DIY candy bouquet: step-by-step guide

A candy bouquet is a gift that looks lovely and is a treat at the same time. It is made from wrapped sweets, crepe paper and a simple frame, and you can put one together in an evening. Here is what you need, how to turn sweets into flowers and how to build an arrangement that holds together.

Ready-made gifts: flowers in a box and flowers for kids.

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What you need

• Sweets: round ones in wrappers with a twisted end are easiest to attach without damaging the packaging.
• Skewers act as stems; floral tape or sticky tape holds the sweet in place.
• Crepe paper stretches well, so you can shape tulip, rose or crocus petals.
• Base: a box, basket or pot filled with polystyrene or dry floral foam.

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How to make it in 5 steps

• Stems. Tape the sweet to a skewer by its twisted end. Do not pierce the sweet itself — the wrapper must stay intact.
• Petals. Cut 3–5 petals from crepe paper and stretch the middle of each with your fingers to cup it.
• Flower. Wrap the petals around the sweet, secure them at the base with tape and cover the skewer with green paper or tape.
• Base. Fit the polystyrene or dry foam into the box or basket and cover it with paper, sisal or moss.
• Assembly. Insert flowers from the centre outwards, adding paper leaves, ribbon and organza.

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Making it hold together

• Glue the base into the box and push skewers in deep — 3–4 cm.
• Put heavier sweets lower and nearer the centre, lighter ones at the edges.
• For a hand-held bouquet, arrange the stems in a spiral and tape them tightly at the tie point.

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Worth remembering

• Chocolate melts: keep the bouquet away from sun and radiators.
• Check best-before dates and the recipient’s allergies, for example to nuts.
• Never hot-glue a sweet directly — only by its wrapper or skewer.
• If a child is making it, an adult should handle the skewers and glue gun.

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Who to give it to

A sweet bouquet suits a teacher, a nursery carer, a colleague or a child, or can accompany flowers. You can combine it with fresh flowers in a box — just keep the sweets away from wet foam. For another edible idea see Fruit bouquets, and for bouquet basics see DIY bouquet for beginners.

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FAQ

Which sweets work best?

Round sweets in foil or wrappers with a twisted end are easiest to attach. Flat bars are used as a decorative background.

How long does it keep?

As long as the sweets’ best-before date, if kept somewhere cool and dry.

Author: Maria Svitlovir

Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.

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