Back to School and Shark Week

So my niece, Elisabeth, started her first teaching job this week and is teaching in the system from which I graduated, along with tons of people with whom I went to elementary, middle and high school. She's teaching 6th Grade Language Arts. Since so many of my friends work with her in the school, I decided to make a ton of back to school cookies for her to take with her on one of the teacher work days before school started, to share with her new co-workers. I forgot to get a pic before wrapping them in plastic, but she was kind enough to snap a couple of pics for me before they were all eaten.

Back to school cookies, Crayon Cookies, Notebook Paper Cookies, Ruler Cookies, Chalkboard Cookies

Back to school cookies, Pencil cookies, Apple cookies

I love how the crayons came out. I own a gazillion cookie cutters, as do most cookie freaks like me, however it always seems that I don't have the one that I need when I have something I want to do. I have finally become much better at trying to use what I have to make things instead of buying yet another cutter. For the crayons, I used a lipstick cutter that I had and trimmed it a bit on the tip and sides. Worked like a charm. For the large pencils, I used a little triangle Christmas tree cutter that Wilton had in the Christmas bins at Wal-Mart in 2013, the Wilton tombstone cutter and the end of a large Christmas bulb cutter for the erasers. For the small ones, I think I used the lipstick cutter again. I did the chalkboards using a small plaque cutter that was in a set I picked up at Target earlier this year. I don't like hand cutting at all, so for the simple rectangles for notebook paper, I once again employed the tombstone and then trimmed the header and footer off of it. And for the rulers I used a large number one cutter and trimmed the flag off the top of the number. The stars, ABCs and 123s were last minute fillers, which I knocked out super fast one morning before leaving for work.



One of her new co-workers who teaches the same grade and subject matter with her is one of my cookie fans, who gets me to do some for her from time to time (perhaps you recall these golf ones?). Elisabeth mentioned to her that I was doing the back to school cookies, so she sent me a message, noting that she knew it was last minute, asking if I could do some for her son because he loves those cookies so much. She left it completely up to me as to what I would do with them - she said she was even fine with basic shapes with random icing colors on them. Then it hit me that it was shark week and I knew that was the perfect theme to go with. I used the Sugarbelle shark tutorials and this idea for the surfboards, since I didn't have a surfboard cutter. And this idea for the shark bites out of them using the Ikea porcupine cutter. I made the swim trunks using the large teddy bear cutter in the 101 Wilton set and trimmed it to what I needed.

Shark Week Cookies