the clear theme of this gingerbread house prepared by the local Master Builder's Association in Seattle, Washington on 23-December-2009

This year's theme was a "Reel Christmas," with each gingerbread display based on a holiday movie. The choices ranged from the classic (1946's "It's A Wonderful Life" and 1965's "A Charlie Brown Christmas") to the modern (1993's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and 2004's "The Polar Express"). Each display was prepared and donated by a local architectural firm.


Arguably the most obscure movie chosen for the Gingerbread Village was the "Nightmare Before Christmas" including "Jolly Old Jack" seen on 23-December-2009

The level of detail on the displays was exceptional, from the slide making its way down from a high-level Santa Claus in the "A Christmas Story" house to the Swedish Chef and Sam the Eagle on the roof of the "A Muppet Christmas Carol" house, to the Cocoa Puffs cereal used as the dog food in the "A Charlie Brown Christmas" house.


The inside of the Snoopy's doghouse showed the details involved in the "A Charlie Brown Christmas" display at Gingerbread Village in Seattle, Washington on 23-December-2009

The line to see the display has extended well beyond the lobby but moved quickly at mid-day last Wednesday, resulting in not much more than a half-hour wait, well worth it to see the fine craftsmanship.


The scene itself was black and white in the Gingerbread Village "It's a Wonderful Life" display while the set around it was in color on 23-December-2009

Gingerbread Village remains open for viewing through Sunday, 3-January-2010, at the Seattle Sheraton, located at 6th and Union downtown, not far from the Westlake Transit Hub. More photos of this display will be in a future update to my photo site.