Cupid's Arrow Valentine + Free Printable

I know I'm too late in posting this for anybody to get any use out of it this year, but feel free to pin it or file it away to use some other time. These are the Valentines my daughter is giving her class. She LOVES gum and wanted to include gum with her valentine, and I got the idea from this pin. I adapted my version to work better for me. First of all, I can't find packs of gum like that... maybe they don't make them anymore? We ended up just using two sticks of gum for the middle (cheaper anyway!) and wrapped them with custom wrappers (download for free below). I also didn't want to put unwrapped candy on then end because I wasn't going to put each arrow in its own bag. I had this awesome glitter paper by American Crafts in my stash that has been waiting to see the light of day, so we pulled it out and used it for the main part of our arrows. Here's my process:

1. Gather supplies
• Glitter paper (or whatever stiff paper you have on hand, it doesn't have to be glitter... normal card stock will work great)
• Skewers (I took the picture first, but I actually cut the points off using my garden shears... figured it'd be safer that way for 2nd graders)
• Gum sticks
• 1/8" hole punch
• Baker's twine or other small string
• Printable gum wrapper (download below).





2. Cut rectangles/arrows and hearts out of paper.
• My rectangles were 1-1/8" x 2-1/4". I used scissors to notch the bottom (nothing too precise... just eyeball it), then use that triangle piece as a pattern to angle the top. This gives you the arrow shape.
• I used my Sizzix to punch out the hearts, but you could just trace a cookie cutter your own heart shape and cut them out that way.





3. Punch two holes in each shape.





4. Thread the shapes onto each end of the stick. Once the shapes are on, cut fringe in the arrow (make sure not to cut all the way to where the hole is punched).





5. Wrap the wrappers around the sticks of gum and secure with a piece of tape. One of the wrappers says "from", so you can write the giver's name on it.





6. Put two pieces of gum back to back on the middle of the stick and tie the ends together with Baker's twine (to make it a little easier, you can dab a little glue to keep the gum on the sticks before tying the string... I used a low-temp glue gun). There you go. A super cute Valentine to give away! 

Click here or on the image below to download these free, printable gum wrappers.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Free Valentine Heart Printable Update + Pencil Instructions

I made these Valentine pencils about four years ago for my kids to give their teachers and the office staff at their school. They were a big hit with the receivers, and ever since I blogged about them, they have garnered a lot of interest. They are my most pinned photo on Pinterest, and my most visited blog posts are about the pencils. I wish I could claim credit for the original idea, but this was just my take on a similar idea I'd seen from someone else, who had also gotten the idea from someone else, and so on. Once I posted them, I started getting a lot of e-mails, comments, etc. asking for more details. I was also lucky enough to have a back-to-school version of the pencils I made featured in the September 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes and through CK on a local TV show, Studio 5. These are the ones that were published:

Back-to-School Rolo Pencils originally published in September 2010 in Creating Keepsakes Magazine.

After my original blog post about the Valentine pencils, I had so many people ask for instructions that I created a follow-up post with the instructions. After I posted the follow-up, I had several people ask about the heart I attached. The actual heart I used is no longer available, so I created my own that people could download and use. Having the original post, instructions, and free download spread across three different posts is confusing, so I decided to consolidate and put everything in one place.

Valentine Rolo Pencil Instructions

1. Cut a 3.5”x4.5” piece of yellow cardstock. Make score lines every 1/4 inch (the score lines should be parallel with the long side of the cardstock). Using pinking shears or decorative pinking scissors, cut a small strip off the short side of the cardstock. Wrap this piece around the Rolo’s, and use adhesive to hold together.

2. Cut a 3.5”x3/8” piece of pink cardstock. Wrap this around the top of the Rolo’s for the edge of the pink eraser. Trace the top of the Rolo’s on pink cardstock and cut out to get the top of your eraser. Stick this on top with adhesive.

3. Cut a 3.5”x3/8” piece of aluminum foil and adhere this around the seam where the yellow and pink cardstock meet. Use Glue Dots to adhere a Hershey’s Kiss to the bottom of the Rolo’s. This is the pencil point.

4. Tie a cute ribbon around the top and add a tag (free heart printable below). Give to someone you love!

Valentine Heart Printable

Click here or on the image below to download this printable sheet.

Other posts about these pencils can be found here, here, and here.

Feel free to e-mail me or leave a comment if you have any questions, and I'll try to answer them!

Free Printable | Lollipop Valentines

One month until Valentine's Day! Want to get started a little early? Here's a quick, easy Valentine you can put together with your kids this year. Just download and print out the free template below. Cut each lollipop cover out, use a small hole punch to punch a hole where indicated, and score/fold along the dotted lines. Stick a small lollipop through the hole (I used the flat kind of sucker that has the flat cellophane wrapper… sorry forgot to get a pic), and fold the front flap over and into the little tab. Staple each side to hold closed. There's a space on the back for your child to sign their name.

Click here or on the image below to download this free printable:

Scrap Paper Garland

I used to be a paper scrapbooker. Years ago. I still love to make handmade cards and other crafty stuff, but I don't really paper scrapbook anymore. Not in the traditional sense anyway… Project Life? Yes! Anyway, I have stacks and piles of scraps of patterned paper. This scrap paper garland is a great way to use paper scraps and pieces that probably won't be used for anything else, and it's pretty cute, too! It's super simple, so get the kids involved. My daughter loved working on this with me.

First, we tore the paper up into little pieces. No measurements, nothing precise… just tear. We used Elmer's glue thinned with a little bit of water (you could also use Mod Podge) and a foam brush to adhere the scraps to a sheet of white card stock.

I think the easiest method is to brush the glue on the paper (work a section at a time so the glue doesn't dry before you're finished) and stick the scraps to them. Overlap the pieces so that there is no white left showing. It doesn't matter if they aren't stuck all the way down because once the white paper is covered, you brush a thin layer of glue over the entire sheet.

Once the white card stock is completely covered and you've brushed a layer of glue over the top, let the mosaic paper dry completely before completing the next step.

Turn the paper over and trace hearts over the entire sheet (we used a cookie cutter as a stencil). Cut the hearts out and punch a small hole on each side.

Thread a thin string (or ribbon, yarn, cord, whatever) through the punched holes of each heart to create the garland.

We used our garland to decorate for Valentine's day. The great thing about this is it can be adapted for any occasion depending on the colors/patterns of paper you use and the shape.

Pinned + True | Balloon Garland

I love Pinterest. I have a lot of pins. (My Pinterest boards found here.) A.LOT. Obviously, more pins than I'll ever have time to attempt. But, I do actually try some of the pins I pin. I've created a board called Pinned and True where I can keep track of things I tried that worked for me. This balloon garland is one of them. It's so simple but genius. All you do is blow up a bunch of balloons and using a needle (careful not to pop the balloons) and thin string, thread the string through the tail part of the balloon. I don't really know what it's called, but it looks like a little tail, right? Anyway… genius, I tell you. No need for helium.

Link to the pinned idea: http://www.agirlandaboy.com/journal/archives/002791.html

valentine necklaces

This is a project I did with my daughter last year. We got the idea from the eighteen25 blog right here. Her favorite color is turquoise, so we even kept the same color scheme. She loved painting the beads and putting the necklaces together. We made three... two to keep and one to give to her grandma. She's been wearing her necklace this week, and she asked me if we can make another one to give to her teacher. I think we will... they're super cute and a fun activity to do together. :)

We made a fun, little gift box to wrap our gift necklace.

Credits: Paper Heart by Crate Paper at ACdigitals.com

valentine heart printable

**Note: Click here for an updated Valentine Pencil post.**

My most popular project I've shown on my blog is hands down the Valentine pencils that I originally posted about here and here. It gets pinned on Pinterest frequently, and I often get questions about these pencils. You can go to this post for a written tutorial if you're interested. :)

I have had several people ask about the cute heart attached to them. The heart itself was from a digital scrapbooking kit a few years ago, and then I added the text. The kit is no longer available as that designer is no longer designing. I put together a similar heart that you can use instead. There are a few variations of it all on this printable .pdf. Click here or on the image to download. (It's free.)

I'd love to see your version of these pencils if you make them... link me up in the comments!

projects for valentine's day

Here are some of my past Valentine projects... take a look!

Adored Favor Box Printables

Lollipop Valentines

Printable Crayon Valentines

Fabric Bookmarks

Pillow Box Valentines

Boxed Valentines

More Pillow Box Valentines (tutorial at SM here)

Heart Bag

I have a few more projects I want to revisit and a couple of new ones to share later this week, so check back if you're looking for fun Valentine's Day projects.

happy valentine's day!

My kids came home from school today happy and excited to show me all their valentines from their friends. We capped the day off with heart-shaped pizza from Papa Murphy's (one of my kids very favorite dinners) and a family race on Mario Kart. Here's a round-up of our valentines this year:

I saw these valentines on the eighteen25 blog and thought they were so much fun. My kids liked them, too, so that's what we went with this year. We were quite happy with how they turned out:



We made these for the teachers (idea also courtesy of eighteen25):



I also made some individually-wrapped ones to give to some friends:



I also helped my son and niece make valentine boxes for their classes (my other kids made sacks in their classrooms). They chose to make a Diet Coke can and a Lego. They were fun to make, and I think they were both happy with the results.





Happy Valentine's Day! Did you make valentines this year? I'd love to see them if you did!

box of crayons printable cards + winner announced

New today in my shop are these very fun printable cards. I've given these cards to my kids' teachers in the past, and I've also used them as birthday cards for my kids to give to their friends. I finally organized all my little files into an easy printable format that is available in my shop today! There are two versions available. The first is a standard folded card that is 4.25" x 5.5" (when folded). In this one I've included one that is ready to just print, cut and fold... super easy! There is also one where you can cut the crayons out and put them on the inside of the card (instructions included). The second version is a set of printable Valentines that are approximately 2.5" x 3.25". Both cards also come with printable envelopes that are sized to fit the cards.

Both versions are on sale for 20% off through the weekend. Here they are (just click on them to take you to ScrapMatters where you can get them).





GIVEAWAY WINNER

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to enter my giveaway. The lucky winner is...





Congrats, lwentkie... you win each of these printables!! E-mail me so I can get you instructions on how to get your boxes of crayons!