As valentines day comes closer you might be scrambling to find the perfect gift for your family, friends and special someone. Though store bought gifts are a simple option, a nice, not tacky gift tends to be expensive. Making your valentines this year is not only kinder on your bank accounts, but the loving, manual labor put in will earn more appreciation then any dollar bill can buy.
Here are a few quick and simple ideas:
- Thoughtful Note
Cut, draw, or print out a paper heart, or card. Write in their name and a kind personal message. You could also include a sweet photo or drawing of the two of you.
- Bracelets
For this gift all you need is some string and beads. Use clay or plastic beads on elastic string. Create fun patterns using your valentines’ favorite color or the traditional pink and red. Use letter beads to spell out names, and cute messages like XOXO and I🖤 U.
For your friends you can also make valentines colored friendship bracelets. Tutorials can be found online for dozens of different patterns. You can add a heart shape bead to your hand woven bracelet for a special touch.
- Paper Flower Bouquet
These can take a bit of time but are very cheep and easy to make with paper being every where. Tutorials for dozens of different kinds can be found online but below is a simple example.
- Scrunchie
Scrunchies are a great gift for a friend. They are stylish and are much better for your hair then the basic hair tie. To make them takes very little effort and are a great for people who are not amazing at crafting. This gift will require more supplies like valentines colored fabric, thread and needle, elastic, and for a much easier make, a sewing machine.
To start cut out a 22in by 3in scrap of fabric. Cut out 9in of elastic. Fold the fabric in half wrong side facing out and pin it together. Then take your fabric tube and sew the two sides together. Next, take your tube and pull the to the correct side of the fabric so your stitch is not visible. Now its time to add in the elastic. Connect a safety pin to the end of the elastic. Use the safety pin to pull the elastic through, scrunching up the fabric as you do so. Finally push one end of the fabric into the other and then sew straight down.
- Heart Pillow
Another sewing craft you can gift your valentine is a heart shaped pillow. Like the scrunchie, this does require more supplies you might need to buy including stuffing. In the end, though, this gift does end up looking much more crisp cut and professionally done.
For this gift take a reasonably sized piece of fabric and fold it in half, wrong side facing up. Draw a heart out line onto the the fabric and pin it down to prevent movement while cut. With the pins in place around the outline cut out your heart. Next take your fabric to the sewing machine, or you can hand sew, and sew around the out line of the heart, with the wrong side still facing out. Leave a small gap for the stuffing. Once your heart is sewn pull the right side of the fabric out through the gap. Now it’s time to add the stuffing. For the stuffing you can use fabric scraps, beans and rice, feathers, or normal cotton stuffing if available. Stuff your stuffing into the gap and then hand sew it up. Finally you have your beautiful heart shaped pillow.
- Picture Frame
For this craft you can use popsicle sticks or buy a blank, wood one. Use permanent markers and paints to draw hearts, candies, and symbols that are important to your valentine. Inside the picture frame you can put a photo of the two of you or an image of something they love.
- Artwork
If your an artist then a quick drawing or painting could be the perfect gift for you to give. You can draw out a portrait of you and the person, some of their favorite things, or a cute valentines day image. Add in a thoughtful note or a magnet for them to hang it up with in their locker. This could be the perfect thing for you to put inside your picture frame.
