Christmas in July & Freecycle Friday present: Pop top treat cans!

UPDATE: After much un scientific experimentation, I found that you should NOT use the E6000 glue with this project.....it makes the candy taste like, well, E6000 glue :( and the fumes were strong once I opened the pop top! Thanks to my readers for the heads-up since I have never given one of these to myself. And, I'm sorry to those who I have given these to. Instead, just use a hot glue gun to attach the top/bottom.


Hey there, sorry for the super-long title.

Anyhoo, the craft for Freecycle Friday this week is another basically FREE craft (LoVE that word these days)

I call them "Pop top treat cans" (original, I know)

I got this awesome idea here from Crafts on a Whim and was IN love!

I did learn that it's harder to find cans for this than you might think.

After reading this, I went to our pantry to look at the plethora of canned foods I have and........most of them have a curved bottom, ie. you cannot open them from the bottom.

So, nowadays, the only kind of pop-top cans I buy are the regular-bottomed ones so I will have an endless supply of crafting materials (sorry honey).

Here's how you do it:

Supplies

• Pop top can(s)
• Cute paper scraps
• Smooth edge can opener
• E6000 glue
• Ribbons, tags, and any other embellishments you want to use

Start by opening the can from the bottom with one of these "Smooth edge" can openers. This will enable you to glue it back on later because of that little overhang.

Then, after you have yourself a quick snack........wash out the inside and take that pesky label off. DE-SOLV-IT works wonders!

I went ahead and decorated before I glued the bottom back on (but I didn't actually end up gluing it back on :), but that's entirely up to you.

To decorate, just measure around the can, and cut out the paper of your choice (I went with Christmas, since I am doing Christmas in July)

For this, you will NEED to break out your roll of "Terrifically Tacky Tape." Trust me, the paper won't stay around the can otherwise.

I also put paper on the tops too. You just need to cut around the little tab-y thing, and slide the paper under it. But this won't work for the pop tops with little tabs (like the slim fast in the picture) because the paper would hide the tab.

Then, just add your choice of extras and embellishments.

Once you are satisfied with the decor (are we ever?), go ahead and turn it over and fill with a yummy treat. I didn't seal this one up since X-mas isn't for another 5 months and I don't want the goodies to go bad by then.

But, if I had sealed it.....I would have used E6000 glue (not too much or it will glob over the sides. But if it does, just wipe it away with your fingers since E6000 comes right off your hands!) and placed a book on top till it dried.

Then......



Voila! Cute little treats to have on hand for Christmas.

You can go ahead and decorate cans now......and when Christmas comes, put the candy in it and seal 'em up!

Another quick thing I wanted to mention about Freecycle Christmas crafts (thanks to a great comment from Cecelia!) was that you could make these great chalkboard tags, but use festive paper and use them on your gifts this year!

Have fun!


ran