Sweet gifts can be called a universal offering to any person and for any occasion. but so as not to be too banal, appearing with the next box of chocolates, you should think about an unusual design - for example, in the form of a topiary.
What it is?
Modern topiary is an artificial small-sized tree, usually with a spherical crown. Its feature is the use of rather unexpected objects as a decor: lollipops, shells, coins, coffee beans, animal figures, as well as artificial natural elements. Thus, a sweet topiary made of sweets is a tree whose crown is decorated with all kinds of sweets.
Which are there?
It is clear that the main component of sweet topiary is sweets, the choice of which is limited only by the imagination of the master. Certainly, it is best if they are the favorite treats of the birthday man, whether it be curly marmalades in the form of bears, Raffaello or Ferrero Rocher. A good solution is to alternate sweets with artificial flowers, for example, from felt. Such a solution will allow, even taking out the sweets, not to leave the tree completely “bald” and immediately deprive it of its visual appeal.
In the case when the topiary will have to perform only a decorative function, sweets should be replaced with candy wrappers filled with crumpled paper.
Themed topiary made of sweets designed for a particular holiday looks very original.
For example, On March 8, a girl can be presented with a tree of Raffaello candies, each of which is hidden inside a paper rose or felt tulip. On February 23, the present will be relevant gift, combining dark chocolate and black and red artificial flowers.Creating a topiary for Valentine's Day, you will need to make the base not in the form of a ball, but in the form of a heart, and then fill it with sweets in red, pink and golden wrappers.
The Christmas tree should be decorated with curly Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden. Wedding topiary is created from expensive sweets in gold or silver wrappers.
Manufacturing technique
In order to make candy topiary with your own hands, it is better for beginner needlewomen to pick up some simple master class and step by step follow its instructions. For example, you can build a tree decorated with simple caramels or simple chocolates wrapped in candy wrappers.
Ideally, it is better to take those sweets whose candy wrapper is twisted in a small tail - this will greatly simplify the fastening process.
The work begins with the fact that a candy is glued to the tip of a wooden stick of small length with ordinary tape. This action is repeated as many times as there are sweets - therefore, it is better to initially prepare more material so that “bald spots” do not appear on the crown.
As the base of the tree, either a foam or cork ball is used. Having created a puncture on the surface, it is necessary to fill in the hot glue, and then insert the skewer there with the candy "on top". Repeating the sequence of actions, it is necessary to cover with sweets the entire surface of the crown, except for a small area in the lower part. It is there, taking the stick thicker, it will also be necessary to fix the topiary trunk with glue. Having picked up a suitable container - for example, an ordinary flower pot, its internal space must be filled either with gypsum or polyurethane foam.
The tree is evenly located in the middle of the pot and set aside until the filler solidifies. At the end, the finished composition is additionally decorated. The tree trunk should be wrapped with satin ribbon or jute rope, the pot should be painted with paint in the color of the composition, and the surface of the “earth” should be masked with a cloth or sisal.
Even simpler is the creation of a topiary from candy on a stick - that is, lollipops and similar lollipops. In this case, you can skip the item with wooden sticks and insert the lollipops immediately into the foam ball. Lollipops need to fill the entire surface of the ball with the exception of a small area below, where the hole for the barrel will be located.
The crown of the tree with hot glue is fixed on a stable wooden stick, after which the finished topiary is placed in a container already filled with mounting foam. Before the next step, you must wait until the filler completely dries. Ribbons, buttons, rhinestones, beads, pieces of fabric and other materials are suitable for the final decoration of a candy tree.
Marshmallow topiary looks very tender and attractive, often appearing under the name “Marshmallow Cloud”. To create it, you need to prepare several packs of Marshmallow chewing sweets, a spherical foam base, a wooden spoon, or a plastic tube, as well as a small flower pot. As a filler, either plaster or gypsum is suitable. In addition, sweet icing or chocolate, double-sided tape, pieces of artificial moss and satin ribbons will come in handy.
It all starts with the fact that a wooden spoon at its end is inserted into the foam blank, which is then wrapped in cling film. Thus, both the trunk and the tree of the future topiary are immediately formed. The diluted gypsum mixture is poured into the stand container, and as soon as it begins to thicken, a spoon with the wide side down is placed inside. It is important to install the tree evenly so that the whole composition looks neat and balanced. To proceed to the next step, you must wait until the pot filler thickens.
Pink icing or melted white chocolate are used as glue for marshmallows. The spherical base is treated with a silicone brush with an adhesive substance, after which sweets are firmly fixed on it.
Experts recommend first pasting the right and left sides, then let the topiary freeze for 10 minutes in the refrigerator, and then treat the top and bottom of the crown.
The tree trunk can be decorated with a white satin ribbon, and the filler in the pot is masked with pieces of artificial moss. The finished design is decorated with a pink bow and a decorative brooch attached in its middle.
In principle, when creating any sweet topiary, it is important to consider several key points.
- The spherical crown should be as bright and “alluring" as possible, immediately informing that the gift is not only beautiful, but also delicious. This effect can be achieved if you initially choose sweets in a colorful wrapper for decoration.
- The trunk, the role of which is most often played by a wooden stick, must withstand the full weight of the crown and have the correct diameter.
- A support - a pot, a mug or other container should be properly decorated in the color of the tree itself. The tank filler must be heavy enough so that the structure does not tip over.
- If it is difficult to find a foam ball, the basis can be made using papier-mâché technique.
- You can decorate the crown not only with sweets in wrappers and lollipops, but also with marshmallows, marmalades, candies or even cookies in packages.
- Ribbons, bows, sparkles and rhinestones, flowers and coins are suitable as additional decor.
- The trunk can be simply painted, or you can decorate with sparkles, bows and rhinestones. It is convenient to mask the pot filler with moss pieces, pebbles and decorative stones, coins, beads and small sweets.
In the next video, you will learn how to make a marshmallow topiary.
