I’ve made about 30 cake stands using this technique so when the idea of creating candy jars doing the same thing, it was a quick yes from me. You’ll see the cake stands used as the decor in so many of my events and parties because they are super versatile. Click here for a quick list of how to create them. Today I’ll tell you how I made our candy jars for our Activity Day Recognition Night. These are great for any occasion, event, or gift-giving need. Grad gifts? Sure. Father’s Day? Why not? Just change out the tag, fill it with a favorite treat or small item and it will work for any person or event.
Here’s How:
1. Gather supplies.
- candlestick (I purchased mine at Dollar Tree and they can also be ordered here in cases of 12 and delivered to your store for free.)
- jar with wide mouth lid (Also purchased at a dollar store with squishy veggies inside. Those got dumped, jars were washed and labels removed.)
- Rustoleum 2X Coverage spray paint
- quick-drying epoxy (Gorilla or Hammerhead)
- E6000
- small wood drawer pull or wood knob (found at Hobby Lobby for less than $.10 each)
- ribbon and tag (optional)
- candy or other treat
- written notes (optional)
2. Clean jars. I chose a short, squatty jar and tall skinny one for variation. I also tested them to make sure I could get the labels off easily since I was doing so many. Plus, the lids needed to not stink after washing (so no pickle jars for me).
3. Attach knob or drawer pull to lid with E6000 (can also use epoxy for quick-drying). Note: knobs are not meant to be pulled on when opening. To make them more sturdy, consider nailing a small nail through the lid and into the knob after attaching.
4. Spray paint candlestick and lid with knob. Spray lightly in multiple coats for the smoothest coverage. Be sure to get in all the nooks and crannies. Dry completely.
5. Attach candlestick to bottom of jar using quick-dry epoxy or E6000.
6. Add ribbon and tag. Fill with candy, nuts, or other treats and treasures.
If you look closely, you’ll see that I used Double Bubble Gum for this project. To create even more connection to the event, we took excerpts from the message of the evening and little tasks that we wanted the girls to do supporting the idea of their “Happily Ever After” and typed them out onto white paper. We cut them into strips and had each girl wrap a piece of gum with a strip of paper, attaching one end with scotch tape to the gum then rolling it up and attaching it with another piece of tape.
The girls took their candy jars home that night and were encouraged to take one piece of candy each day, unwrap the task, do it or think about the message while they enjoyed their treat. Our jars fit about 18 pieces of candy. This was a great way to take the message home with them and reinforce the principles for over two weeks. If you are giving these as a gift, consider wrapping each candy with a message of why you admire that person, favorite memories, or reasons why you love them. Click on the image below to get a pdf of our messages.
If you are using the actual creating of these jars as an activity like we did, plan on having the knobs already attached to the lids and the candlesticks and lids pre-painted so they are dry. You can have them clean their own jars if you want but we washed them ahead of time and soaked them to remove the labels. The girls got to choose the type of jar they wanted and the color as well. They also assembled their tags and tied the ribbon. Finally, they wrapped each candy in a strip of paper. Everyone was finished with theirs as well as completing the ones for absent girls within an hour. We had them keep their jars with us and the next time they saw them it was looking so fabulous at the dinner a few weeks later.
I’ll be adding my silhouette files that I used for the evening in the next few days so check back for those with the Princess wood block project from that evening.
