# , Day 6: Simple Gingerbread House, Sealing Your Home’s Thermal Envelope & HOME for the Holidays Sale! - Link: https://mycoastalwindows.com/12-days-of-cozy-day-6/ - Published: 2020-12-10T17:27:42-05:00 - Author: Jeremy Wood ![simple gingerbread house](https://mycoastalwindows.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/ 01/image-1-2-1.webp) Welcome to Coastal’s ** Series,** featuring festive fun for the whole family to enjoy! **What is our all about? **Check back daily Dec 1-12 to find: * Recipes * Holiday Ideas * Energy Saving Heating Tips * Family Traditions * And More! Our goal is to spread good cheer for all to hear, sharing holiday inspiration to keep your family warm and cozy all winter long. **After a tough year of COVID-19, we’re hoping our Warm & Cozy campaign brings happiness to your home. ** We offer professional installation along with our GAF unlimited wind speed warranty! This means your shingles will stay in-tact even during the most brutal winter storms. ## **Launching our 6th Day of Warm & Cozy…** ★Below, you’ll find out how to make a [simple gingerbread house using graham crackers](https://www.happinessishomemade.net/make-graham-cracker-gingerbread-houses/)! This is a great option for those who want to enjoy the process but don’t have the time or resources for highly intricate gingerbread houses. **★Holiday Home Tip:** Speaking of houses, we’re giving a quick refresh of a home’s thermal envelope! The thermal envelope is responsible for shielding your home from the outdoors. It includes elements such as your windows, vinyl siding, and roof. We’ll tell you what you need to know about the thermal envelope and how to improve it for energy conservation. ![warm and cozy delight](https://mycoastalwindows.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ image-2-2.webp) ## Graham Cracker Gingerbread House Ingredients: * Graham Crackers, 5 per house * Icing * Paper plate or cardboard * Bread or serrated knife * Disposable piping bag * Assorted candy, pretzels, dried fruit, etc. ## Making Your Gingerbread House * Cut your graham crackers into shapes shown on the graphic below * Start with shape C and apply piping to the inside wall, adhering it to a paper plate or cardboard base * Join B and C together to form a strong bond to the base * Allow the icing to set * Add more piping to complete the roof * You may add a line of icing down the top center of the roof for added strength * Decorate with your assorted candy and other items! For step-by-step instructions with photos, [please refer to this blog](https://www.happinessishomemade.net/make-graham-cracker-gingerbread-houses/). ![how to make graham cracker gingerbread houses](https://mycoastalwindows.com/wp- content/uploads/2025/01/image-3-2.webp) ## The Home’s Thermal Envelope: Get Prepared for The First Day of Winter ## ![understanding your home's building envelope](https://mycoastalwindows.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/image-4-2.webp) While your gingerbread house doesn’t need to block wind and snow, your real home definitely does—especially as we near the first day of winter. With dropping temperatures and unpredictable weather, maintaining a well-sealed home becomes even more important. Whether you’re preparing for holiday guests or just bracing for another New England winter, now is the ideal time to check your home’s insulation and sealing. Understanding the condition of your home’s thermal envelope ensures better warmth, energy efficiency, and comfort throughout the season. Moreover, fixing insulation and addressing air leaks now helps lower heating bills and keeps your home cozy before the worst of winter hits. ![home thermal envelope graphic](https://mycoastalwindows.com/wp-content/uploads/ 2025/01/image-5.webp) _Image Source: Green Building Advisor_ 1. Your roof needs to withstand snow, water, and ice. It also needs to maintain a temperature consistent with outdoor temperatures to avoid ice dam buildup. **Check for missing or curled shingles and water stains on your ceiling, which indicates that your roof is failing.** 2. Your siding is an added layer of insulation for your home. **The siding panels should be flush to the exterior. Sagging and loose panels won’t protect your home.** 3. Any instance where something is connecting to your home’s building envelope must be properly insulated and sealed. Porches, decks, window frames, [door frames](https://mycoastalwindows.com/drafty-doors/), and chimneys are some examples of parts that must be properly insulated and sealed into your home’s building envelope. **Professional exterior remodeling contractors will ensure that all products are properly sealed from the elements. ** 4. Your basement needs proper drainage (“ventilation”) and insulation to ensure moisture will not build up. Beyond flooding, basements are especially prone to mold – which can make a home uninhabitable. **Remember that clogged or damaged gutters can cause pooling around your foundation, which can leak into your basement.** 5. Review your home’s ventilation and consider the areas you spend the most time in during the winter. Spending money to heat areas you don’t spend time in in the winter equates to waste. 6. Old windows are the most common place where energy is lost in a home. **In fact, you can lose nearly 30% of your home’s energy from this area!** If windows aren’t properly insulated, the amount of energy potentially lost through them each year is the same as if you left the window wide open year-round. Check our [Cozy Day 3 blog post](https://mycoastalwindows.com/12-days-of-cozy-day-3/) to learn how to insulate windows with an easy way to detect drafts! We hope you enjoy your merry lantern and be aware of house fires this season! Take advantage of our HOME for the Holidays Sale! [Click here to get started](https://mycoastalwindows.com/promotions/). Check our [: Day 7](https://mycoastalwindows.com/12-days-of-cozy-day-7/) and [: Day 8](https://mycoastalwindows.com/12-days-of-cozy-day-8/) posts for additional offers. [ ⌊Online Booking CWE Tool⌉⌊Online Booking CWE Tool⌉