Gift Ideas for Christmas

Do you ever start a project and it becomes bigger than you thought it would?  I showed you the Candy Boxes yesterday. Yes, I actually made 22 of those things for co-workers.  But that's not all I did this weekend...No.  I always have to out-do myself, and this time is no exception.  I am a team lead for 9 people at my work and I decided to give everyone a stocking to hang outside of their cubicles.  Now, I knew I needed to fill them!

Remember the cute little post-it books I made at Halloween?  Well, here they are again, only this time they are ready for the Christmas holiday. (the link will show you a more descriptive photo) These books are simple to make too.  Here are the steps:

• Cut 4 pieces of decorative paper 3.25" x 3.75"
• Cut 2 pieces of chipboard 3.25" x 3.75"
• Adhere the paper to both sides of the chipboard.  I used double-sided paper and made sure my front and back covers were the same, any my inside covers were the same.
• lightly sand all edges of covers
• lightly ink all edges of covers
• I used my bind-it-all and punched out 6 holes in the top.  I then bound it with 3/4" wire.
• I applied adhesive to the back of a post-it book and placed it inside.
• Embellish the cover however you like!  I used paper rosettes and whatever else I could think of.  No two were alike.

I also whipped up a yummy little bag of home made caramels.   I showcased the caramels a couple years back, but they were ready for a redo this year.  Before you think, "forget making home made caramels...who has the time or patience?"  You better check the recipe out.  Did I mention they cook in the microwave??  So easy!!  My good friend, Jackie, gave me this recipe and it really is wonderful.

Microwave Caramels

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

In a glass bowl, melt butter. Add remaining ingredients and mix

well. Microwave 7 minutes, stirring after 3 minutes. Pour into

buttered 8x8 or 9x9 pan. Cool to room temperature. Chill, cut

and wrap in wax paper.

Tips and Tricks:

- Use just slightly less than 2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

so that you can get two batches out of each can! It won’t

mess up the recipe.

- Use a metal pan.

- After caramels come to room temperature, chill in fridge for

about one hour. Take out and let sit for just a few minutes then

pop out of pan in one big block.

- Cut with pizza cutter. I try to get 81 caramels out of each

batch, so 9 rows by 9 rows of about ¾-1” in size.

- Cut wax paper into 4x4 squares using a paper trimmer (like

you use for scrap booking projects)

After the caramels were wrapped up, I put them in a clear acetate bag and cut a header out of the matching decorative paper I used for my projects.  I also put the post-it book in a bag as well, to keep the embellishments on the front nice and sharp for gift giving.  It was definitely a busy weekend, but it was really fun.  I haven't spent this many hours in my craft room for a very long time!