This fun and colorful topiary tree is a favorite of children and can be adapted to any holiday. Try decorating the tree with candy corn and licorice for Halloween or Thanksgiving, or with jelly beans for Easter.
Materials
(the numbers provided in parentheses are for the smaller topiary trees
STYROFOAM* Brand Products:
Cone, 12" (4")
Other Materials:
Terra cotta pot, 4" (3")
Candy: select a colorful assortment, including peppermints and other hard candies, licorice, jelly beans, gummy bears, gumdrops, candy-coated chocolates, etc.
Powdered sugar, 1 lb.
Table knife
Ribbon, 1" x 18" (1/4" x 12") (optional)
Low temperature glue gun and glue sticks
Instructions 1. Mix water, 1 teaspoon at a time, with 1 –1/2 cups powdered sugar; stir until smooth. The icing will serve as the glue and must be very stiff to hold the candies on the cone without sagging. If icing becomes too thin, add additional powder sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time.
2. Plan your candy design, spreading out candies on tabletop.
3. Cover the cone with a thin layer of icing. Spread a small amount of icing on the back of each candy and press onto cone. Begin at the bottom of the cone and work towards the top. Let dry.
4. Glue cone to top of pot. Glue ribbon around rim of pot, tying bow at center front (optional).
This topiary would make a great centerpiece or gift!
You will need:
4" flower pot
6-10" length of thick dowel
3-4" diameter styrofoam ball
Christmas candy in wrappers
Green and red ribbon
Acrylic paint: white, red and green
Lace
Straight pins
Florist's styrofoam block
Paint the flower pot white. Allow to dry, then paint red stripes on the lip.
Paint holly leaves and berries (or any other Christmas theme you like) on the bottom of the pot.
Paint dowel white. Allow to dry, then paint red stripes. (Use masking tape to help you keep your lines even.)
Cut florist's styrofoam to fit snugly into the pot. It's best to cut it a bit larger than you think, and then stuff the block into the pot securely.
Insert one end of the dowel into the center of the styrofoam block. Then push the styrofoam ball onto the top of the dowel.
Decorate the styrofoam ball by pinning layers of candies on it. For the example shown in the picture, we started with a row of red candies pinned to the very bottom of the ball. Then we gathered some lace, made small bows with the red and green ribbon and pinned them together to the ball. A peppermint candy was pinned to the center of each bow. Then we pinned on another row of candies, followed by another row of lace/bow/candies. The top of the ball is a double bow made with green and red ribbon, surrounded by peppermint candies.
Fill the top of the pot with more Christmas candy on a bed of raffia, ribbon or lace to cover the styrofoam block.
Make a large ribbon and attach it just under the ball.
For fun, we stuck a tootsie pop bouquet into the base.
http://www.makestuff.com/hollidays/candy_topiary.html
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