Pinterest Inspired Valentine

While perusing Pinterest for cute Valentine's Day stuff, because Valentine's Day is actually my favorite thing ever, I came across some really cute Valentine ideas that I wish I would have had when I was a kiddo.

One in particular that I just LOVED was this bracelet Valentine by dandee.  I thought it was such a clever idea and I love a good pun!

So when my sorority decided to do Valentines I knew this idea would be perfect!  I am in a local sorority, so there are only around 60 girls which makes this valentine completely doable and really cheap!

Materials:
Embroidery String (at least 3 colors)
Scissors
Cardstock
Hole Puncher

The first thing you need to do is make your card.  I used  dandee's circle template, but I modified it a little bit to change "Our Class" to the name of my sorority.  I'm a little lazy and didn't cut the edges out all fancy, but it still works. 

You need to punch two holes on the side of the card so you can slip the bracelet through it.

Then you need to make the bracelets!  I just did a simple braid because I had to make 60 of them, but you can do whatever kind of design or pattern you like.  I also did the bracelets in my sorority's colors to make it even more personal! I cut each piece of string to around 18 inches, tied all three piece together, braided it, and then tied off the end.

You just slip it through the card and BAM! An adorable Valentine!

Canvas Chalkboard

I had a blank wall in my room at home that needed a bit of sprucing up so I came up with this adorable, cost effective chalkboard!  

Materials:

-2 11x14 Canvases (you can really use any size or however many you want)

-Chalkboard Paint

-Paint Brush

-Ribbon

Michael's has 40% off coupons nearly every week and if you put that towards the canvas you can get it for a really good price!  I hardly buy anything for crafting unless I have a coupon or it is on sale.  If you are like me and trying to slowly build up your supplies because of cost (poor college kid here!), then the Michaels weekly coupons are really a life saver!

1.  The first thing you need to do is paint your canvas.  Follow the directions on your bottle of paint.  I used the Craft Smart Brand of chalkboard paint.  It said I need to paint two coats, one vertical and one horizontal with an hour drying time in between.

2.  Paint the vertical coat, and get the paint on as thick as you can.  When I was done with my first coat it looked a little streaky, this is okay.

3.  Once an hour has passed you can paint the horizontal coat.  As I began this coat the canvas looked much better and the streaks were gone.

4.  You are supposed to let the paint cure for 24 hours and then lightly rub chalk over the entire board to condition it.

5.  I wanted to make my board fun by adding ribbon.  I added a strip of ribbon that I already had to the top of the first board and the bottom of the second board.  I also added ribbon in between to attach the two boards and ribbon on top to hang it from.  I had to use a hot glue gun to attach everything, but I would recommend using staples or something more stable if you can. 

I hope you enjoy this craft.  It's totally easy to customize it to make it however you want!  You can add letters, flowers, anything really.  It can go with any place in your room, dorm, or house because it is so versatile.  That's what I really love about crafting.  You can take something everyone else has done and make it your own with just your own imagination! 

Snowflake Candle Jar

 I needed a quick, easy, and cost effective Christmas present for my aunt and uncles this holiday season.  I came up with this idea while perusing the aisles at Michael's.  The jar is super cute and gives off a warm light that just makes it feel like the holiday season!  Also, the snowflakes  kind of shadow onto the wall which is super cool!

Materials:

-Glass jar of some kind

-White tissue paper

-Scissors

-Snowflake punch out stamps (optional, but highly recommended)

-Mod Podge

-Sponge Brush

-Tea light candle

1.  Start off by getting some type of jar or glass container.  It can really be any size or shape you want, but the jars i used were small, around 2.5 inches. They were $1 from Michael's.

2.  Take a sheet of white tissue paper and begin either punching out snowflakes with a stamp, or cut them out by hand.  This part really depends on how creative you want to be.  I would have had to cut out very small snow flakes to fit on my jar so a stamp was just more logical in my case. However, if you are up to the challenge, go ahead and cut out your own custom flakes!

3.  Once you have enough snowflakes cut out,  take your sponge brush and spread some mod podge onto the glass.  Stick your snowflake onto the wet glue.  Continue until all the snowflakes are on the jar.

4.  After the jar is somewhat dry, begin layering the mod podge over the snowflakes to seal them.  1-2 coats should be sufficient.  Remember to drag the brush the same way all the way around the jar to give it a more uniform look.  Be very careful though because the tissue paper can get messed up if you are too rough.

5.  After you are done wait for the glue to dry, set a tea light inside, and BAM! you have the world's cutest snowflake candle jar!