The Reddit thread accumulated no fewer than 216 comments in 24 hours, and it is thoroughly decked with photos and descriptions of horrifying results, many reported in good humor, of blood-like red icing dripping all over the house and gingerbread people. There are photos of gingerbread people with dripping green eye sockets — like they just stared at the Ark of the Covenant, as one person pointed out — and sanguine streaks of red. Some of the decorators tried to use the red icing to line the windows and doors, leading to a “very metal gingerbread house” and doors that looked like they were “on an acid trip.”
At least one person apparently had better luck; they recommended flipping the house around because decorating a flat surface allows for more control. This, of course, is still pretty tricky for a pre-built house with overhanging eaves and a pitched roof.
These kits certainly seem to have created a nightmare before Christmas for numerous Costco shoppers, and there’s no shortage of example photos in the thread. One particularly creative commenter even compared their finished product to a crime scene and dressed their gingerbread people accordingly in police uniforms. Still, some Redditors, even those who admitted to enjoying the chaos, said they might switch kits next year. On X, formerly known as Twitter, one disillusioned user echoed that sentiment, surmising that the icing “was packed during the Nixon administration” and warning others to avoid Costco’s gingerbread houses.