June is National Candy Month. Since Father’s Day falls into this category, there are many opportunities to opportunities to offer Dad some different types of gifts. If you are more traditional, then why not have some fun crafting with edible materials? I will probably overload you with some chocolate ideas, since it happens to be one of my favorite candies.

If you have young children, one of the things you can do is make a replica of the old-fashioned candy necklaces. The string used can be elastic, or if you want to make it completely edible, why not use the thin shoestring licorice? To decorate your necklace, you could use round candies or cereal and string them. For something different, try tying wrapped candies onto the licorice.

Do you enjoy chocolate covered pretzels? This is an easy way to get started with making candy and crafting. All you need to do is melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or microwave, and dip pretzel rods into the chocolate. Use different colored chocolate to make different things. Use sprinkles, jimmies, small candies or other types of candy to decorate them before the chocolate hardens. My Girl Scout troop made snowman pretzel rods in the winter. I found it easier to use a spoon to pour the chocolate over the rod. The Hershey’s Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cattails link at the end of this article has instructions and pictures of their idea.

You have probably seen the cute trains that are made from rolls of candy and other shapes of candy. Well, you can also take that a step further and make other “critters” out of different shapes of candy. The Hershey’s site has recipes and instructions to make Nugget Critters. Also, The Family Fun site has ideas on how to create some cute animals from candy. They have a very cute story about a candy land and you can “travel” through it to get ideas on things to do with candy. I have included the link for candy critters at the end of the article.

There are other types of ideas using candy. Have you seen “dirt” or the “fish bowls” made using gummy worms or fish? There are many different ways to make dirt. The fish bowls can be made using clear cups, or a bowl, and blue gelatin. Let the gelatin set for a while and then add the fish to the container. The gummy candies come in so many different shapes and sizes that you can really get your imagination going using these simple ideas to get started. This is a great idea for a summer time dessert, or for a party dish. The link to Enchanted Learning has several good ideas for this type of fun food.

The final idea I'd like to share is making a wreath using candies. Many times I have seen these at Christmas, but why not make them using the colors of spring and summer? These can be made in several ways. One way would be to have wrapped candies and tie them onto a wire form. Make sure the candy is put close together so you do not see the form. You could also pin or glue them onto a styrofoam base. If you don't mind not being able to eat your creation, you can get many different types of candy and glue it onto the base.

Stop by the forum to let me know what fun you had playing with your food! Hope to hear from you soon.