So, we all feel a little twitterpated around this time of year. There are dances, parties, and of course, valentines! As these times come around, we feel the need to be extra crafty and cute with how we ask. But how do we ask? Well, worry no more! I have come to your rescue! My school is doing a Masquerade Ball for their girl’s choice Sweetheart’s Dance, and I decided that I would take advantage of the mask idea. With the help of my wonderful mother and a not-so-weird obsession with glass bottles, we came up with the perfect way to ask your sweetheart to a lovely night out!
What you’ll need:
- fancy paper
- embellishments
- small candies
- glass bottle
- funnel
- Magic Eraser
- craft knife
Alright, so first things first. Clean that glass bottle out really well. There will be candy going to a special guy (or gal) in that bottle, so we want it nice and clean. While it’s drying, get your card stuff together with our cute printable and start that. When printing out our printable, use card stock. Not only is it sturdier, but it is so nice if you are tracing onto something else. {download printable here}
I thought it might be fun to use different textures and types of paper, so I have some coarse paper, smooth and shiny paper, and also really old music/book pages. Cut out the masks however you’d like, and plan out some ideas of how you want it to look in the end.
After you cut out the mask, trace it out onto your choice of paper. I chose old sheet music. Afterwards, you can use the craft knife to cut it out. Be careful with the type of paper though. The sheet music I used was, in fact, very old. It was old enough that I didn’t even need to use the craft knife, the pen I was tracing with cut it very nicely. I put the mask on black card stock and then cut about 1/8″ from the edge for a striking border.
*Tip! If you don’t have any embellishments that you care to use, keep the bits you cut out from the eyes. You can make them into flower petals or feathery things!
Once you’re done with that mask, attach it to the matching card. I used dimensional glue dots on some of ours, and it gave it a bit more depth so it really stood out.
You’re done with the card! Yay! This is the super fun part. Take that nice, clean, dry glass bottle and fill it with your small candy! This is where a funnel comes in handy. You don’t want to deal with the exhausting and tedious process of putting the candies in one by one (she says from experience…). Some candy will fit better than others, but I think M&Ms and Skittles work the best. They look like confetti for a fun party! Fill as high in the bottle as you want. I went to the base of the neck, but that was just what I thought looked best on my bottle. Also, keep in mind that not all glass bottles are the same. The ones that I used were slightly smaller, so they needed less candy than some other glass bottles. It’s better to have too much candy than not enough.
*Tip! Before you fill that bottle, take a Magic Eraser to those pesky date stamps! They can be a bit of an eye sore when it comes to something like this. If you take your Magic Eraser and get it slightly damp with warm water, the date stamp will come off super quick and easy, leaving your bottle gorgeous!
I couldn’t reuse the original cap from the bottle, so I thought that tissue paper would be a cute way to seal it. You can use a pen or the bottom of the craft knife to get the tissue paper to where you want it. I liked it best right at the candies, but someone else might like it differently. I then used a ribbon that matched the card or tag and tied it to the bottle, just so that it fit in with each other nicely.
You don’t have to limit the use of these masks to asking someone special out, you can use them however you’d like! I made cards with them, and really they are just a fun accessory to add to any craft. You could use them for place settings at a fancy dinner party, and they’re great for Mardi Gras or Carnival!
