Savvy Entertaining

Just before Thanksgiving, I received an email from a representative of the Wrigley Jr. Company. You know Wrigley, as in the company that makes all that wonderful gum. As in the company that makes Big Red, which I can’t go a day without having at least two pieces.

Anyway, I was asked if I would be interested in receiving a box of their product and doing some kind of fun food art with it. No compensation, other than the box of goodies,  is involved in this – it is all voluntary.

So of course I said yes. I’m a little crazy that way.

When the box arrived a few days later, I first pulled out the letter:

Then I quickly got sidetracked by the box full of sweet treats.

There were Starbursts, Skittles, rolls of Life Savers, Life Saver Gummies, Altoids mints and gum. Lots and lots of gum from 5 Vortex to Orbit Bubblemint.

My head started spinning with ideas. What to do with all these fun things? The first thought I had was to make a tree out of the 5 Vortex gum.

But the tree needed something to go with it.

So I decided to make a gingerbread house using the rest of the goodies.

And being short on time with 36 projects going on at the same time, I cheated and bought a gingerbread kit.

Sometimes cheating is a good thing. This kit comes with a gingerbread house and a frosting mix that serves as glue to hold everything together. It also had candy, but I set it aside, instead focusing on the candies sent by Wrigley. Captain Cavedweller found me a piece of wood to use and I wrapped the whole thing in foil to serve as a base for the project.

The kit directions were easy to follow. If I can put it together, anyone can. Just mix up the frosting, fill the included decorator bag and go to town.

Once I got the roof stuck on, I added fruit Life Savers for windows, two sticks of Big Red for the door and then chopped Life Saver Gummies in half and marched across the top of the roof.

The two sticks of Big Red that made up the door worked really well. Of course, the W stands for Wrigley!

I used Skittles on the roof. Here you can see the beginning of the picket fence, made from Extra Smooth Mint gum.

I cut the sticks of gum in half then cut a triangle at each end. I also cut a few of the halves into thin long pieces. These little sections would become the cross pieces between the pickets.

The finished fence looked pretty good, if I say so myself. I used the frosting to glue the cross pieces to the pickets.

I made gum bushes by using the 5 Vortex gum. I cut each piece in half then, using kitchen shears, cut thin strips not quite to the end of the piece. I wrapped the piece around itself and then fanned out the cut pieces.

Which resulted in these cute little gum bushes.

I used three packages of the 5 Vortex gum to create the tree and bushes.

Again, cut the gum sticks in half, then cut the halves into triangles. These will become the tree branches.

Use frosting to glue gum to a styrofoam cone. I used one about six inches tall. Just layer the triangle pieces around the cone, starting at the base and working your way to the top.

Stand a triangle upright to make the top of the tree.

Of course, a tree needs some packages.

Starbursts were the perfect size for presents. I sliced a piece of Big Red Gum lengthwise into four strips to make the ribbon and bow.

Get the gum wet before you try to work with it. It makes it much more pliable. And sticky. Very sticky.

Wrap the gum around the package like a ribbon. Do one on each side.

Make a bow out of the gum by folding one of the long strips. Attach it to the top of the package with a drop of frosting.

Then place beneath the tree.

Although I failed to take photos of it, we (we being Captain Cavedweller) placed Skittles around for a sidewalk and pathway.

As a final touch, I made a little sled to sit on a pile of snow in the yard using a stick of Big Red and a stick of 5 Vortex. Again, get them wet to make them easier to work with.

I used about 3/4 of the length of the Big Red and the full length of the 5 Vortex. Just press together. They stick well when they are damp.

A finished view from the top.

And the finished project, which took about 3 hours and 45 minutes.

I think my favorite part of the whole thing is the tree. Probably because I spent the most time working on it!

So to make this you need:

a board to set it on

1 styrofoam cone

a gingerbread house (I  highly recommend the kit!)

3 packages 5 Vortex Gum

1 package Extra Smooth Mint Gum

5 sticks Big Red Gum

1 package Life Savers Gummies

1 roll 5 flavor Live Savers

1 family sized bag Skittles

1 package Starbursts

She Who Likes Wrigley Gum

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