Sweets for the Sweet

Myself along with the rest of the Papertrey Design Team have prepared an amazing collection of Valentine ideas for you today!  As photos of each of the designer’s projects trickled into my inbox this past week, I was left feeling truly amazed and inspired by their ingenuity.

For my little project, I decided to play around with our exclusive small heart tins.  I designed these tins to be nice & deep to hold a variety of different treats with plenty of room to spare  All of the heart tins I had seen in the past were shallow and therefore limiting as far as what you could put inside.  This unique depth really opens the door for so many possibilities. 
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When talking to Julie during a recent meeting, she came up with the amazing idea of using the upper lip of the tin itself as a cookie cutter, therefore making heart-shaped cookies that would stack perfectly in the tin.  I promptly envisioned how amazing those coordinating elements would look together, and just knew I needed to execute it with this release!  From some experimentation, I found that a shortbread recipe is the only way to go since it doesn’t have any rising agents and therefore the cookies remains the same size after baking, ensuring a perfect fit in the tin.  Here is the recipe that I used.  You need no special ingredients and they are super yummy too!

Basic Shortbread Cookies

3/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour

1. Heat oven to 350-degrees. 

2. Cream together butter & sugar in large bowl.  Gradually add flour.  (If the dough is a bit crumbly, mix in 1 to 2 tablespoons additional softened butter).

3. Roll dough 1/4-inch thick on lightly floured surface.  Cut into desired shapes.  Place 1/2-inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. (I use a baking stone).

4. Bake about 20 minutes or until set.  Remove from cookie sheet and cool on wire rack.

5. After cookies have cooled, decorate as desired.

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I decorated the cookies using a flood icing technique which I learned about by watching this video from Martha Stewart:

Royal Icing Technique Video

These cookies were my very first attempt at this type of thing, and I was really pleased with how easy it was.  It is definitely something I will be doing again soon!
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After completion, I was able to fit 4-5 cookies in each tin.  I was so pleased with how well they fit!  It almost looks as though a custom tin was created for my cookies, rather than the other way around!

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I thought a small valentine would be the perfect thing to complete the ensemble.  I repeated the design elements used on the tin to make this quick & easy card.  As I said yesterday, this 3×3 size is my favorite for little notes like this.
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The completed ensemble would be the perfect thing to send in to a teacher, friends & neighbors, co-workers, classmates or any one else special in your  life!

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Now, as I promised at the beginning of this post, the design team has also developed several different ideas to inspire you this Valentine’s Day!  Please be sure to stop by each of their blogs today for all the details regarding their amazing concepts!!!

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Becky Oehlers turned one our exclusive large heart tins into a purse for her daughter!  The satin lining really  makes the project!
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Betsy Veldman created ice cream cone cupcakes with their own little keepsake boxes.  I love how she made her cupcakes match the stamp image, right down to the “cherry” on top!
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Dawn McVey created a tin full of love notes for someone special.  Her color combinations are FABULOUS!
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Debbie Olson shares a homemade treat in the large heart tin, making it look like something purchased at a luxury candy shoppe! 
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Geny Cassady made some homemade lollipops that look as good as they must taste.  She altered one of Lauren’s new templates for this month to contain them!
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Heather Nichols painted & stamped the small heart tins surface directly for a really unique & rustic look.  I just loved this technique and cannot wait to try it out myself!
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Lauren Meader made colored chocolate lollipops, packaging them in her new Lolli-pop Along template being released this month.  I love the little picket fence detail!
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Lisa Johnson added some details to some lollipops of her own using her new set, Love Songs.  Be sure to stop by her blog to see the packaging she create to go with them!
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Melissa Phillips really stepped out of the box with this challenge and created some special hair bows for her little girl along with a keepsake heart tin.  Love this idea!
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Michelle Wooderson has become very passionate about fabric lately and developed this ensemble to feed the infatuation of other fabric-loving friends.
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Niki Estes created a special tin just for friends.  Her embellishment of one of our large heart tins is just out of the world!
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I hope you took the time to visit each designer’s blog and give them a shout out for their hard work!  I am truly amazed when I see the results from an assignment like this.  They put so much thought and effort into bringing you fresh, fun ideas each and every month!  I know I am so thankful!

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Nichole’s Supply List
Stamps: Heart Prints (available December 15th)
Ink: Pure Poppy Palette, Fresh Snow pigment (available December 15th)
Paper: Stamper’s Select White, Pure Poppy
Other: Pure Poppy stitched ribbon, small heart tin, small heart punch from EK Sucess, Giga Scalloped Square Punch from Marvy, paper piercer, white brads from Doodlebug, foam dimensionals, Scor-tape (for adhering cardstock to tin)

Finished size: 3 x 3 inches (card), 2.5 x 2.25 inches (tin)