Halloween Hybrid – Spooky Soup Cans

hello, everyone! It’s Jennifer Valencia here with a post on creating custom labels for soup cans. These can be used as decorations, holders for candy give-aways, or play food for your kids.

Supplies
-Smooth edge can opener (mine is from Pampered Chef) which leaves 100% smooth edges with no sharp pieces
-Printouts for the soup can labels
-Clear packing tape
-Glue Stick

Open the Can:
Using the special can opener, open the can and save the lid. There should be no sharp edges.
Save the food separately. (ha!)
Wash the lid and can, and dry them well.

Create Can Labels:
-For a typical Campbell’s size soup can label, start with a document that is 8.5×3.5″
-For a typical small tuna can: 2.5cm x 28cm
-You may have to trim the edges a bit for the perfect fit
-Drag papers & embellishments onto your can and add text

Create Top Labels:
For a typical Cambell’s soup can, draw a circle that is ~ 2.75″ in diameter.
For a typical Tuna can, use a circle that is ~ 3″.

Print & Prepare Labels:
Print the labels onto regular paper and coat the front with clear packing tape (if desired) to make them more durable.
Carefully line the label up on the can and tape one edge down with packing tape.
-Smear glue stick all over the backside of the label where you can reach it, then carefully smooth the label onto the can.
-Add extra glue to to the back seam if needed and smooth it down firmly.
-For the round top labels: Glue the back and press them firmly onto the lid.

-Glue Lids to Can – or Maybe Don’t
You may decide to leave the lid unattached, so your child can play open/close/fill with it. You can also fill it with candies or other non-perishable treats and glue the lid shut, so the recipient gets to open it with a can opener (what fun, right?) If it’s going to be a play food can for a very small child, it’s best to glue it shut; even though the edges are not super sharp, small kids can probably find a way to hurt themselves on it anyway. And you probably already knew this, but this is NOT a way to “can” or store perishable foods like soup, sauce, jam, etc. To do THAT, you need a “real” professional can lid sealer, if you’re using aluminum cans, or glass Mason jars & supplies.

My daughter LOVES these! I left the lids unattached so she could open and close the cans and put toys into them. I let her pick out the embellishment and dictate the text or ingredients, depending on what we were making. I love her idea of what goes into soup.

I also made some spooky ones which I plan to fill with a bag of candy corn and a ribbon, and pass out to friends on Halloween. These can also be used as party decorations. I guarantee that these will start conversations between party or dinner guests, too!

Keep in mind that there is nothing to stop you from making labels for full cans of food, if all you need are party decorations! But it’s really fun to have the empty smooth-edge cans for toys.
I hope you give this a try…and if you do, please post it in the gallery to share. And if you want to use some of the same products I used, look for these in the DHD store.

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