Valentine LOVE
I have to admit, I LOVE when the end of January rolls around… even when the skies are grey and the temps outside are freezing! I have one thing on my mind…
…lots of pink, red, and white. Valentine crafting fever hits me hard this time every year.
It starts when I begin to see all the kiddie Valentines in the stores. You know the cute boxed little cards for them to give to their classmates and teacher. I want to buy a pack since they bring back such fond memories of my childhood.
I wasn’t very book smart in grade school, but I shined when it came to the creative side of things in the classroom. I can still smell the glue which was actually a big glob of paste that the art teacher would plop on a small piece of paper on our desks to use to make Valentines to give our family and friends. Crafts supplies have come a long way since then, making the art of Valentine creating even more fun – like double-sided tape and glue sticks.
I also am reminded of the days when I would volunteer at my daughter’s school on Valentine’s Day to help out as a class mom. I always got the paper crafting job. Forget bringing the cupcakes, Mrs. Henkler always was the mom who was in charge of the craft for the class Valentine’s Day party for 10 years. It makes me smile when one of my daughter’s classmates from elementary school, who are now in their mid 20’s, comes up to me when I am out and about and says… “I remember you – you were the class mom who made the…” I helped make many simple little crafts for the kids to take home.
I no longer have the opportunity to be a class mom anymore, but I do like to create something Valentine-y for my daughters to get in the mail as a Valentine’s Day surprise in their mailbox. I started doing it while they were in college. I have posted a few of the simple little gifts I have made them over the years. (I attached links to each one at the end of this post.) The gift is more about getting some mailbox love then the actual gift itself. It is usually something inexpensive, but always red or pink with a few Valentine’s HK’s (Hershey Kisses) thrown in.
This year, I decided not to make a novelty item that would end up in a drawer unused since they would not want to throw out a gift I gave to them. I wanted to send them something that said Valentine, but that they would use and could reuse year after year. I don’t want to be the cause for future clutter issues for them :-)
When shopping at HomeGoods last week, I came across a display of Valentine dish towels. Two to a pack. Perfect – one for each daughter and something that they will use since they each have a kitchen in their apartments.
I had to come up with a way to wrap them for sending via the mail. When I make Valentine crafts, I don’t start with a plan. Instead, I raid my paper and ribbon stash to see what I have. I gather it all and then find a few papers that suit my fancy and start creating. It was no different this year.
How to Wrap A Valentine Gift by Repurposing a Used Gift Wrap Tube
supplies needed:
- Gift wrap
- Gift wrap tube
- Paper doily placemat (dollar store)
- Scrap of pink card stock and construction paper
- 10″ piece of ribbon
- Hole punch
- Double-sided tape
- Paper and metal tags with a ring (found at Ace Hardware in the bargain bins)
I needed something that I could send in the mail and found a gift wrap tube in my basement.
1. I cut the tube in half to use as a box for each dishtowel. I rolled the towels into a tight roll and pushed each one into a tube.
2. I wrapped red and white houndstooth gift wrap that I bought at the dollar store around each tube. I cut a paper doily placemat in half – one for each tube. I then wrapped each half around each tube. I used a nifty double-sided tape roller that I bought at the craft store in the scrapbooking aisle to attach the paper to the tubes. I like using this better than Scotch tape since it goes under the paper and can’t be seen.
3. I cut the excess gift wrap on the ends of the tube about 2″ from each end. To close the ends, I simply folded the excess gift wrap to the inside end of the tube.
4. I cut a piece of pink card stock 2″ wide and long enough to wrap and overlap slightly around the center of the tube.
How to Attach Ribbon Through Two Holes in Paper to Make a Box
1. Punch two holes in center of paper strip about 1 ” apart. Thread round metal-rimmed tag on a 10″ length of ribbon. Working from the front of the paper. Push the ends of the ribbon into each hole. Pull ends to back.
2. Cross ribbons in back of paper and then bring ends through the opposite holes they just came through, pull ends to the front.
3. Pull ends so the center section of ribbon between the two holes lays flat. Notch ends of ribbon with scissors.
4. I drew the letters M and K on pink construction paper and cut them out with a pair of tiny nail scissors. I used a glue stick to attach them to the round metal-rimmed tags.
I do like to create pretty packages so that the gifts I give, no matter how small or large, have “present presence”.
To send them in the mail, I had 2 large padded plastic mailing bags that each tube fit into.
Off I now go to the US Postal Service to get them on their way to my daughters so they have time to display and use them to celebrate Valentine’s Day.
More Valentine paper crafting ideas:
If you enjoyed this post you may also enjoy the easy to follow DIY Decorating Tutorials and Creative Ideas on my blog, In My Own Style.com Republishing this article in full or in part is a violation of Copyright law @2009-2014, all rights reserved
