Decorative Packaging

This craft is very quick and in-expensive but dresses up the Christmas dinner table or accent table wonderfully.

I recommend using jar candles that are the same height as the candy canes you use.  Some crafts instruct you to use a pillar candle but this seemed like a huge fire hazard to me. 

We did this craft to accent all the tables at our church Christmas party dinner.  On a white table cloth with some greenery and pine cones made the whole room very festive and fragrant.  It also made very lovely party favors.

Depending on the size of the candle you use, you will need enough candy canes to go all the way around.  For a jar candle that is 5 inches high and 3 inches in diameter, you will need approximately 3 dozen candles.  Approximately 2 ft of 2 1/2 inches wide,  red sparkley, or gold  wired ribbon 2 1/2 inches wide or what ever color accent you desire. Make sure it is ample ribbon to go around the jar with the candy canes tie a nice bow. I used a 3 inch pre-tied bow to put around the jar so I could insert the candy canes and hold them in place until I could put a spot of hot glue behind them, then when the glue is dry, wrap the ribbon around and cut it just so the ends meet nicely, then hot glue the ends down its about 13 inches long.  Nest, make a 6 inch loop (12 inches total for the bow folded in half) with the wired ribbon and glue the ends, then take 10 inches of ribbon and wrap around the center of the loop and cinch the center and twist tight like a bread tie making the center narrow and the ends bow out making the bow, cut the ends of the ribbon tales in a diagonal just long enough to touch the table. Scatter around some pine greenery and possibly a few pine cones on a white table cloth.  Another variation is to use Campbell’s soup cans painted red or white, or what ever color you choose and put a tea light candle in it or a votive candle.  The candy canes will be taller than the can so the color doesn’t really matter except for a finished look.  That will also use less candy canes.  The picture in the post is not as elegant as the ones we made for the dinner at church but it’s just to give you an idea of how it will look half finished.

Another option is to turn the candy canes upside down like this…