Month: October 2016

I was going to start out by saying that Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, which would probably confuse a good bit of you because it’s actually not.  You would probably be like, “Wait, where did Thanksgiving go?” or “Did I sleep through Christmas?”  I just got a little excited because I love putting candy boxes together, and Valentine’s Day is the most obvious time to do so.

However, Valentine’s Day is going to come early this year and I’m going to make my candy boxes for Christmas!  Before you write me off as being a little too confused about my timelines and priorities, check out my step-by-step tutorial for making seasonal, assorted candy boxes to give as gifts (for any occasion!):

• As far as the actual boxes go, you can wrap an old candy box in nice paper, or buy smaller ones from your local craft store, like Michael’s. If you want a size that you can’t find, don’t get discouraged, because you can make it!  My favorite kind is the lingerie size gift box because it’s super shallow but big enough.  Carefully separate the corners and wrap each piece in a wrapping paper of your choice.  Try using different kinds of complimentary paper for the top and the bottom, or a solid for the top and design for the bottom, or vice versa.  Carefully and tightly reseal the corners.
• Then, you make your homemade candies! Making your own candy is the whole point of these assorted candy boxes.  You can’t just go to the grocery store and by bite-size chocolates and pretend like they are the real deal.  Making your own candy is where it’s at, and there are plenty of recipes on the internet for different kinds.  I recommend doing at least a dozen kinds, but preferably one for each candy wrapper (yes, I know that is two dozen).

• After you have made all your candy you can make your template, because you can’t have all that amazing candy and no candy template! There are circle templates you can find online, or you can use a simple word document to make your own.  Fill in each circle for the respective candy.
• Give the gift and reap the love and praise for all your hard work!

Before we know it, Valentine’s Day will be upon us.  And what’s the one thing we all love about Valentine’s Day?  The candy!  Oh, wait, definitely our loved ones, too, of course.  That’s obvious!  But we wouldn’t have the candy without our loved ones, so yeah.

Anyway, without further judgment, here is one awesome idea for making some super adorable candy boxes for someone that you care about:

INTRO- The thing is that you can actually make your own candy boxes.  Not just what goes into the candy boxes, but the actual boxes.  What do I mean?  Well, I’ll tell you.  Martha Stewart, for one, wants so badly for you to succeed at this that she actually has templates on her website that you can print out.

SUPPLIES- To make Marthat Stewart’s Valentine’s candy boxes you are going to need to print out the templates (so a printer and some printer ink, for sure), a pencil for tracing, some mat board to trace on, and a craft knife to cut with.  If you are like me and you A) have no idea what a craft knife is, or B) would never trust yourself to use a craft knife, you could just settle for some good old-fashioned scissors.  And a marker.  And colored paper, spray adhesive, and glue.

STEP ONE- Print out the template (one large heart and two smaller hearts).  Trace the larger heart on the mat board two times and cut them out.  Use the marker to color along the edges of the new, cut-out hearts.  Spray with the spray adhesive and attach the colored paper.  Cut along the edges.  Do the same thing to the other sides.

STEP TWO- Trace the medium-sized template onto one of the larger heart cut-outs, and the trace the smallest heart template onto the other one.  Cut the box edges according to the template.  Color all of the exposed edges.

STEP THREE- Use the spray adhesive to cover all of the strips with colored paper.  Squeeze glue along the guidelines that you have traced out and bend the appropriate edge strips along the glue.  Let it dry.  Fill with candy and close.

TIPS- You are going to make two of the large hearts, one of the medium, and one of the small.  The medium and small cutouts are actually going to be the lids because the edge strips are going to form the actual hearts.  Choose a nice, demure pink, like coral or salmon, and then super bright candies.  Use this opportunity to get some gourmet candies!  Don’t just dump some sour gummy worms in and call it a day.