Goody Goody Gumdrops!

I love gumdrops. I love the way they look and I love the way they taste. I love them at any time of the year, but most especially at Christmas! A jadeite bowl full of gumdrops is just a happy sight, isn't it?
I saw a gumdrop wreath in a Martha mag years ago and have always wanted to make one, but never got around to it.
Until this year, that is! I decided that it would be the perfect festive activity for Maren to help with, so even though the Thanksgiving decorations still sat in a pile on my table, I set out to make a gumdrop wreath. After looking at two stores with no luck, I happened upon big bags of gumdrops at JoAnn's, of all places! I didn't even think to look there but as I was buying my wreath form, I found bags of candy near the cash registers. Not only did I save myself a trip to another store, I was able to use my 40% off coupons for them as well! It worked out perfectly.

Although the construction seems pretty self-explanatory, I did use the instructions found here, via One Pretty Thing. I used a 12-inch white foam wreath form from the craft store, but I did see 10-inch green forms at the Dollar Tree this morning as well. I used nearly three 20-ounce bags of gumdrops (the small size) and that allowed for plenty of 'sampling' opportunities as well. I took Cheryl's advice and used my hot glue gun rather than toothpicks to attach the candy. I went through several glue sticks, more than I had anticipated, so make sure you have plenty on hand. From there, it's easy.
I applied mine in a CPR fashion--CPR in this case standing for Carefully Placed Random. I didn't want to think about it too hard but I also wanted a fairly even distribution of colors. I just fit my gumdrops together like bricks. If you look at Cheryl's photos, it looks like she did one wreath that way and one where they are placed in more orderly rings. I still need to spray my wreath and add a little bit of glitter, and once I decide where to hang it I'll add a nice wide RED grosgrain ribbon to the top.

I wish gumdrops came in pink--I think a pink gumdrop wreath might make me feel faint from the super-high cuteness quotient. I do remember that Martha showed all-white wreaths made of champagne-flavored white gumdrops in one of her wedding publications, and they were quite pretty. I know that Walgreen's has bags of red and green gumdrops on sale this week for 99¢, so if you purchased a dollar store wreath form and a couple of bags of candy, you could have yourself a very cute little holiday decoration for around $5!