I have three boys: ages 5, 3, and 10 months. There’s a chance I might be biased, but I happen to think they’re the most charming, adorable, and intelligent kids on the planet. They’re also kind of loud. And busy. And they destroy things. Lots of things. They have a need to eat, run, and make sound come out of their mouths pretty much 24 hours a day. If it wasn’t for the fact that I cope with stress by eating, I would have the body of super model from all of the running around I do. I love my kids like crazy. They make me laugh constantly and I love being a stay at home Mom. But as all Mothers know- it’s not easy! There are days when the only thing that gets me through is Diet Coke, stashes of chocolate, and the knowledge that I have shows on my DVR waiting for me after those little angels fall asleep.
So on that note- I’m always trying to think of fun ways to supply Mother’s with much needed goodies on Mother’s Day because every Mom needs a secret stash right?? I’d made these tin can treats before at a church craft night and completely forgotten about them until my sister was talking about them recently. They’re so fun- I’m going to show you how to customize a tin can and fill it with goodies or trinkets of your choice for the recipient to crack open. (**And since so many of you expressed interest in making these for Teacher Appreciation Week, I’ve made up some tags for that as well, see links at the end of this post!**)
Supplies Needed:
canned fruit with tab tops, suggested size 7-8oz
candies for filling
tissue paper
hot glue gun
decorative paper
ribbon
side can opener or safety can opener (optional)
You can make these with any size can you can find with a tab top. Technically you don’t even need the tab top, but if you’re using my printables you do. Plus a tab is just way more fun! I like the little mini cans, the 7-8 oz size, which is about half the size of a standard tin can if you’re trying to visualize. Look for generic brand fruit in cans this size; they’re super cheap! Make sure to use cans from something like fruit or fruit juice. You don’t want the insides of your cute treat cans to smell like beans or chili!
Step one: Remove labels from cans. Use a can opener to remove the bottom end of the can. It’s the side without the tab top folks! A side can opener works great here because you won’t have the sharp edges and the pieces will be a breeze to glue back together. If you plan ahead, you can eat the fruit along the way in your normal meals. If you plan at the last minute like me, you can dump it all in your blender, blend it up, freeze it in ice cube trays, and use for smoothies. Or it’s great poured right into Popsicle molds.
Tip: If you’re using a traditional can opener, make sure when you are removing your lid, you don’t remove it completely. You want to leave it attached at one point like seen in the picture above. Wash the cans well with soap and rinse clean. Make sure to dry completely.
If you use this type of can opener, your life will be much easier:
See how nicely it takes the lid off?
And it fits back on seamlessly, with just a small amount of glue
Step 2: Time for the fun part! Fill those cans up with any form of deliciousness you choose.
My coping mechanism of choice:
Leave about 1/2 inch of head-space at the top of the can. Another reason I use small cans is because you need quite a bit of candy to fill these if you’re using something small like M&M’s. But you could use little wrapped chocolates or candy bars or whatever.
Step 3: Fill the empty space with a little tissue paper. This is important and you’ll see why in the next step.
Step 4: Use hot glue to reattach the bottom of the can. If you use the safety can opener, this part is simple, and it takes very little glue. If you use a traditional can opener, like I did in these photos, it isn’t hard, but it’s a little tricky. I find it easiest to bend the lid back down flat and then fill in the open space with glue. This is why the tissue paper is there- to catch the glue that goes through so it doesn’t end up stuck to the treats.
Now. I consider myself to be relatively handy with a glue gun, and fairly crafty, and I have never managed to glue the lid on without it looking like a complete mess. The good news is that it doesn’t matter even if it’s ugly like mine because once you see how cute the finished product is, you’ll understand why no one will be looking at the bottom! So just leave the can sitting like this until the glue is dry.
Step 5: Cut a piece of decorative paper the same height as the can. Wrap it around and attach with tape, double-sided tape, or a glue stick.
Step 6: Tie a few matching ribbons on the tab.
At this point you’re ready to go! These cute cans are ready for giving, and people will be SO surprised when they open up the fresh can and find goodies inside!
But.
In honor of Mother’s Day I thought it would be more fun to put this on the front:
I’ve made a version of this tag for teachers as well-
get the download at the end of this post!
How fun are these??
You can print the labels out on colored paper to match your theme
And if you don’t feel like being silly, I also made a generic “Pull my tab” label suitable for any lovely lady in your life!
Now go get creative! You can really put anything in a can- how about this one with a small un-scented candle (so it doesn’t scent your candies!), a Reeces PB Cup and a set of ear plugs? My kind of survival gear.
I have some really fun variations for all kinds of holidays and events- but we’ll focus on one day at a time!
Tin Can Treats
Tutorial by Our Best Bites
Supplies:
canned fruit with tab tops, suggested size 7-8oz
candies for filling
tissue paper
hot glue gun
decorative paper
ribbon
1. Use a can opener to remove bottom (non-tab top side) of can, but leave it attached at one point.
2. Wash cans thoroughly and dry completely.
3. Fill with candies/treats/trinkets, leaving about 1/2 inch space at top.
4. Fill remaining space with tissue paper.
5. Use glue gun to secure lid back to can and let dry completely.
6. Measure a strip of decorative paper the same height as can. Wrap around the can and secure with tape or glue.
7. Tie decorative ribbons through the tab on top of can.
8. Attach tag if desired.
Download free printable tags here:
Mother’s Day Tin Can Labels: Silly
Mother’s Day Tin Can Labels: Generic
Teacher Appreciation Tags
Also we have
Christmas Edition
Father’s Day Edition
Valentine’s Day Edition (coming soon)
Questions & Reviews
I was wondering if it would be possible for you to do this in a Father’s day fashion?? I am the RS President and we are in charge of the Father’s day gift. I think they would love this just as much as the mothers! So if you had a pattern to wrap it that was more on the “manly” side that would be great! Thank you!
Love love love it soo much i made some and posted them on my blog linking it back to you thanks for the fab idea
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LOVE this!! My 2 year old daughter & I made several of these for grandma =) My mom said what she always says on Mother’s Day…”you weren’t supposed to buy me anything!” She flipped when she realized it was a homemade creation filled with her favorite goodies. She’s actually keeping the cans after she’s done because she can’t stand the thought of throwing them away =)
I live in Japan and crafty stuff is not always available to me. This was the perfect project! I just have to point out that my cans “mandarin oranges” actually said MOM on the bottom where yours says SLL in the photo. How perfect was that?
Oh my goodness! HOW CUTE AND CLEVER! I love this idea! We made these for our teachers and grandmas…and now want to keep coming up with reasons to make more! Thank you for sharing your creativity! I’m sharing your awesome site with all my friends! (oh wait, maybe I shouldn’t!)
We need one for Father’s Day!
just did this for teacher appreciation and linked it on my blog. Thank you for such a great idea
I just finished making my little Mother’s Day cans. I love, love, love how they turned out! Thank you for the awesome idea! 🙂
I have similar children. Very similar. I love your idea and execution. Well done!
Thanks for the great idea! I have to make some smaller labels for the small 4oz size. Can you tell me what font ou used for the label? Thanks!
I also have the smaller size, and I am going to try using wrapping paper around them, with a blank, plain white name tag label that I decorate with fun lettering and markers. Just an idea for you! My nieces will be with me over the weekend, so we will be making this for their mommy 🙂
I made 7 of these for friends as Mother’s Day treats. I bought a big bag of pretzel M&M’s and filled the cans with those. (And made a peach cobbler with all the peaches in the cans!) They turned out so cute. Great idea and would be fun for birthdays as well. Make a printable for that sometime!
Man there is a reason I love you guys SO much. This idea is just too cute. Really….how do you come up with this stuff!!!
do you happen to have one for students/ seniors taking tests getting ready to graduate…etc?
Nope, but you should make one that says “You CAN do it!” 🙂
Thanks for sharing your great idea! These cans are too cute! I’m going to make one for Mother’s day and some for my girl’s teachers.
I made 20 of these for my children’s teachers, this week. They turned out really cute! The one thing that surprised me was that when the kids gave them to the teachers, over HALF of them thought that something was going to pop out of the can, (like a fake snake). One teacher even spilled a bunch of the candy on the ground trying to open it away from herself, even though my daughter told her nothing was going to pop out. That thought never occurred to me when I was putting them together. I still think they’re adorable and would make them again. 🙂
Um….I love you! Lol 🙂
Love this – I am doing this with my 4th grade class for Mother’s day. We are putting hershey’s kisses – regular and hugs for hugs and kisses!!! Thanks!!!!
I just made 3 of these for teachers… took less than 30 minutes and they turned out adorable!!! Thanks so much for the great idea and tutorial! 🙂
I made these last night for my kids’ teachers and they turned out so adorable! Thanks for sharing such a great idea. I’m definitely making the Mother’s Day version for the ladies I go visiting teaching too. Love it!
My kids gave them to their teachers yesterday. They were all skeptical about if something was going to jump out at them when opened. Guess they were surprised to find chocolate in side. Thanks for the idea my kids had fun with them.
That’s adorable! I’m going to add it to my “favorites” on my blog post Friday. Thanks for sharing this!
We had a craft night at my house last night making 80 of these for the mother’s Day gifts for all the mothers at our church! Thank you so much for the idea!!!
I shared your post on these HOTTIE craft cans on my blog! THANK YOU for the great idea! You can check it out here http://becomeshoppertunistic.blogspot.com/2011/05/mothers-day-art-of-frugal-living.html.
Oh my goodness…these are phenomenal! I went out today and bought myself a whole case of fruit cans and have already made them. I can’t wait to give them to all of my friends for mother’s day. If you use a can opener that cuts on the sides, then you can just put a little E6000 around the edge of the lid and stick it back on. Wait a couple of hours for the glue to dry, and it looks like the bottom has never been taken off! Thanks so much for the idea! Luv it!
I love this idea. So simple yet very nice gift! In reguards to gluing the lid back on: I use the easy-top-type manual can opener and I love the results. The can is cut cleanly and I don’t get cut!!! I used gel superglue to adhere the lid back on and it worked like a charm. And…No mess. Oh, I put a piece of tape on the can lid first to use as a handle so I didn’t get superglue on my fingers. It worked great.
We’re making these for our YW activity tomorrow night for the girls to give to their moms. thanks for the great idea!!
Totally just made one of these for my kiddos teacher! LOVING it!! Her’s was my “test” project 😉 now i’m going to make some for sunday to give to my mom and sisters 🙂
Love this! Thank you so much! I shared your idea on Facebook. People are wild about it! I am going to do candy on the bottom and the Jewel Kade charm bracelet and personalized necklace on top! So fun! Check it out at http://www.jewelkade.com/Tiffanydirks.
LOVE this craft! Just made mine. http://flickr.com/gp/ninotchkab/N60M9w Thanks so much!
Ok, let me just say, you described me to a T! “There are days when the only thing that gets me through is Diet Coke, stashes of chocolate, and the knowledge that I have shows on my DVR waiting for me after those little angels fall asleep.”
I literally have a case of diet coke under my side of the bed, and a drawer right next to my side of the bed with my stash of chocolate, JUST for times like those! Also, my DVR is awaiting me to turn it on by 8:00 each night when my daughter and 4 sons are sound asleep! THANK YOU for this WONDERFUL idea!! I’m going to take it to my VT ladies this week! LOVE IT!