Tag Archives: Valentine’s Day

Friday Favorites–Valentine’s Day

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Valentine’s Day is next Thursday.  I say we start a petition to have it moved to the weekend.  How about the second Saturday in February every year?  Better yet, let’s make it Friday so that the kids who are still allowed to celebrate it at school get the opportunity to do so, then take their little sugar-fueled selves home to their parents for the weekend.  What do you think?  Doesn’t that sound like a lot more fun?  Speaking of fun…

It’s a little too late to fully utilize all the ideas in the 14 Days of Love from The Dating Divas, but you can still choose a few of your favorites.

14 Days of Love from The Dating Divas

If you want to have a little DIY feel to your valentines, try these S’More Valentine Printables from Domesticated Lady.

Valentine S'mores from Domesticated Lady

This Valentine’s Day Heart Shaped Candy from Chica and Jo caught my eye because it’s just so pretty.

Valentines Day Heart Shaped Candy from Chica and Jo

This I Love You This Much Card from A Day in My Life reminds me of when my kids were little.  They used to say “I love you bigger than the sky” but it sounded like “I love you bigger than this guy.”  Sniff.

I Love You This Much Card from A Day in My Life

These Valentine Chocolate Chip Cookies from Made Famous By have convinced me I need to find neon food dye.

Valentine Chocolate Chip Cookies from Made Famous By

Pizzazzerie shares lots of cute printable Valentines here, but my favorite is the Bee Mine Burt’s Bees.

Valentines Gifts from Pizzazzerie

Playing with Legos while making Valentines with the kids?  I’m in.  Check out these Lego Accessory Valentines from Chez Beeper Bebe.

Lego Accessory Valentines from Chez Beeper Bebe

This Candy Pouch Printable from Melissa Esplin is cute, but simple enough you could make enough for a whole class.

Candy Pouch from Melissa Esplin

The heart-shaped eye patch stitched onto these Pirate Valentines from Mer Mag adds the perfect touch.

Pirate Valentines from Mer Mag

I’m not sure I need to say anything about these Sew Super Cute Printable Valentines from Live Laugh Rowe.  Will you be my Valentine, and will you send me one of these?

Sew Super Cute Printable Valentines from Live Laugh Rowe

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Pizza Box Valentine

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The one kid I have still living at home full time is a 17-year-old boy.  All of my cute, girly ideas are completely wasted on him.  He’ll smile and nod, but for the most part I feel like he’s just humoring me.  However, there is one thing that he, like most teenaged boys can’t get enough of – pizza.

Pizza Box Valentine 1

So, obviously, pizza was my inspiration for this Valentine project.  It consists of a printable pizza box that says “I want to give you a Pizza my heart, Valentine” and a felt pizza candy pocket.  Please don’t make me explain my pizza pun, like I had to do for my son.

Pizza Box Valentine 1.5

To make the box, you’ll need this printable.  I printed mine on white cardstock first, then kraft cardstock, which looks more pizza box-ish.  Be sure to figure out which way you need to turn the paper to print the second side with some less expensive paper before you use the cardstock.  When it’s finished, the box measures 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 x 1”.

Cut around the outside of the box pattern.  Cut in at each of the eight dotted red lines.  Score the remaining lines by holding a ruler next to each and running down it against the paper with something dull.  I used the curved end of a paper clip.  Fold up at each of those lines.

Pizza Box Valentine 2

Apply glue to each of the six tabs on the Pizza printed side of the box.  I used those roll-on sticky glue dots.

Pizza Box Valentine 3

Fold the tabs in and stick them to the inside of the box walls.

Pizza Box Valentine 4

Fold the top closed.  You could stop here and fill it with some candy or a cookie.  But I couldn’t let this go until there was a pizza inside.  A cookie made to look like a pizza would be adorable, by the way.

Pizza Box Valentine 5

I made the pizza using felt, embroidery floss and a few buttons.  You’ll find the shapes I used here.  Cut two crusts, one sauce and one cheese.  I also cut a few olive slices and green pepper bits.  If you don’t have buttons the appropriate color you could also cut those from felt.

Pizza Box Valentine 6

You could glue all the pieces together, but I chose to sew them down with embroidery floss.  I found it was unnecessary to stitch the red because the yellow covered almost all of it.

Pizza Box Valentine 7

Stitch the buttons and remaining pieces on with matching floss and simple stitches.

Pizza Box Valentine 8

Stitch across the top edge – I used a blanket stitch, but a simple straight stitch near the end would work too.

Pizza Box Valentine 9

When you reach the top of the heart on the right, as shown above, stack the second crust under the pizza.  Continue stitching through both crusts until you reach where you started on the front.

Pizza Box Valentine 10

Flip it over and finish stitching just the back crust.

Pizza Box Valentine 11

Fill the heart with candy or other small trinkets.

Pizza Box Valentine 12

Pop it into the box…

Pizza Box Valentine 13

Close it up…

Pizza Box Valentine 14

And give it to your favorite pizza-loving Valentine!

Pizza Box Valentine 15

 

 

 

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Last-Minute Valentines

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Valentine’s Day is tomorrow.  Thanks to a pair of early dentist appointments and a full schedule for my husband on Tuesday, we’re celebrating today.  That consists of a trip to Costco, shopping for a television to replace the one that croaked over the weekend and probably lunch somewhere.  Your definition of a romantic date adapts to whatever life circumstances you happen to be in.

Before I go, I thought I’d share a couple of last-minute ideas I found via Pinterest, in case you’re scrambling to find a way to show your affection tomorrow.

Money is always great when you’re short on time, right?  Pretty it up by folding it into an origami heart, as shown on Instructables.

Dollar-Bill-Origami-Heart 

All you need to do is print out these cute Valentines from Pumpkins and Posies and scribble a little note.

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I love this idea so much I can’t stand it, and found it from both Papervine and Craftster.  It’s a little more time consuming, but could still be finished before tomorrow.

Lowri McNabb Cards (2)

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Maybe the way to your Valentine’s heart is through his or her stomach?  Try these cute kabobs from The Inspired Collection.  They’re really easy, but still look fancy.

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Happy Valentine’s Day! <3

Friday Favorites–Valentine’s Day

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Valentine’s Day used to require a lot more planning on my part.  The kids were small, so there were school parties and Valentines to make, or at the very least write on.  These days it comes a little more quietly.  The down side is that I kinda miss the experience, but there is a plus.  I actually get to remember that I have a Valentine myself.  We’re celebrating with dentist appointments in the morning and working late to make up the time.  Ahh, being an adult is so romantic.

We may not get much time together on Valentine’s Day, but I could still surprise my sweetheart with this Man Candy Box from Frou Frugal.  Click through and you’ll also find directions for matching duct tape roses.

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These Heart Envelopes from Forty Weeks may look somewhat ordinary, but they fold out to reveal a heart shape, perfect for a love note.

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These Arrow Cupcake Toppers from The Sweetest Occasion are also cute embellishments for brownies.

valentines-day-brownies

Originally shared as a Christmas craft, I think this DIY Serving Tray from Tutto Bella would be a perfect Valentine addition.

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I kind of love anything made from branches, so I this Wreath from Tree Branches from Pretty Handy Girl would be great for my front door.

close_up_wood_heart_wreath

Zakka Life shares a great video showing how to make these Origami Lucky Hearts.

lucky heart necklace

It’s not often you see Strawberry Cocoa, but this version from Babble looks fun and Valentiney.

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These Adorable Homemade Valentines from Our Crazy Boys are exactly the kind of thing I miss making.

Valentines

Or these Blast Off Rocket Candy Cards from Family Fun…

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These Super Valentines from Zakka Life (again!), might push me over the edge.  Somebody is getting a Valentine.

Superhero Valentine 8

I Haven’t Forgotten About You

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Honest.  I know it’s been a little light on the projects around here lately, but I’ve had two things working against me.  My little Etsy shop was wiped out after Christmas, so I’ve been putting my effort toward restocking.  That said, my effort has been pretty limited because I’ve also been sick more days than I’ve been well since the beginning of October.  Yep, that is a lot of sick.  I’m on my second round of antibiotics, and I’m hopeful I can beat this and move on.

I have a few fun things to share soon, including an expandable bag, a fabric inventory system, and an entire series of book-recycling projects.  I’m anxious to get moving again.

As a consolation, here’s a FANTASTIC round-up of Valentine projects I came across recently from Dani Marie Designs.  If you follow me on Pinterest or Facebook, you’ve already seen this.  My coffee cup sleeves are included, but there are also 100 other great ideas!

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Crafty Love

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Since it’s Valentine’s Day, I want to spread a little love.  You may or may not have noticed the little Crafty Love tab at the top of the screen.  If you’ve never clicked on it, I’ll fill you in.  It contains links to other blogs and websites who have let me share my work.  I found some of them;  some of them found me.  Many of you have ended up here by clicking links belonging to these generous people.

One of my favorite places is One Pretty Thing.  If you’re a craft surfer, it’s a must-see.  Rachel publishes several lists every day, each full of creativity.  There’s always themed lists, related to whatever season we’re in and general round-ups.  I think of her every week when I’m putting together my Friday Favorites.  I can’t imagine being able to come up with that many things every day.

Another place I like to hang out is Totally Tutorials.  Dotty highlights a few tutorials every day, obviously carefully chosen, with great variety.  On a side note, she has an Etsy store where she sells ADORABLE pincushions.

This one isn’t a craft blog, but I’ve found myself there a lot lately.  If you haven’t tried StumbleUpon, I’m not sure whether to tell you to try it or run away.  It’s a real time killer, but I’ve found many great projects and blogs while stumbling.

The ladies at CraftGossip are pretty amazing.  They manage to publish loads of great links every day and always send the cheeriest e-mails.  Their site is divided into categories, making it easy to take in, one bite at a time.

I was so excited the first time I found a link to my blog from a site in a language I didn’t understand.  I felt so international!  10Marifet.org is based in Turkey, and thanks to the Google translate feature, I can tell you they are all over the cute crafty links.  Actually, most of the craft tutorial photos speak for themselves.

Speaking of international, another fun blog I’ve been a part of is Freebies for Crafters.  These ladies are based in Australia and New Zealand.  They don’t post as often, but when they do it’s usually something special.

If you want to just spend some time looking at beautiful things, visit craftgawker.  They are very particular about the photos they publish.  I have a few of mine own there, but I’ve been turned down a couple of times too.  Guess you can’t win them all.

When you have time, visit my Crafty Love page and click on a couple of the links.  There’s a whole world of crafty goodness out there, waiting for you to find it.

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Don’t forget to visit last Saturday’s Crafty Staci First Anniversary post to enter to win a fantastic giveaway!!! Contest is open through February 18, 2011.

Love Note Coffee Cup Sleeves

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Did you ever have a project that just seemed doomed from the start?  Did you power through anyway, sure that it would work out in the end?  If you answered yes to either of these questions, you understand my week.  Fortunately, it was worth the struggle.

This is a revisit to a project I showed you last month, Reversible Coffee Cup Sleeves, but a little more advanced version.  One thing I will say right up front, do NOT make this using burlap, like I did, unless you’re up for a challenge.

You’ll need two pieces of cotton fabric (or one cotton and one burlap, if you’re ready for that ride) and a piece of InsulBrite*, cut using this pattern, making sure you flip it over so the two pieces of cotton are opposites.  Don’t use the pattern from the previous sleeve, as this one is a little bigger.  One of the many lessons I learned along the way while making this thing.

You’ll also need about 14” of bias tape, a small piece of clear vinyl (cut from the pattern), two 5/8” or 3/4” buttons and a small piece of elastic or half of a stretchy hair tie.

*InsultBrite is insulated batting.  It has a shiny silver side and feels crunchy when you squish it.  If you’d rather use the batting/ironing board fabric method I used previously, follow the instructions here.

Love Note CCS 1

Sandwich the upper edge of the vinyl into the fold of the bias tape. 

Love Note CCS 2

Stitch close to the edge of the fabric.  Cut the ends off even with the vinyl.

Love Note CCS 3

Press one end of the remaining bias tape under.  Slide the left side of the vinyl into the fold, lining up the pressed end with the top.  Place the vinyl on the sleeve according to the pattern.  This part is tricky because you can’t pin the vinyl, so you have to hold it in place while you stitch around the remaining three sides, near the edge of the bias tape.  Fold the tape around the corners.

Love Note CCS 4

When you reach the end, fold the end under.  I clipped off the corners so they wouldn’t show.  Stitch the remaining tape down so it matches with the top of the tape on the vinyl.

Love Note CCS 5

Stitch around the three sides again, close to the outer edge.  Stitch the corners if necessary.

Love Note CCS 6

Lay the piece with the vinyl on it down, window up.

Love Note CCS 7

Add the piece of elastic on the straighter end, with the loop to the inside.

Love Note CCS 8

Add the other sleeve piece, face down.

Love Note CCS 9

Next add the InsulBrite.  Pin everything in place.

Love Note CCS 10

Stitch around the edges with a 1/4” seam.  Back stitch over the elastic.  Leave an opening at the bottom the size of the vinyl window.

Love Note CCS 11

Carefully turn right side out.  Press, turning in opening.  This is where my burlap got a little ugly.

Love Note CCS 12

Stitch all the way around near the edge.  Ordinarily, that would be enough, but because my burlap went a little crazy, I also did a zigzag stitch over the edge to keep it from unraveling.

Love Note CCS 13

Mark the spot for the button as shown.

Love Note CCS 14

Stitch the buttons on, one on each side, sliding a toothpick under each so there’s room for the elastic to loop around.

Love Note CCS 15

Here’s a page of printable love notes I made that fit inside the window. 

Love Note CCS 16

And, of course, it’s still reversible.

Love Note CCS 17

The pocket is also a great way to give a coffee gift card.  Just know that the card is flat and the cup is not.

Love Note CCS 18

Or maybe you just need to identify your cup.  With a unique sleeve like this, though, that doesn’t seem likely.

Love Note CCS 19

Friday Favorites–Valentine’s Day, Part 2

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I’m going to start this out by letting you know I’m typing with one hand.  No, I’m not trying out a new circus act, I’m nursing a shoulder issue.  My right arm is in a sling and I’m right-handed.  Any spelling errors from here out are staying, because if I have to hit that backspace button one more time, I might scream.  Ok, enough of my whining, on to the fun stuff!

I’ve been saving this post from Rad Megan in Words and Pictures showing how to make Danish Heart Baskets since before Christmas.  I love the red and grey one.  Who am I kidding?  They’re felt – I love them all.

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I’ve never tried making hammered wire jewelry, but StudioDax’s tutorial to make this Heart Necklace makes it sound easy enough I might give it a try.

heart1

This Romantic Heart Wool Valentine from Better Homes and Gardens reminds me a little of the ribbon embroidery pieces my mom and sister have done in the past.

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We’ve never counted down to Valentine’s Day around here, but this Valentine Countdown from This Little Project makes me want to.  I’d put a Lindt truffle ball in every one of those boxes.  And hide the whole thing from my family.

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These See-Through Valentines from Random Thoughts of a Supermom seem perfect for boys.  They like to break stuff and they get to tear these open to get to the candy.  Never mind, my girl likes to break stuff too.  Hearts for everyone!

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If you’re easily offended, stop here.  Who are you kidding, you know you’re going to have to look now!  I think these Lingerie Sugar Cookies from How Does She are adorable.  Somebody looked at a heart and saw underwear – gotta love that.

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Starting with next week’s Friday Favorites, I’ll be celebrating the one year anniversary of Crafty Staci with some fun stuff…stay tuned to find out what!

Paper and Wire Hearts

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I’m supposed to be cleaning up my sewing room.  Everything needs to be taken off the old shelves and put onto the new.  Instead, I’m making stuff.  It’s sort of like when your kid finds a toy at the bottom of the box he hasn’t seen for a while.  That’s all he wants to play with for a couple of days.  I’m there.

I found a stack of cardstock strips from who-knows-what.  They’re 7/8” by 6”, and I have 32 of them.  Actually, had.  Now they’re 16 hearts.

Paper Hearts 1

To make a heart, put two cut pieces of cardstock or other sturdy paper together, edges even.  Staple near the end. 

Paper Hearts 2

Separate the two pieces and pull down to match the other ends together. 

Paper Hearts 3

Staple.  Heart.  Easy.

Paper Hearts 4

I also found this roll of red wire I bought on clearance a while back. 

Paper Hearts 5

Cut 17 pieces (or one more than the number of hearts you have), each 5” long.  Poke a small hole on the side of each heart.

Paper Hearts 6

Using a pair of needle-nosed pliers, curl one end of the wire into a little swirl.

Paper Hearts 7

Feed the straight end through the hole in the heart from the inside, then through the hole on another heart from the outside.  Bend the straight end into a swirl in the opposite direction from the first.

Paper Hearts 8

Repeat with the remaining hearts and wire.

Paper Hearts 9

Add a wire twist at each end for hanging.

Paper Hearts 10

You could also make shorter versions with just a few hearts and hang them everywhere.

Paper Hearts 11

I’m done playing now.  I have to go finish my sewing room so I can show it to you tomorrow!

Friday Favorites–Valentine’s Day, Part 1

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I doubt there is a more craft-friendly holiday than Valentine’s Day.  The projects tend to be a little on the simpler side and don’t involve a ton of supplies.  Kids can make many of them.  And they’re all about love, doesn’t that just make you feel all squishy inside?

Sometimes a craft using food is confusing.  It’s edible, but too pretty to actually eat.  I’m afraid these Sweet Gumdrop Roses from Craftberry Bush fall into that category.  But totally worth it.

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My kids are past the school Valentines age.  These iPhone Valentine printables from Living Locurto make me wish that wasn’t so.  I might have to make these for them.

iPhone-Candy-Valentine

These Valentine Bookmarks from Holiday Crafts and Creations would be a perfect reusable Valentine to make with the kiddos.

kids_sewing_projects_FeltheartsFinal

If you can still find candy canes, these Valentine Candy Cane Lollipops from Pleasant Home would be the perfect way to use them up.  In fact, I’m pretty sure I still have some in a cup in my kitchen…

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I’ve seen several of these embroidered love notes made to look like notebook paper, but this ps…I love you version from Flamingo Toes is one of my favorites.

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We have a giant container of old crayons in our house.  I think Pretty Window Valentine Hearts from Quiltish are the perfect use for them.

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I remember making these candy airplanes when I was a kid, but we never thought to take the wrapper off the Lifesaver roll.  It gives these Valentine Candy Airplanes from Shabby Chic Crafts a whole new look.

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These BFF Puzzle Necklaces from Speckless are brilliant.  My daughter doesn’t usually have just one person she would call her best friend – there are several.  With this project, she can have a whole box full!  This could even be a fun classroom game if you made them for each kid and had them assemble the puzzle.

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Join me again next Friday for Valentines Day Part 2!