Whether you are creating a Valentine for your secret crush, your grandmother, or your four year old, here are some simple, thoughtful ways to say I Love You this year on Valentine’s Day.
Valentine Mailboxes
Oriental Trading.com offers a super cute, very inexpensive ($9.95 makes 12!) set of decorate-your-own Valentine mailboxes that kids would have lots of fun creating. Of course, with a little time and creativity you could also create your own mailbox kit for kids using shoe boxes or tissue boxes, red glitter and sequins, and lace doily hearts. Glue on conversation hearts for added dimension. Kids love having their own individual mailbox to collect Valentines- and if they’ve decorated the box themselves, it makes a great Valentine’s Day keepsake.
Handmade Cards
Nothing says Valentine’s Day like a handmade card. Whether created by a child or an adult, it’s these simple greetings made with love that are impossible to throw away. You can visit a craft store and choose from a wide variety of stickers, papers, felt hearts, beads, lace and other decorative items and make your own Valentine on construction paper or craft foam, or check out The Valentine Kit: All You Need To Create Your Own Valentines [Jones, Carey, Chronicle Books, 2005], which will provide the things you’ll need to create ten homemade Valentine Cards for your loved ones There’s also a book called Straight from the Heart: A Make-Your-Own Valentine Card Kit [Conlon, Mara, Price Stern Sloan publishers, 2005] that helps you learn to create unique, pretty Valentines for years to come.
Family Fun
Looking for some neat ways for your family to celebrate Valentine’s Day? Family Fun has compiled a spectacular collection of Valentine’s Day printables, crafts, how-to videos, games, yummy treats, party ideas and unique gifts. This is a great one-stop shopping place for fun Valentine’s Day ideas.
Heart Candles
Once again Oriental Trading proves to be the winner in providing tons of choices for holiday crafts. Check out their Heart Stacking Candle Craft Kit, (which is only $9.95 to make 12!) which is easy to make for kids and creates a beautiful gift for them to give to teachers and loved ones.
Craft Stick Jewelry Box
Kaboose.com has a great idea for an adorable Valentine’s gift for kids to make for parents, grandparents or teachers. It’s a simple box made from wooden craft sticks. Easy to create for children, but add a hand-signed date and name by the child (with a Sharpie) and it will be a Valentine’s Day keepsake that will be treasured forever.
