Craft Project #4- Handmade Valentines

It's hard to believe Valentine's Day is already here! It seems like only yesterday I was taking down the Christmas decorations and trying to make room in our already crowded house for more toys. Never the less, that wonderful day devoted to love in all forms is now upon us, and one of my greatest loves was the inspiration for my latest project.

Last week when we were out shopping, I thought to pick up some of those inexpensive, mass produced, media inspired valentine cards that all the kids pass around every year. There were very few choices for my 10 yr old son, but lucky for me he's not too particular. So I threw them in the cart and went on about my shopping. It wasn't until much later, when I was home making supper that I realized I hadn't picked up a box for my four year old daughter to hand out to her preschool class.

Now, my baby girl has grown quite a bit in her creativity over the last few months by drawing, cutting and pasting with more patience and interest than my son ever had. So for this reason, I decided that we could just make her Valentine cards together this year.

-I started out by sketching a Valentine version of my little Ella Font character (included in my Valentine clip art set here) and printed out several colored copies on plain white copy paper.

- Next I cut 2 sheets each of red and pink craft paper and 4 sheets of white card stock into equal pieces.

- Then I used a pair of decorative scrap booking scissors to cut around the edges of all the colored paper pieces as well as the little Ella Font printed design.

Finally my little helper and I spent some fun creative time pasting the pieces together and decorating a few with stamps and markers. I think they turned out pretty good, and I know no one else will have a Valentine card like ours.

As an afterthought, I added my logo stamp with my Etsy shop address to the back of each card. I'm hoping our handmade cards stand out enough from all the others that they might just convert some other mom's out there to try the handmade Valentine or at least peek their interest enough to warrant a visit to my shop.

The best part of the experience was spending some quality time with my daughter doing something that we both enjoyed! :)



I'd love to hear from you!!
Do you craft alone, with your kids, or in a group of friends?
What kind of unique craft projects have you created?

I'd love to hear and see what you've created! If you'd like to share, become a fan of Printastic Designs on Facebook then visit the discussion tab to add your craft project ideas too! If you have a finished photo you want to share just post it to the wall with a short comment. If you have an Etsy shop or related blog, feel free to post your link on the discussion tab as well. Hopefully soon there will be several great craft ideas listed, and I know we can all benefit from new ideas and networking!
Also, for a limited time, those who participate in the discussion will receive a 25% discount code good for anything in my Etsy shop!

Happy Crafting-
Jill♥