Valentine's Day DIY Hearts

Being the "crafty" mom I am and having the "Craft Diva" for a daughter, I can't let a crafty holiday like Valentine's Day go by without making handmade valentines for her class.  They are such a great alternative to the little boxes of cartoon papers.

This year I found a cool idea from Pinterest:

Source: radmegan.blogspot.com via Cindy on Pinterest

These are actually Danish hearts that are traditionally made at Christmas.  In this example, they are made with felt, but in blog page describing this craft, there is also descriptions of the hearts being made from paper. Voila!  Perfect valentines!  Did I mention that these hearts open up to little baskets that can be used for candy, notes, etc?

Here's how I made mine:

I used pink and red (prints and solids) from my enormous stash of scrapbook paper (that almost never gets used).  I didn't use a card stock weight, but instead the thinner weight (something between copy paper and card stock).  I cut an oval about 4" wide and 10" long from heavier card stock for a template.  You can make it whatever size you want, but the way I created mine was to use a circle 4" in diameter and cut it in half to make the ends.  Then, make it the length you want.  The shorter the length, the smaller the heart and resulting interior "basket".

Using the template, you will need two ovals for each valentine.  I made a bunch because I have to make 30 for my daughter's class.

Take your two ovals and fold them in half together, print side out.  Then cut three cuts through both ovals, beginning at the fold and up to about 1" from the curve of the oval.  The spaces between the cuts will be the sections that are weaved together.  I tried being very exact about the width between each cut and making sure they were perfectly matched.  Don't bother.  If you fold the two ovals together and cut both from the fold, they will be fine.

Now you're ready to weave.  Hold the folded ovals at the top curves in either hand.  If you understand the idea of weaving in and out, you're halfway there.  The only difference here is that the papers must cross in the folds to create the in-out weave.

                   

It's a little hard to do at first, but what I learned is that you shouldn't be afraid to bend the strips to get them weaved together.  They won't tear.  Also, do one strip at a time and keep pushing the weaved strips toward the curves.

When you get them all weaved, pull a little outward on all sides.  This will keep it from looking like you have strips sticking out the sides of your heart.  If done correctly, you should be able to open the top and see the basket weave.

Whatever kind of valentines your kids take to school, make it a fun and special day for them.

cindy

Sugar Sugar

During a recent shopping trip, my daughter and I discovered utopia.

Utopia is It's Sugar, a new store that recently made its appearance in Arizona.  Many of you may be familiar with it, because there are locations in 17 other states and in several international locations.  We just call it utopia.

It's a feast for the eyes, with rows of loose candy in clear containers so you can buy whatever assortment you want by the pound.

  

You won't believe the selection - so many candies that we "older" people remember from our childhoods that you can't easily find: Lemonheads, Boston Baked Beans, sour gummy worms, orange slices, Spree and Sugar Daddy.  For me, the multiple chocolate covered stuff was intoxicating - raisins, every kind of nut, pretzels, cookie dough, cake batter.  Heck, they could covered about anything in chocolate and I would love it!

It's Sugar has an oversized candy collection that only exists in sugar dreams.  Look at the ones above.  Who knew there was a 1 pound Snickers bar??  This thing is huge!  You can also find the largest Reese Peanut Butter Cups, Twizzlers, Peeps and a giant sheet of Rice Krispies Treats.  Some of the fun ones, included a 5 pound gummy bear, the largest gummy worm and a box of Peeps that will send you into the most intense sugar high ever!

Mackenzie settled on the big gummy bear on a stick.  I think this thing weighed about half a pound. (Beware of those giant gummies - you need to wrap them or they will become rock hard!)














We also enjoyed the giant Hershey Chocolate sauce piggy banks.  A girl can dream, right?


As you can guess, there are lots of novelties (some of which are not appropriate for children). I was told by the nice saleslady that the stores in Las Vegas have some pretty naughty stuff. Here's a few magnets I loved (sorry for the marginal pictures).

This place was so entertaining (and intoxicating), I'm definitely going to have a hard time staying away.

Don't forget about Valentine's Day!

cindy

Feed the Love - Valentine Desserts

Food is the ultimate aphrodisiac.  I can't decide whether looking at beautiful desserts or eating beautiful desserts is better.  I do like sugar.  I went looking for the most beautiful, yummy desserts for your Valentine's Day.  Some look easy to make, some not so much.  Of course, I have neither made nor tasted any of these desserts.  (But I might sometime!)  Here are the 10 I chose, in no particular order:

1.  Pomegranate Pana Cotta.  Pomegranates are supposed to be great aphrodisiacs, but I just like the way this one looks.

Source: epicurious.com via Cindy on Pinterest

2. Valentine Cookies.  Fancy looking without too much effort.

Source: marthastewart.com via Cindy on Pinterest

3.  Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding with Raspberries - There is something beautiful about rich browns and deep raspberry colors.  You could always make this with instant chocolate pudding mix, raspberries and some shaved white chocolate, but I bet it wouldn't taste anything like this :)

Source: myrecipes.com via Cindy on Pinterest

4. Coeurs a la Creme - If you're a foodie, give it your best shot. Otherwise, just look at the pretty picture.

Source: marthastewart.com via Cindy on Pinterest

5. Strawberry "oreo" cookies - These aren't Oreos. The only Oreo about them is that they are a sandwich cookie. Not too hard to make, but I'm just not convinced they are worth the effort when they don't present well.

Source: thirtyhandmadedays.com via Cindy on Pinterest

6. Carmel-Dark Chocolate Truffles with Fleur de Sel - Gorgeous, aren't they? You can click through to the recipe, but I would suggest leaving this one to the professionals.

Source: epicurious.com via Cindy on Pinterest

7.  Chocolate Glazed Chocolate Tart - Now we're talking!

Source: epicurious.com via Cindy on Pinterest

8. Watermelon Hearts - This is pretty, easy and light, but is that really the message you want to convey on Valentine's Day?

Source: otchipotchi.com via Cindy on Pinterest

9. Mini St(raw)berry Cheesecakes - If you like gluten free, dairy free, peanut free, egg free and more, give it a go to make other ingredients taste like all the above.  Me - I just love the picture, and it makes me want to go to the gluten/dairy/peanut/egg laden Cheesecake Factory.

Source: lexieskitchen.com via Cindy on Pinterest

10. Valentine Cake - Yes ma'am. This is stunning and really says Happy Valentine's Day. It looks pretty easy to make, but don't look at the recipe which will convince you otherwise.

Source: marthastewart.com via Cindy on Pinterest

I don't know about you, but I'm hungry (and I feel the need to turn on some romantic music). If I've learned anything from this, it's that the presentation is the thing. So I'll just be content to look, and either I'll save the calories or my husband will have to bring some beautiful dessert home.

 Cindy