CRAFTASTIC: Love, Martha Style

If you read this blog regularly, you know I'm a huge fan of Martha Stewart.  I was browsing through her Valentine's Day craft ideas and came across a few I have to share.

 
How great would these candy-coated hearts be for your kids to give out as Valentines?  And they're so so easy to make.  Just take a few sheets of candy dots and cut out heart shapes (I would make a cardboard template as a guide).  Then glue the hearts you've cut out to construction paper and using scalloping scissors, cut the construction paper to create a border around the heart.  Have your child write a message on the back and presto!  Instant Valentines.

Aren't these translucent hearts adorable?  Well guess what?  They're made from wax paper and crayons!

This is such a great snowy day craft.  Take a 12-by-16-inch sheet of waxed paper and fold it in half along its length to make a crease, then unfold.  Using a handheld pencil sharpener or a cheese grater, add wax-crayon shavings evenly but not thickly across one half of the paper.

Fold the clean half of the paper over the shavings and crimp the three open edges with a 1/2-inch fold to keep the shavings in. Protect your ironing surface with kraft paper or something similar. Place the waxed paper on the protective layer and cover it with another sheet of kraft paper (a thin towel will work well for this also).  Iron lightly on medium heat, checking after every few passes, and stop when all the shavings have melted.

Once the wax has cooled, trace and cut out hearts of various sizes, then string each heart with a silk thread for hanging.  These would be adorable tied to packages or strung as a garland too!

Here's one more great idea that could be a terrific project for these winter weekends - a photo montage heart.

Again, this is so so easy to do.  Just arrange same-size vertical snapshots in a grid using removable double-sided tape and you've got an inexpensive and personalized piece of wall art!

There are so many more fabulous Valentine's Day-themed crafts, gifts and recipes from Martha that I could go on all day but I'll spare you.  In case you share my Martha love, you can find them all here.

And if you do try one of these crafts, be sure to send us pictures so we can feature you here on AFOMFT!


Images: Martha Stewart