Oh Nuts Blog

Now that we’re officially in Halloween season, I can admit that I’ve been enjoying Halloween candy since the beginning of October. It’s impossible for me to resist! Fortunately, I’ve found some good uses for Halloween candy that don’t involve a big sugar crash afterward: Halloween crafts.

All you need to make these awesome Halloween decorations is a bag of candy corn and a few other supplies. They’re inexpensive and eye-catching, and really bring the spirit of Halloween to your house. Read on to learn how to make these Halloween crafts.

We’ll start with the Candy Corn Wreath. You need candy corn, of course--the exact amount will depend on the size of your wreath, but for a small 10" wreath you can count on using about a pound and a half. You'll also need a styrofoam wreath (available at craft stores), hot glue, black paint, and some ribbon. You could possibly use other types of craft glue, but I like hot glue because it hardens quickly so the candy corn wreath comes together in a flash.

Start by painting the wreath black. This step is technically optional, but I think the black background really makes the candy corn pop. You could also use black duct tape to wrap around the wreath, or black spray paint--I'm using regular black craft paint because that's what I had on hand. After the wreath is painted, let it dry completely.

Start gluing the candy corn onto the outside of the wreath. You'll want to spend a few minutes figuring out what arrangement works best--depending on the size of the wreath it might look better to have them all facing inward, or outward, or in concentric circles--you get the idea. I chose to have three layers of alternating candy corn going around my wreath.

Once the outside is finished, glue a layer or two of candy corn to the inside ring of the wreath. I found it was easiest to hold it upright so the candy corn didn't slide around while the glue was drying.

The outer edge of the wreath is the final surface to be finished. I glued two rings of candy corn to this edge so that when you look at the wreath from any angle, it looks covered with candy corn.

The last step is to loop a ribbon through the middle of the candy corn wreath and proudly display it! If you want to preserve your candy corn wreath and display it for many Halloweens to come, you can brush it with a clear sealant like Mod Podge, which should help keep it looking fresh.

Making a candy corn tree is similar to a candy corn wreath. We'll again need a styrofoam form, but this time you'll want a cone shape. You'll also need a small flowerpot (slightly smaller than the base of the cone), your trusty hot glue gun, and maybe some ribbons to jazz up the pot.

We're again going to start by figuring out a pattern for our candy corns and gluing them onto the foam. You could paint the foam black, like we did for the wreath--black looks especially nice if your flowerpot is also black. I decided to leave mine white this time to make it look a little different from the wreath.

Glue the candy corn all the way up the foam cone until it is entirely covered. You could also add other Halloween candy onto the tree: packaged single-serving candies in Halloween colors look very nice, and different Halloween candies allow you to create other patterns and textures on the tree.

Once the tree is completely covered, decorate your flowerpot however you'd like. I'm going to tie some yellow, brown, and orange ribbon around it to match the candy corn colors.

The last step is to glue around the top of the flowerpot and firmly affix the bottom of the cone to the top of the pot.

Now you have a great candy corn centerpiece! Just like the wreath, if you want to preserve it you can paint it with Mod Podge and it should last for years.

Last but not least, here's a simple Halloween craft to make spooky candy corn branches. You'll need candy corn (of course) and our friend the hot glue gun, as well as some sturdy branches and a vase or other container to keep them. The branches don't have to be anything special--in fact, this is one of those crafts where the scragglier they look, the better!

Glue one, or two, or three candy corns to the ends of the branches. When using multiple candies, I found it was easiest to glue the candies together first, and then once they were bonded, to glue the branch ends to the candies. Make sure your branch ends aren't too thin, and can support the (surprisingly heavy) weight of a candy corn or two. Again, this Halloween craft is mean to be kind of ominous and spooky, so don't worry about perfection.

Since my container was clear, I decided to fill it with candy corn so that the bottoms of the branches weren't visible. If your container is opaque you can skip this step. You could also put florist foam in the vase to help the branches stay in place. I found that the candy corn kept the branches from moving around very much in my vase.

Ta-da! Or should I say, boooo! (The final product looked so perfectly creepy, I had to photoshop the picture a bit to boost the scare factor.) I hope this has given you some ideas of all the things you can do with Halloween candy to make your home a spook-tacular place for Halloween!

All text and images (c) Elizabeth LaBau.

The holiday of Halloween is basically built around the consumption of candy, so what better way to celebrate Halloween than with a candy buffet? Candy buffets are no longer just confined to weddings: they're now popping up at birthday parties, bridal showers, and all sorts of holiday parties. So here's what you need to know to set up an amazing Halloween candy buffet!

The first thing to do when setting up any candy buffet is to decide on a theme and on candy colors. Fortunately, since we're making a Halloween candy buffet, the choice is easy. I decided to go with traditional Halloween colors of orange and black (with a little white thrown in) for the candies, and to keep the decorations simple and a little bit spooky.

When you're setting up a candy buffet for an occasion like a Halloween party, chances are you aren't going to have the large guest list--or large budget--that you would if you were planning a wedding candy buffet. So the trick is to reduce the cost, and the total amount of goods, while still making the buffet look exciting and plentiful.

Simple decorations like crepe paper, a bright tablecloth, and fake spiders and ants can add interest and visual appeal to the table. Do you recognize that candy corn tree from the last blog post? I also created a few fake "tombstones" from some of the black candy bags to make the table look more full. You could also add flowers or leaves with fall colors, or scatter pumpkins (carved or uncarved) among the candy bowls. There's nothing worse than a candy buffet that looks sparse and neglected, so any additional decorations that fit the theme and colors are always a good idea!

The idea behind a candy buffet is that guests help themselves, so make sure you provide them with containers to hold their candy. I'm using orange and black bags from a craft store, but you could also use takeaway containers or cloth bags.

Candy buffets aren't familiar to everyone, so it's a good idea to have a sign welcoming your guests and letting them know the protocol. I created this simple sign to go in a 5" x 7" frame, and I'm happy to offer it for free if you'd like to use it. Download the candy buffet sign here in candy buffet sign jpeg format or as a candy buffet sign psd file.

Speaking of signage, don't forget the all-important candy labels! Some candies might seem obvious, but others--like my adored pumpkin malt balls--might need a little explaining. You can stay literal or go cutesy, but whatever you do, make sure that each type of candy is labeled. If you like these labels, you're in luck--I have blank candy buffet label templates for you to download as well, in candy buffet template label jpeg or candy buffet template label psd. (I adapted these templates from ones found here.)

Let's talk containers. Clear glass (or plastic) containers are best, so the candies can be easily seen and admired. Of course large candy dishes are a natural fit, but don't feel limited to "proper" containers. Try using large vases, jars, pitchers or even oversized martini glasses for serving candy! Thrift stores can be a goldmine of beautiful old glass containers, and I think the effect is more charming when you have a range of sizes and shapes on the candy buffet.

If you have smaller amounts of certain types of candy, use a smaller container! A few candies rattling around in the bottom of a giant bowl looks sad. It's better to have an overflowing smaller container than a half-full large one.

To give the candy buffet a sense of dynamic movement, vary the height of the containers by propping some up on small stands under the tablecloth. Having a range of different heights keeps the eye moving from container to container. Of course, a line of marching spiders adds a little movement too!

Now that we've figured out where we're keeping the candy, how will you be serving it? Unless your friends bring their own sterile gloves to your Halloween party, you probably want to provide small scoops for them to use. (In a pinch, you could substitute spoons instead.) Decorate the scoops with some ribbons to tie them into the rest of the table.

Last but certainly not least, let's talk candy selection! You want to offer your guests a range of candies, in every sense of the word: make sure you have different colors, different textures, and different ingredients. A mix of chocolate, sugar candies, gummies and hard candies makes sure that there's something for everyone. Oh! Nuts has a huge selection of Halloween candy. Here is some of what I used to build this candy buffet: