Stitched Valentine's Day Card

I know, I know Christmas has just passed and already I am thinking about Valentine's Day..... I can't help it!

Valentine's Day is one of my favorites. All of the red and pink, heart decor, and glitter make me feel faint. I know that every day "should be like Valentine's Day" but I love the fact that we set aside a day to let the people in our lives know how much they  mean to us.

This does not have to break the bank however.

Making your own stitched Valentine's Day card is a great way to show someone in your life how much you care. The stitching adds a personal and unique touch, while you can save the $6 you didn't spend on a Hallmark card and add your own sentiment to the inside that will mean a lot more to the recipient. Or, if expressing yourself through words isn't really your thing, you can always google romantic poems/sayings and include one of the many results in your card as well.

Materials:

• Blank cards with envelopes (Can find a pack of 8 at Micheal's $1 spot)
• Yarn or thick thread of your choice
• needle
• shape to trace or a steady hand
• pencil

Step 1:
Take your stencil/shape or freehand a design onto the front of your card lightly with pencil.
Step 2: Using your needle, punch holes closely together around your design. This will help to ensure a uniform stitch.
Step 3: Thread needle and following the holes you already created, work your way around the design.

That's it.
You are really only limited by your creativity in what you want to convey with your cards. Happy crafting!

Button Love

Big J's niece is getting married this weekend, and I had no clue what to get her. I didn't want to go the registry route, as I wanted to give them something that was handmade and they could hold on to. I went into my craft room and sat staring at all of my supplies. I had just purchased a huge jar of buttons from the thrift store and decided to use them along with an old dollar store shadow frame to make them a framed button heart. I hope they love it, if not, I am totally stealing it to put it in my bedroom :).

Here is what you will need:

- shadow box frame

-thread and needle

-glue gun with glue

-lots and lots of buttons

-paper for backing

Step 1:

Pry the back off of your frame

Step 2:

If there was an embellishment in the frame take/scrape it out 

Step 3:

Hand rip your scrap paper to roughly fit the frame backing. Just eyeball it. It does not need to look perfect, and actually looks better imperfect.

Step 4:

Place your paper against your backing to see if you like the fit, if you want more of a rustic look. let more of the backing show through.

Step 5:
With a pencil, draw a hear shape on your paper

Step 6:

Using your needle and thread, begin sewing buttons all around the perimeter of your heart shape. You can also use hot glue to do this, but I like the look of the hand sewn buttons.

Step 7:
Fill in the heart with buttons. Where there are gaps, bend the paper and wedge buttons in, sewing them in place. This will give your heart dimension, and make the buttons really stand out.

Step 8:

Place hot glue along the back of the paper, wrong side up

Step 9:

Press heart gently onto backing of frame add more glue if needed.

Step 10:

Glue frame back in place with hot glue. Press backing onto frame to secure. 

Finished Product: