Ideas for Valentines Day!
What you’ll need:
- 9″ dinner plate or paper plate
- Recycled cereal box or other thin cardboard
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Heart pattern
- Construction paper: pink, purple, red, and blue
- Markers, crayons or paint pens
- Glue sticks
- Yarn for hanger (optional)
- Pattern
How to make it:
- Trace around the 9″ plate onto the cardboard.
- Use your pen or pencil to draw another circle inside that one, about an inch away from the outside circle.
- Cut out the circle and the center of the circle to create a cardboard wreath base.
- Fold a piece of scrap paper in half. Using the heart pattern line up the fold line of the scrap paper with the dotted line of the pattern. Cut out the shape so that when you open it, you have a heart shape.
- Fold the short end of a piece of construction paper up about 3 inches. Place the folded heart around the folded paper and trace the half heart shape into the paper. You should be able to fit three hearts on the paper. Repeat this step for each colored piece of paper; you will have a total of 12 hearts.
- Cut out all the hearts and flatten out the creases so that the hearts lay flat. Using markers, crayons, or paint pens, write conversation candy phrases on the hearts such as “LOVE”, “HUBBA HUBBA”, “SWEET”, “LOVE”, “BE MINE”, “KISS” and “PAL”.
- Arrange your hearts on top of the cardboard wreath shape without gluing them down. Once you have them where you want them, use the glue stick to attach each one.
- You can hang the wreath as is or attach a piece of looped yarn to the back as a hanger.
Tips:
- Paint pens are available from your local craft supply store.
- Instead of construction paper, you can use colorful cardstock for this project.
- Construction paper provides hours of fun and stimulates your child’s imagination!
What you’ll need:
- 1 ½ green chenille stems (per flower)
- Red craft foam
- Scissors
- White craft glue or hot glue gun
How to make it:
- Set aside the ½ chenille stem for a later step. Take the full chenille stem and bend it in half. Starting at the bent end, twist the chenille stem around itself all the way up. When you reach the end trim it to make it even if needed.
- Cut out 1” tear drop shapes from the red foam, you will need 7 of these.
- Cut out ¾” tear drop shapes from the red foam, you will need 3 of these.
- Lay a 1” tear drop on the table, point side down. Glue the open end of the twisted chenille stem to the red tear drop petal.
- Glue a second tear drop behind the first tear drop (point side down), most of the tear drop in back will be visible. Repeat on the other side. Repeat again on each side, gluing them in a curved fashion (similar to a half circle). When you are done there should be one petal in the middle and 3 on each side.
- Glue one of the smaller tear drop petals on top of the green chenille stem. Glue the other two smaller petals overlapping the first one, point side down.
- Once these are all dry, bend and curve the foam petals to join both rounded sides together to form the flower. Glue in place and hold until dry, hot glue comes in handy here.
- Use the ½ chenille stem to bend the leaves into shape and twist around the stem.
Tips:
- Craft foam can be purchased in precut shapes or in sheets.
- If using a hot glue gun, be sure to get a low temp one and follow the instructions carefully.
- Make a bouquet of these roses and place in a decorated baby food jar!
What you’ll need:
- 1 empty box, any size
- Valentine themed wrapping paper or pink/red construction paper
- Pink construction paper
- White paper for poem
- White craft glue
- White ribbon
- Scissors
How to make it:
- Wrap the empty box in wrapping paper or construction paper.
- Tie white ribbon around the box and tie into a bow on the top.
- Print out the poem below.
- Trim the poem and glue the trimmed poem to pink construction paper.
- Trim the pink construction paper to give it an even border all the way around.
- Glue the poem to the box.
Friendship Box Poem
by Amanda Formaro
Inside this fancy little box
I placed a gift so nice
You’ll probably always cherish it
Not even thinking twice
Now even though this box I give
Holds nothing you can touch
I’ve placed inside our friendship
It’s you I like so much!
Tips:
- You can use any size box you like. If you are doing this as a school project, suggest boxes such as toothpaste, toaster pastries, crayons, toothpicks or cereal bars.
- If you don’t have wrapping paper, you can wrap the box in construction paper and decorate with stickers, glitter and sequins.
- If giving this gift to or from a boy and prefer alternate colors, try light blue and purple!
What you’ll need:
- 8.5 x 11 construction paper or card stock in various colors and/or patterns
- Valentine and/or heart stickers
- Scissors
- Pinking shears (optional)
- Glue stick or white craft or school glue
- Glitter (pink, red, white)
How to make it:
- Begin by cutting a piece of construction paper or card stock into four equal pieces.
- Fold quartered paper in half to make a card.
- For the easiest version, appropriate for preschoolers, use stickers to decorate or cut out hearts from a different color of construction paper or card stock to glue onto your cards. Experiment with different patterns, florals look great contrasted with stripes on a solid background.
- Younger children love glitter! Use a bottle of glue to “draw” on a heart or phrase (such as “Be Mine”). Sprinkle glue generously with pink, red or white glitter and let dry over night. Tap off excess glitter when completely dry.
- For the older set, let them use pinking sheers to cut out heart shapes and glue onto cards. Again, use contrasting patterns and colors to create a charming design.
- Once glue is dry, cards may curl up a little. Place cards between the pages of a heavy cookbook or phone book and leave over night.
Tips:
Finding the perfect paper. Card stock is available in literally hundreds of different designs. The scrap-booking aisle at your local craft store has individual sheets or pads of various colors and patterns. Caution, these papers can get costly, watch for sales or purchase these papers with other projects in mind as well. Construction paper is inexpensive and children love it just as much.
Save on stickers. Discount department stores, such as Wal Mart and Kmart carry a large variety of stickers. You may also want to check your local dollar store.
