Ho...ho...hooooo! Guys, it's only a few days til Christmas! Are you done baking, crafting, wrapping, spreading Christmas cheer? I'm not, pshhh. I've barely started. Could be the economy, could be the winter climate getting a late start, could be the fact that I'm focused on the task I have to do in three weeks (hint: ouch), but the holidays just came up and screamed in my ear! Alright alright, I'll put on my sweater and get on it.
This year, I'm focused on low-key and cheap across the board—gifts that won't break my back or the bank. And since my sister took off two weeks from work to have her tonsils taken out (I did it five years ago and it hurts mama, it hurts real bad) we've been two invalid slash pioneer women (no, not this pioneer woman, or this one for that matter) equipped with scissors and rolling pins. And this week, our project was Christmas candy wreaths!
Our favorite waitress at our favorite local restaurant makes these wreaths every year and sells them at craft fairs or gives them as gifts to families with children. They aren't completely cheap to make since each one requires 4-5 big bags of candy but they are really easy and adorably festive. Kids go ga-ga for them and from a crafter's perspective, they are extremely satisfying to labor over and complete. (Did somebody say "labor"?)
All you need is a metal hanger, some wire to wrap the candy with, tons of small pieces of candy, ribbon for decoration, and a pair of scissors to attach if you choose to (the candy can technically be ripped off but we ribbon a pair of cheap scissors to the wreath for cutting, almost advent-style). We buy our supplies at the local Dollar Store or Smart 'N' Final; steel wire can be found at the hardware store for less than 10 bucks.
We set up our cozy crafting zone with a good Christmas movie ("Oh no, John, I don't hate you. I just hate basketball.") and some hot soup or cider, and dump a pile of candy in the middle of the table. We then start by stretching a metal clothing hanger into a perfect circle, cutting about a foot of wire, and wrapping candy around the frame. You can choose to loosely wrap (about 150 pieces of candy) or tightly wrap (about 200 pieces of candy). I prefer a thick, compact wreath with a plethora of various treats. Smaller wrapped pieces work best but you can try medium-sized chocolates and others, being careful not to melt it all with the heat from your hands. The twisted ends of small candies also make it easier to wire to the frame.
It's a slow process at first but you get the hang of it and work into a rhythm. It took me 2-3 hours for my first wreath but once you have the wrapping and tightening parts down it goes much faster. The trick is to wrap 10-15 pieces quickly and tightly to the hanger, and then compact by sliding them down (and hiding the wire work essentially).
After the first foot of wire is gone, cut another and attach to the frame. You'll use 4-5 separate pieces of wire instead of one long one that gets in the way of wrapping in and out quickly.
Try to keep the wire nice and taut as you go. I wrap the wire once around each end of candy but, if it feels slack or the candy is big or difficult to hold down, you can wrap as many times as needed until it's secured.
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