Homemade Valentines

It’s always a treat to get a Valentine from a loved one, a girlfriend, a boyfriend, a buddy or even your little brother. And what makes it’s even nicer is when the Valentine is homemade! Here are some creative ideas for adding a special touch for your special someone, or your little brother.

Stamp Your Heart Out Valentines:

This is a super easy and homey way to make lots of Valentine Cards and it all starts with toilet paper, so you know it’s a keeper.

All you need is: cardboard toilet paper roll, tape, paint and paper for your cards and envelopes, cardstock works best, but printer paper or construction paper work too.

1. Indent the cardboard roll so that it forms a heart.
2. Tape the top bumps of the heart so that the shape stays.
3. Dip your stamp in paint and stamp your paper.

You can do single hearts or an entire pattern. Stamp your envelope, stamp a large piece of craft paper and use it as wrapping paper for gifts, write messages with the hearts. Get creative!

Heart Felt Pouch:

Just as iconic to Valentine’s Day as hearts and flowers is chocolate. And with the addition of the handmade pouch you can give your sweetie some sugar they can enjoy right away and a heart felt gift they can use long after the chocolate is gone.

You will need: felt, yarn, crafting needle (which is just a larger needle than the regular sewing needle), button and CHOCOLATE!

1. Cut the felt into two identical hearts. You can make these as big or small as you like depending on what you want to put inside.
2. Starting from the top left corner sew the edges of the two hearts together. I like the look of the over-the-edge stitch or the overlock stitch, but a straight stitch would look just as good. Make sure to leave a gap that is big enough for your button.
3. Sew the button into the inside piece of felt. Depending on the buttonhole size you may want to use thread rather than the yarn.
4. Cut a slit on the other piece of felt the diameter of the button.
5. Fill the pouch with chocolates, button it up and deliver it to your sweetie!

If you’re low on chocolate then feel free to fill the pouch with other little gifts. You could fill the pouch with potpourri and give a sweet smelling gift, little trinkets, beads… whatever you want!

Paper Roses:

Ok, so we have cards, hearts, chocolate all we need now is Flowers. This is a really simple way to make some flowers that will last long after the 14^th.

You will need: Paper (cardstock preferably, construction works too), Scissors, a nail and glue.

1. Cut out a circle. A 3.5 inch circle makes a 1.5 inch across rose.
2. Cut wavy lines on the outside of the circle.
3. Continue to cut wavy lines spiraling to the center of the circle.
4. Leave a small circle of paper in the center.
5. With a nail start rolling the end tail of the outside of your circle. Once the thing takes a shape that you can hold on to you can take out the nail. Continue to roll all the way to the center circle. You’re going to want to hold on tight so the thing doesn’t unfurl.
6. When the thing is entirely curled let it loose just a little to make the flower fuller.
7. Put a dab of glue on the little circle there and press it into the spiral. Hot glue works best here because it dries so quickly.

Attach a stem to your flower, a green pipe cleaner or rolled up construction paper, or attach your rose to a gift, a pin, a card, whatever strikes your fancy!

Have Your Say!

Do you have any crafty Valentine's Day ideas? Share it with us in our comments section below.

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