Gingerbread Cottage Sugar and Spice Cottages III Image Size: 18x24, Publisher Proof, Framed. Publish Date: February 2007 I am intrigued by the manners, the art, the architecture of Victorian England, perhaps because, like the Victorians, I believe that real life can be like a fairy tale. Gingerbread Cottage is based on a real 19th Century house I discovered in Southern England. The whimsical structure with its brick, stone, wood filigree, shingle siding, awnings, dormers, and spires, revels in a spirit of romantic excess. Here is the fairy tale charm of Hansel and Gretel's Gingerbread Cottage brought to life. I believe that the architects took their inspiration from the art of the confectioners, who added layers of decorative icing to their houses of cake. The setting sun paints the windows with a most inviting golden glow. The front garden is a riot of rainbow colors with lavish flowers dancing in the evening breeze. The profuse floral display enhances the fairy-tale charm of this secluded Victorian treasure. I've provided a whimsical bench from which you may enjoy the advance of evening at Gingerbread Cottage. -Thomas kinkade