Decorating with Candy

I love candy!  And I also love decorating with candy.  It's so bright and colorful it can easily stand in for a bouquet.  In my office I keep candy year round, occasionally changing out the varieties with the seasons.  Because I also like eating candy, ALOT,  I've learned to decorate with candies I don't like, to avoid eating them all.   I currently have a rainbow assortment  of gumballs and unicorn horns in my trio of apothacary jars.  Hard candy is one of the few kinds of candy I don't like, and even if I did, I'd find it difficult to go through a full jar of jumbo lollypops.  And gum, you can't really OD on that.  It loses it's flavor really fast, and after a wad or two it's kind of gross.  For the third, currently empty jar, I've been looking for oversized primary flecked jawbreakers, but with Valentines Day approaching I'm thinking about conversation hearts!  The other good thing about the hard candies is they last a long time if you are using them strictly for decoration.  You want to avoid using candy that might melt or transfer it's coating, if you plan on keeping it for more than just a holiday season.

  

Although apothecary jars are very popular right now, they certainly aren't the only way to set up a candy display or centerpiece.  While apothecary jars be can kind of pricey, you can get a similar look with simple glass vases or Ball canning jars.  A classic slant jar with metal lid is another good way to display and share candy (they kind of scream "help yourself"). They'd look great in a retro themed kitchen!

Photo credit: The Container Store

For Easter I fell in love with this idea my sister-in-law got from Martha Stewart: easter candy terrariums!  I think my sister's looked cuter than the below example.  Hers were bolder, as she used green M&M's candies (you can buy just green bags ahead of time that are available for Valentine's) and milk chocolate bunnies surrounded by Robin's Eggs candies.  Another option if you want to avoid eating your decor, is green jellybeans for the "grass".  I don't know anyone who likes green jelly beans.  You can tie bow at the top if you want to make it extra precious.   Marshmallow Peeps would also be a good choice for this project, and if you're like me (who loves stale Peeps), you will find them nice and stale and ready to eat when you are ready to ditch the decor after Easter.  I love the terrariums, they kind of remind me of those diorama sugar eggs where you look inside and there's a little scene.

Photo credit: Martha Stewart Living

There are so many pretty things you can do with candy corn for the fall and Halloween.  Most people hate candy corn, so I think it can be suggested as a good choice for decorating, but for a select few like myself, they are completely irresistible.  However, they really do look great as used as a filler in hurricane jars with candles.  Or you can make a Halloween bouquet by filling a clear vase and arranging tree branches.  An alternative choice would be black and orange jellybeans which are perfectly seasonal, but hold no temptation for those of us that hate black licorice- yuck!

Photo credit: Woman's Day

By Christmas time we'll all be sick of candy, so I suggest throwing it all out and replacing it with glass ornaments.

Candy canes just might be as unpopular as fruitcake.

                                            Or you could always go with these...