226 competitors entered their epic edible designs in the 27th Annual National Gingerbread House Competition, and the winners were announced in Asheville, North Carolina on Monday.The winning design by Gail Oliver, from Tennessee, shows wild animals hanging out at "The Water Hole."In the child category, Adair Cary, from North Carolina, took home the top prize with a life-like polar bear design.Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.If you need some inspiration for your gingerbread house design this holiday season, look no further.More than 220 bakers from across the US entered their edible designs in the 27th Annual National Gingerbread House Competition, and the winners were announced at The Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina, on November 18.Competitors used power tools, moving mechanical parts, melted sugar, and a whole lot of creativity to cook up some truly epic designs.Keep scrolling to see the winners of this year's competition.This incredibly detailed design showing animals at "The Water Hole" took home the grand prize.It was made by Gail Oliver, from Johnson City, Tennessee. While she had entered several times before and even placed in the top 10, this was her first win.Oliver's design includes a monkey, a flamingo, and a toucan.The figures in the design were sculpted out of ginger clay consisting primarily of ground gingerbread.On the other side of the gingerbread house, an alligator lazes in a hammock. Some of the houses can take up to 600 hours to create, according to the organizers. While Oliver did not track the hours she put in to her design, it took her "months and months." The artist, Gail Oliver, poses with her beautiful design.She topped the list of 226 competitors with "The Water Hole" and won a $5,000 check. In total, more than $25,000 in cash and prizes were awarded at the event.This mind-bending design took second place in the adults category.It was designed by Beatriz Muller from Innisfil, Ontario, in Canada.The winners were selected by a panel of judges including celebrity chef Carla Hall, James Beard Award-winning chef Cheryl Forberg, and Mark Seaman, the master sugar artist for chocolate company Barry Callebaut.In third came this realistic-looking wagon sitting on snow.It's the brainchild of Larry and Julia Vorpahl from Ellijay, Georgia.Incredibly, every design featured in the competition is 100% edibleand the judges check.In the teen category, this festive winter village took the top prize.This detailed Christmas scene was the work of students in the German program at Courtland High in Spotsylvania, Virginia.It's the sixth consecutive win for the school's program.This design of a vegetable truck took second place in the teen category.It was created by Sarah and Jenna Rhinehart from Columbia, Tennessee.This snowy cabin snagged third place in the teen category.The Institute of Innovation in Gaffney, South Carolina, created this beautiful design.This design, a nod to "a coat of many colors," took first place in the youth category.The youth category is for artists aged between 9 and 12. This design, which showed a modern and a biblical interpretion of "a coat of many colors," is by Anderson Adams of Raleigh, North Carolina.A wooden piano, complete with a rug, sheet music, and pot plants took second place.It's by Evalyn Routh of Climax, North Carolina.Caroling penguins came in third.It's the work of Emma Rhinehart from Columbia, Tennessee.In the children's category, this polar bear and fairy took the top spot.Adair Cary of Marshall, North Carolina, was named the winner of the child's category, which includes designs by children aged 5 to 8.Unlike the other categories, competitors in the child category aren't allowed to sculpt with melted sugar.A warming fireplace decorated with trees, gifts, and elves came in second.It's the work of the Tinker Kids from Lexington, Kentucky.This candy land came in third in the children's category.It was made by the Glitter Girls of Blue Ridge in Georgia.All of the winners will be on display until January 4, 2020, at the Omni Grove Park Lodge in North Carolina.Read more:What Christmas looks like in every stateYou can stay in an 'Elf'-inspired suite that would make Buddy proudYou could earn $1,000 to binge-watch Hallmark Christmas movies
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