First Entry and Chocolate Spoons!

Hello!! This is my first ever blog entry.  I guess I will tell you how I got to this point.  I have always been a fairly creative person.  I love making things for other people.  I give away most of the things I make.  For Christmas this year I gave a felt mum pin and some chocolate covered spoons I made to Matushka Barbara (she is a priest's wife; in my Church we call the priest's wife Matushka (Mat.)).  She made the comments that I should have a shop where I sell those kinds of things.

I've been thinking about opening an Etsy Shop, but right now I am not brave enough to put my work out there like that.  I was talking to someone else (I can't remember who now) about these kinds of things as well and they suggested writing a blog with all my craft ideas and such, to see if people are interested.  So ta-da!  Here I am!

My first ever craft to post is the chocolate covered spoons.  Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the process, just the finished product.  I will make some more and take pictures through the process.  Then once I figure out how to link to a PDF document I will post better instructions with step by step pictures for you all.

Materials:
Metal Spoons (I got mine at the dollar store)
Findings, Beads, Buttons (really anything that won't melt on contact with hot glue)
Hot glue gun
2 kinds of your favorite chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate and white chocolate)
Peppermint candy (optional)
Tissue Wrap (it's like plastic tissue paper, got it at the dollar store)
skinny ribbon
dry erase or permanent  marker
scissors

Instructions:

1. Wash the spoons and dry them thoroughly.
2. Decide how you want to decorate the spoons.  Keep in mind that these spoons will most likely be used to stir hot liquid so what ever you decide to decorate with should only go down about 1/3 of the spoon handle.
3. Once you know how you want to decorate the spoon plug you hot glue gun in and let it get hot.  Using the glue gun attach your decorations to the handle of the spoon.  (Be careful not to burn yourself like I did.)
4. If you are going to be putting peppermint bits on the spoons, this is when you should put the candies into a plastic baggie, wrap it in a towel and take out your aggression with a hammer.  When you are finished you should have some nicely broken up bits of peppermint.
5. Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper.
6. While the glue is cooling and hardening, prepare your chocolate.  If you want to double boiler it be my guest, but I just used my microwave.  Pour your chips (for the eight spoons I made 1/4 of the bag was enough) into glass measuring cups or a microwave safe bowls, putting the two kinds of chips into separate bowls.  Microwave for about 1 minute stir (with different spoons) microwave for 30 second intervals stirring between until the chocolate is smooth.  If you are doing a lot of spoons you might want to wait to melt the second kind of chocolate until you have dipped all the spoons in the first kind.
7. Dip each of your decorated spoons into the first kind of chocolate, make sure you cover both sides of the spoon thoroughly. lay them on the pan with parchment paper and immediately push a few peppermint bits into the bowl of the spoon (if using).  once all the spoons are done, drizzle them with the second kind of chocolate.
8. Put the tray of spoons into the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.  While they are cooling clean up you mess and get ready for "packaging" the spoons.  I used a pasta bowl (those wide lipped shallow bowls) to get the circles; approximately 8.5 inches in diameter.  Stack your tissue wrap trace a circle onto the top-most sheet with the marker.  Paper-clip all the layers together and then cut out the circle.  (Now you have lots of circles with half the work.)  Cut 4-5 inch lengths of your ribbon..
9. When the chocolate spoons are nice and cold (and the chocolate is completely hard), take each spoon and wrap it with one wrap circle and secure it with one length of ribbon.

I stored mine in the fridge just to be on the safe side.  If you have wispy bits of chocolate when you pull them off the trey, gently break them off and set them aside (my husband like to eat them). 

Feel free to leave comments on this project.  If you make the project I'd like to see pictures.  If these instuctions didn't make sense please let me know!