~SWEET PINK CHRISTMAS TREATS...Romantic Gifts From Your Kitchen~

~LOVELY LITTLE GIFTS~

(Lots of effort...Only a few bucks!)

For a far back as I can remember I've loved to create pretty things.  Back in 1978 when I was a young bride I recall looking far and wide for the perfect Christmas wrapping paper in hopes of matching it to a fifty yard bolt of vintage sagey green (and simply divine) floral ribbon I had purchased at a garage sale. 

 ~CREATING IN MY KITCHEN~

(Ten little sweet-treats laying in a line

Rebecca ate one and then there was nine...

And then eight...seven...six...)  :)

During those early days of my, um, 'adulthood', the majority of Christmas decorations were offered up primarily in Chinese reds and bright kelly greens.  There was NOTHING on the market that even remotely matched my ribbon.

 ~CHOCOLATE DIPPED PRETZELS~

(Drizzled with Pink Chocolate)

My Mr. AGPMan and I ended up wrapping our gifts in plain white paper (I'm not 100% sure but I THINK we got it FREE from the small-town Butcher!) just so I could use that ribbon!

 

~Uh-Oh...A BLOW OUT!  Eeek!~~

(Guess who ate this one?  No!  Not me!  Mr. AGPMan!)

The bows were big and fluffy and I added tiny specks of glitter to the the paper for a little bit of bling (only it wasn't called bling back then, just GLITTER)!

 ~READY FOR PACKAGING~

(Dipped Pretzels)

Now that I think about it I'm quite sure my guy had absolutely NO IDEA where life with this "High Maintenance Gal" of his was going to take him...

(I was an early non-conformist! :) )

 

 ~START WITH DECORATIVE PAPER~

(Cut paper to fit cello bag of your choice)

Tip:  I print my own paper using my color copier

So...you know by now I love pink!  Right?  I'm also into starting EARLY on projects that might normally usher stress into my life.  Stress and I don't mix well, you know?  Can you relate? 

Now...to avoid it at all costs I do not wait until December 23rd to begin planning gifts for my friends and neighbors, co workers, paper boy, mail carrier, etc.  I plan and create EARLY so I can truly enjoy the Season of Light with JOY!

This year I decided to create a popular treat found in many boutiques and high-end specialty shoppes!  This idea is NOT original, but for the life of me I can't remember when or where I first saw it!  I modified what my mind recalls and this is what I came up with!

 

~SLIP DESIRED TREATS INTO BAG~

(Pretzel dipping is easy!)

I started with regular full sized pretzel sticks and cut them in half with a bread knife.  The traditional twisted chocolate covered pretzels you see were purchased at ROSS (on the gourmet aisle) for $3.99.  You can also dip your own if you desire!

(Did you know the pretzel shape, the twisted one, was created by French Monks from left over bread dough for children?  They were made to look like children crossing/folding their arms in prayer!)

After dipping the tips of the pretzels in melted chocolate (follow package directions) I coated them in a variety of decorative sugars.  For the "striping effect" I filled a small pastry bag with the melted white and regular chocolate (don't forget to tint some PINK) and just went 'back and forth' over the ends until I got the look I wanted).

 

  ~DECORATE YOUR BAG~

 (Don't forget to punch a hole for your ribbon and decorative motifs...  If you love the romantic look then try using paper doilies for an inexpensive embellishment!  Dollar Tree has GREAT doilies for $1 (no duh!))

After your decorated pretzels have cooled and dried (a couple of hours) you are ready to slip them into your paper-lined cello bags.  Embellish as desired!

 ~A SWEET and SIMPLE GIFT~

(A single large pretzel looks fabulous, too!)

I chose to add a customized Angel Tag to my treats and included a small snowflake danglie as well!  I love both sheer mist and rayon ribbon so I used them both! 

  ~JUST LOVELY~

Softly painted jingle bells also make sweet embellishments (see bag on upper left)!  Yummo!

 

 ~TWO by TWO~

(Or...One by One!)

Now...don't feel like you need to fill your bags to full and overflowing!  I think they look simply charming when you only add a couple of the pretzel sticks to each bag or a single larger pretzel!

The idea here is to let people know you love and appreciate them!

~BACK OF TREAT BAGS~

(A sticker is the perfect final touch!)

The last thing I added was a personalized sticker.  You can also use pre-fab snowflake stickers which I think would look absolutely wonderful! :)

OK Peeps!  That's it for today!  De-stress your life!  Start early and plan ahead!  You're sure to love celebrating more than ever the birth of the King of Kings!

I'm back in my studio today and will be uploading hand painted pretties this evening!  Check them out at my A Gathering Place website when you have time!  

Blessings for a lovely day!

Love to you...