Does the thought of shipping your beautiful hand decorated cookies scare you? I've been there. Are you not sure exactly how to go about packing them?.....how to position them?

Well I'm here to help!

I have been where you are and I've tried a few different methods. Through trial and error I found the way that works best for me. Keep in mind that no means of shipment is totally foolproof. Sometimes cookies do break.

No one has control over the postal workers.

There are no special powers to get cookies to your destination without any breakage.

This is just the way I do it and it's what works for me. I have been very successful mailing cookies this way. I've only had a few cookies break and they were delicate cookies (slender parts, cut outs, etc)

Supplies

Awesome cookies you decorated (bagged)
A box large enough to hold your cookies with enough room around sides, top and bottom for packing peanuts
bubble wrap
packing peanuts
packaging tape

1. Assemble your box and then add just enough packing peanuts to cover the bottom a bit.

2. Place two cookies opposite each other on a square of bubble wrap. (I actually place the ribbon portion to the outside of the bubble wrap instead of how it's pictured. I find it's easier that way because the excess bag and ribbon don't get in the way when you have to fold the cookies in half.)

3. Fold the bubble wrap and cookies over toward the rest of the bubble wrap square, then again.

4. Next, fold the bubble wrapped cookies in half. Be careful and make sure there is enough space between your two cookies, otherwise it won't lay flat.....or worse, you could break a cookie.

5. Continue wrapping two cookies at a time until all of your cookies are wrapped.

6. Place bubble wrapped cookie pairs in the box toward the center. See how the excess bubble wrap is toward the OUTSIDE of the box. This gives you a bit of space between the cookies and the box. We are still going to fill that area with packing peanuts. Be sure not to put too many cookies in one box. Depending on the cookie size and size of the box will determine how many you can fit. I typically put between 1 and 1.5 dozen in a box.

7. After all of your cookies are placed carefully in the box, we are going to surround the cookie with packing peanuts, carefully moving the excess bubble wrap away from the side of the box to get packing peanuts down side. Then fill the rest of the box with peanuts to the top. Do NOT overfill the box with peanuts. You want the box full but not so stuffed that the box is hard to close. This will just put pressure on the cookies when closing the box.

8. Close and tape your box. Address the label, say a prayer and send off your cookies.

Hope this helps some of you who are curious about shipping cookies.

What tips do you have for shipping cookies? What is your preferred method of packaging?

We've all been there. We need a special cookie cutter and we don't feel like hand cutting. It's time consuming and let's face it, the edges are never really smooth.

You decide you'll just make your own. Great idea.....UNTIL....You start searching for aluminum that's food safe. Then your task becomes a bit more difficult.

Now you realize the only way to really get that special cutter is to pay out the wazoo for a custom cutter or make one out of a throw away aluminum pan.

Those will work fine, but I really wanted something a little bit sturdier that would hold up longer. I may or may not be a little rough on cutters....just saying.

So after much brainstorming I came up with a solution. Make them out of large circle cutters! There's not really anything to get smooth. You can just cut them and begin.

By the way

Karen's Cookies

has the

4 1/2 inch cutter

on sale way cheap! I bought about thirty!

Here's a step by step on how to make your own just like I did.

Materials:

Tin snips or other tool for cutting metal
needle nose pliers or Gerber tool
Rivets (not shown)
Crimping tool for punching hole and crimping rivets
4 1/2" Circle cutter
Something for a template (plastic, print out of desired shape, etc)
gloves for keeping hands free of injury if desired. (I didn't use gloves, but I tend to take a walk on the wild side.)

1. Gather tools

2. Take tin snips and cut off riveted/soldered section of cookie cutter

3. Cut template out of a piece of paper or plastic. ( I used a plastic binder divider I had on hand)

4. Starting at a straight edge, begin bending the cutter, using the template as a guide.

This does take a little practice, especially at the little bends (like at the toe of the shoe).

5. After you have finished shaping your cutter, snip off the excess. Leave about 1" overlap.

6. Using the crimping tool, punch holes and secure and crimp rivets.

7. Wash your new cutter to remove any debris from cutting and start baking!

Not terribly difficult and you have your own custom cookie cutter. I've made a few cutters already and I love it. There are times that a few choice words come out, but the end result is my own custom cutter. The shoe is my favorite because stiletto cutters are hard to come by. I hadn't found one I loved.....not for shipping cookies anyway. The tiny heels are so fragile.

Here are the cookies I made with my new cutter.

Baking in Heels