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Oakville man chosen Canada's gingerbread guru By John Bkila OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Oakville's gingerbread guru Paul Douglas is Canada's greatest gingerbread artist. He was one of two finalists selected from hundreds of entries across the country to compete in a bake off, which aired on The Marilyn Denis Show, Christmas Eve (Dec. 24) -- he bested a professional cake decorater from New Brunswick. "I was a bit worried when I found out my competitor was a professional baker, but in the end, detail and creativity triumphed." Douglas, who has been making gingerbread houses for 20 years, had a few tricks up his sleeve. His design was an homage to Fallingwater, the famous rural Pennsylvania house designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and featured a lot of `glass' made of candy, cantilevered patios and platforms, walkways and a working fireplace -- just a few of the dessert house's winning features. "It's the furthest thing you would ever think of or see as a gingerbread house... I lit it and built an interior so people will be able to look through the glass and see inside," Douglas told The Beaver in an earlier interview, noting the competition was an "awful lot of fun." "It was quite an experience... 40 minutes goes pretty fast -- we really only had time (on the show) to do a bit of general decorating. The roof alone took me about two hours in prep time. 11 · Wednesday, January 9, 2013 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MARILYN DENIS SHOW the right stuff: Paul Douglas was named Canada's greatest gingerbread artist after winning the competition, which aired on The Marilyn Denis Show on Christmas Eve (Dec. 24). When the production staff informed me that `after the next segment, the competition is over, so about eight minutes left max,' I looked at the house and hoped for the best. The pressure to work fast was huge." The father of two began making gingerbread houses to spend time with his boys, but when they grew up, he couldn't shake the baking bug and continued making bigger and better creations for his family's annual Christmas open house -- the event collects toys and cash donated to women's shelters, along with the gingerbread house, of course. "Because of the competition, and the article in The Beaver, we had a record turnout at our open house this year, about 150-175 people," Douglas said. "We collected an SUV full of presents for the children, a lot of cash for the Halton Women's Place and we gave the shelter two gingerbread houses to enjoy. At the end of the day, the recognition (from the media) allowed us to give a bit more to those who really need the help." Usually the open house party collects approximately $1,000 and 30-40 unwrapped toys to be donated annually on a rotating basis between Halton Women's Place and Armagh in Mississauga. Although he only completed this year's gingerbread creations just last month, Douglas said he's already started thinking of next season's design. "I'm sure by the time fall comes around, I will have thought of 20 different designs." Today's School for Tomorrow's World Gle~burnie Scªool Pre-K (2.8 yrs) to Grade 8 Progressive, challenging, academic programs Studies include Global Awareness, Economics, and Emotional Intelligence, utilizing higher order thinking skills, in a differentiated educational environment. ! ! Sports · Art · Music · Drama Studies Before & After School Care OPEN HOUSE 3 3 3 0 S o u th S e rv ic e R o a d , B u rlin g to n , O N , L 7 N 3 M 6 905.333.IVY1 (4891) reservations@ivybar.ca | www.ivybar.ca An Independently owned DGC ENTERTAINMENT Property Saturday, January 19 · 9:30-1:30 Wednesday, January 23 · 5-7 pm Wednesdays 9 am 2035 Upper Middle Rd. E. (at Ford Drive), Oakville (905) 338-6236 · www.GlenburnieSchool.com