Do you have a man in your life (father, grandfather, brother, husband, son, uncle) who is one of those manly men?

He has all the tools, tech, and toys to keep him preoccupied in his downtime, yet at heart he's really just a simple, "give me duct tape and WD-40 and I'm all set" kind of guy...and above all else, the way to his heart is always through his stomach.

If you're out of ideas, money, and time...this easy Candy Bar Card is a no-fail gift (for any occasion) for that manly man in your life!

Supplies

To follow this card exactly, you will need:

1/4" poster board
Scissors
Glue (stick or hot glue)
Straight Edge
White computer paper
Pencil
10 basic colored markers
Black permanent marker
Velcro (set of 20)
Whoppers
Reese's Pieces
Payday
Butterfinger
Snickers
York
100 Grand bar
Orbit gum
Extra gum
Zero
Milkyway
Whatchamacallit
Rolo
Almond Joy
3 Musketeers (can substitute a Nerds box, Airheads, Sour Patch Kids, etc for this)

Step 1: Write Out a Template

Write out the template for your card.

If you want the exact wording I used, here it is (where there are quotation marks, it represents a candy bar filling it in):

Dear Dad, We were going to give you a "Whopping" "100 Grand" for your birthday, but the money slipped right through our "Butterfingers" and "Payday" hasn't come yet. We thought maybe an "Orbit" around the "Milky Way" or a trip to New "York" would do, but we have "Zero" dollars and no "Whatchamacallits" to sell. So we hope you en-"Joy" this "Extra" special card! Hopefully, you don't "Rolover" sick, but if you do, we promise not to "Snicker." We love you to "Pieces." Love your, "3 Musketeers" (List you and your children's names here)

Step 2: Correct Candy #1

To make the card read smoothly, you will need to make some minor corrections to certain candies.

For example, the first candy you will need to correct is the Whoppers box. It needs to read "Whopping," so you need to change the ending to "-ing."

To do this, take a sheet of paper and lay it over the top of the box. Trace the original border around the last three letters onto the sheet. Fill in this border with the letters I-N-G in chunky font like the original. Do the best you can, it doesn't have to be perfect!

Color the letters in red and cut them out.

Glue them down over top the original letters. Easy peasy! It now reads, "Whopping!"

Step 3: Correct Candies #2 to #4

Using the black permanent marker, circle the word "Joy" on the Almond Joy bar.

Draw thick arrows pointing in to the word "Pieces" on the "Reese's Pieces" box.

And add S's to the ends of the "Butterfinger" and "Whatchamacallit" bars.

Step 4: Correct Candy #5

You will need the "Rolo" candy to read like "roll over," so we need to add a "-ver" to the end of it.

Using the technique from the Whoppers step, do the same thing to make convincing letters here. NOTE: the letters on the Rolo packaging are slightly italicized, and they have a white border around each letter first, then a brown border around that, and the centers of the O's and E's are filled in brown.

Color in the letters to match the original packaging. Now it should say "Rolover."

Step 5: Correct Candy #6

The last candy to correct is the Snickers bar. It needs to read "Snicker," so we need to remove the "S" off of it, and add a period (or you could use an exclamation mark).

First, lay the paper over the end of the bar, and trace a basic shape to cover the entire "S."

Cut this shape out and check it on the bar. Trim edges as needed to make it fit properly in the space.

When you're happy with the shape, glue it down, and draw the punctuation of your choice on the paper with a black marker.

Step 6: Estimate

First, choose if you want a vertical or horizontal orientation. I chose vertical.

Then, lay out the candy in an approximate positioning to where you think the final spots should go. Don't spend too much time worrying about perfecting the positioning, as it will undoubtedly change as you write the words in.

Step 7: Begin Writing

Start with the major wording of "Dear Dad:"

I chose to make the word "Dad" a star attraction because it is, after all, for that manly man in your life--he is the star of this card! Feel free to substitute in the wording of your choice (brother, grandfather, uncle, etc), depending on who you are making this card for.

Using a straight edge, write in the sentences nice and neat. I chose to use a black marker for this and all the main writing between the candies.

Step 8: Adding Candies

Each candy you add on to this card will need to be adhered to the card. I didn't use glue here because I didn't want the card to get damaged when he pulls the candies off. So, I used Velcro.

To add the Velcro, simply take a rough piece of Velcro and a soft piece of Velcro and push them together (so the adhesive edges are touching your fingers). Then, put this "Velcro sandwich" on the back of the candy. (NOTE: You can use more than one Velcro sandwich for bigger boxes or candies.)

Push the candy down on to the card to adhere it.

Step 9: Continue On...

Add a 100 Grand bar with Velcro right next door. Then, write in the occasion underneath. This was for my husband's birthday, but you can write in "Father's Day" or whatever the special reason is for the card. If it's a "just because" card or even a Thank You card, then write it in accordingly. :)

Step 10: Continue Writing and Adding Candy

Continue writing and adding candy until the entire message is written out the way you like it.

Use the pictures here to help you copy mine, if that's what you would like to do. Otherwise, feel free to get creative (and even crazy!) and do whatever you want on the card! Make it personal! Have fun!

Step 11: Close It Out

To close out the card, use a fun candy bar that represents you and/or your kids the best.

For example, my husband loves 3 Musketeer bars, and my kids are adventurous (and there just happens to be 3 of them), so this worked best for us. But you can use things like "Nerds" (then write out the names afterwards), Sour Patch Kids (with names after), Airheads (where you use one Airhead per person's name), etc. Make it about your own personal family :D

Step 12: Done!

I later went back and filled in "Dad" with green marker. Also, feel free to add any embellishments, decorations, and little extras you want before calling it "done."

Make sure you and your kids sign the card at the bottom, and it's time to present it!