Niko and Nonnie: Easy V-Day crafting with kids

Assortment of scrapbooking paper and cardstock

At any given time in our household, there is an abundance of crafting materials. Not only do we incorporate Arts & Crafts into our homeschooling and week-end routines, but I also have quite a large collection because of both the shop and my own personal interests. I have long been that person who can browse for hours in aisles of stationery, embellishments, writing implements and cardstock. My family knows I can never leave a papeterie empty-handed, and they have since joined in on picking out their own various bits and pieces. A recent trip to neighbourhood store Paper Source to check out their Valentine window display yielded carousel and train stampers, platinum embossing ink, pink metal brads and a long wish list.

We start our Valentine's Day preparations well in advance. In addition to the little party we'll be having this year, there are always decorations and projects to be done, and these change from year to year. You do not need much to make simple, playful decorations that your children can work on with you. Indeed, in these instances, scissors, paper and a bit of twine can be your absolute best friend. Just be sure to clear off enough work space so that everyone can get in and get creative.

Valentine's Day Frames

Quick and easy to make, these frames are sweet enough to leave out on display even after Valentine's Day has come and gone.

Materials:

-Unfinished wooden frame
-Decorative scrapbooking paper or cardstock
-Glue stick or hot glue
-Scissors

Wooden frame courtesy of Michael's

I love these pine frames from Michael's. They are dead cheap to buy, and their unfinished surfaces lend them to use for a variety of craft projects. You could hot glue buttons all over them, mosaic tiles, wooden appliqués...

Because I worked with the children on these projects, we skipped the hot glue and used glue sticks instead. The first thing we did was to choose a couple of our favourite photographs. These are not current photos by any means, and they don't necessarily have to be for this type of project. We chose one of me and my son (as a little mini!) at the Bronx Zoo as well as a sweet one with my daughter posing in our kitchen a couple of years ago. So far we've made two of these frames and will be making a special one for Papa as well in time for the 14th.

Photos and contrasting paper

Removing the blue cardboard heart that came in the wooden frame, we used it as a guide to cut out heart-shaped photographs that were a bit smaller than it. We then traced the cardboard heart onto decorative paper and cut it out. Next, we glued the photographs to the paper hearts.

The final two steps are quite easy as well. Simply flip the frame over and trace the outside edges and the inside of the cut-out heart onto whichever paper you have chosen for the frame. Once you have done that, cut it out, glue it down ...

Et voilà!

Japanese washi paper and polka dot accents

Hearts adorned with wooden blue bird appliqué

The thing about doing cut-outs is that they also leave you with a bunch of scraps which, if they happen to be Japanese washi paper or special cardstock, you might feel bad about balling up and tossing in the bin. Here is what we did with our excess:

Valentine's Day Garland

Materials:

Scissors
Decorative paper/scraps
Butcher's twine
Scotch tape

We simply cut out hearts of various sizes, using the 3 contrasting papers of pink+white polka dot, yellow stripes and pink+red flowers. Cut butcher's twine, 1 long strip and 2 short strips, space out the hearts and tape them on...

Find an archway, doorway or a bit of open space and hang them up!