Hybrid Project ~ Gift Canisters

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Hello everyone!  It’s Jenelle here today with the first of two hybrid projects we have for you all to try out – it’s very simple, very economical and a pretty way to present home-made or store-bought gifts this Christmas.

 I’m one of those people that can’t bear to throw away empty canisters, containers and boxes.  I have a stockpile of them mounting up in my house and I promise myself that one day I’ll decorate them all and use them in some way or another.  They usually end up as toy storage or I put craft supplies in them.  Boring!  No, not anymore…  Today I am going to jazz up some of these containers to hold some choc chip cookies - a sweet little Christmas gift for family and friends.

  Here’s a list of what you’ll need to make some yourself:-

• Empty canisters/containers and matching lids (I’ve used Pringles canisters and a small peanut tin – you could also use empty coffee tins, oatmeal containers, formula tins, Crystal Light containers etc…)
• Printed Scrapbook Paper
• Printed Labels
• Glue
• Scissors (also some decorative scissors or punches if you’d like a scalloped edge on your labels)
• Ribbon
• Treats to fill up the decorated containers

 Directions:-

• Rinse and wash the inside of your containers and dry completely (be sure not to throw away the lid).
•  Print out some co-ordinating papers from your favourite Shabby Shoppe kit.  I’ve used papers and elements from both the Sugarplum Dreams kit and Sugarplum Additions kit.  I printed them on A4 plain white printer paper and then trimmed the white edges. 
•  Make and print your labels.  I used labels from the Sugarplum Additions kit and added them to a new Photoshop document.  I used a text layer to type my message onto the labels, using Wendy Medium font, white, set at 30 pt.  I then added some snowflake stamps from the Seasonal Sampler ~ Winter FREE kit.  I dropped and dragged the snowflakes onto the labels, reduced them in size and changed the colour overlay (in the layer style icon) to white.  Then I printed the labels out on my home printer and cut them out.   

•  Measure and cut the pieces of your scrapbook paper to fit around the canister (I allowed for a slight overlap/seam, which was at the back of my canister).  I cut out 2 larger strips of co-ordinating patterned paper and then a thinner strip of solid paper to wrap around the centre.  Make sure all seams of paper line up.
•  Glue the paper to the canister, applying the middle strip of paper last.  I was originally going to seal the papers and then use a mixture of glue, kind of like a decoupage paste, to glue the paper on.  In the end, I actually found the trusty old glue stick to work just fine!  So you do what works for you!  Mod Podge would also be suitable.
•  Glue your label onto the canister (on the opposite side of the paper seams).  If you’d like to add a scalloped backing, you could do so by using a scalloped craft punch, decorative scissors or printing our Scallops, Shapes and More designs on co-ordinating paper.  Simply glue your plain-edged label on to the decorative one and then apply to your canister.
•   Finally, tie a co-ordinating ribbon around the top of the lid, pop it back on top of the canister and you’re done!

 Add any other decorative elements you like (gift tag, sparkles, glitter etc..) and fill up your container with either home-made or store-bought goodies.  (Cookies, fudge, brownies, wrapped sweets, nuts, chocolates… any other suggestions??  I’d love to hear some … just leave a comment below).  I was even thinking I could use the canisters to hold Christmas decorations (either for my own storage or to give as a gift.  Some decorations can be awkward in shape and size, so if I wrap them in a bit of tissue paper, this canister may hold them nicely!)

 A simple, yet effective way to present gifts this holiday season.  One other little note that I’ll add is ~ please be sure to check that your recipient is not allergic to any of the products that were stored in your original container.  Just in case!

 Well, that’s all from me today.  I hope you’ve enjoyed reading along and will have a go at making these yourself.  They really are very simple and there are so many gorgeous papers you can choose from over in the Shoppe to decorate your containers.  I’d love to see what you come up with, so be sure to post your creations in our Hybrid Gallery.

In the meantime, have a lovely weekend!  Happy Scrapping everyone!

…AND, please do not miss Casharina’s fabulous blog post (also published today) directly below this one…just keep scrolling!

JenelleHybrid Projects, Uncategorized 8 Comments