pretty packaging for your tasty treats
Friday, September 14, 2012 at 06:00PM This week I started competing on So You Think You're Crafty, a fun competition where crafters compete each week in a different theme. This week's theme was "Stash Busting." My project won! Here's what I did (check back on Tuesday for free downloads and a full tutorial!):
When I started thinking about what to create for this week's theme I spent some time considering what sort of "stash" most people have. I don't have a stash of designer fabrics (although I wish I did!), but I do have a fairly large stash of scrapbook paper, and I bet many of you do as well. Scrapbook paper is so pretty I think we all tend to buy more than we'll ever get around to using in our scrapbooks, so I figured out another use for that stash: pretty packaging for your tasty treats.
I love baking and candy making, and I often end up with more treats than my family will (or ought to) eat on our own. But I'd feel silly plunking down one or two leftover brownies on a paper plate and giving such a sorry-looking package away, so instead the extras get tossed. Even when I've made treats for someone specific, I always regret that the presentation (styrofoam and tin foil anyone?) isn't nearly as special as the sweets themselves.
That's why this project was born. I started by figuring out how to create a fun cupcake-shaped container using one sheet of 8.5x11 paper, then went on to create three more treat boxes. I've designed free printable templates for each box as well as a page of printable tags to help me (and you!) quickly turn that stash of lonely scrapbook paper into professional-looking packages for your homemade goodies.
Simply trim a few inches off one side of a 12x12 piece of scrapbook paper, print out a template, make a few cuts and folds, and in minutes you'll have one of the packages seen below. Even better - print out a slew of templates, then cut and score folds one night while watching a favorite movie, and you'll have boxes that can be assembled in 30 seconds next time you'd like to brighten someone's day with a sweet treat. And you won't spend a dime!
The truffle box, brownie box, and cookie sack with see though cutout (created using a page protector) can all be constructed from one sheet of paper each. The cupcake box takes one sheet of paper for the box and another sheet for the top. All templates will be available in PDF form on my blog for you to download and use.
Put the finishing touch on your pretty packages with one of six "sweet" tags that I've created, which will also be available for free download. Choose from: "Eat something sweet {you deserve it}" - "You're sweet, but this is sweeter" - "Most of the time life is sweet, but when it's not there's always chocolate" - and three more sweet sentiments.
Reader Comments (1)
Your idea is fabulous! I love packaging treats, and these are perfect sized. Love the idea of sending along a small number of treats; very do-able and made special with the scrap papers. Thank you for sharing!