January Wrap Up

Here we are on the last day of January already . . . one month closer to spring and just two weeks before Valentine's Day. It was a holiday I loved when I was a kid. With a crafty, imaginitative, and oh-so-patient Mom (in addition to a little ingenuity of my own), I always came up with the coolest Valentine's box, and in those days, Valentine's Day cards were punch-outs from a book, which was probably my first experience with perforated paper. Some years, we made Valentines from scratch, using red construction paper, pretty heart-shaped paper doilies, scraps of fabric and lace - whatever was on hand. Conversation hearts were the candy of choice, most likely because they were only available for a short while prior to the holiday. I probably liked them, too, because they had words on them.

My little heart tin is from Papertrey Ink. I covered it with paper from the More to Adore paper packet. To adhere my paper to the tin, I placed horizontal strips of Terrifically Tacky Tape at one-inch intervals all around the tin. To cover the top, I traced it and cut out and sanded a Chocolate heart. While I was at it, I cut the same heart out of Blush paper for my matching card. Three of the four flowers I used to decorate the tin and card were painted with Blush-tinted Create-A-Shade paint. Large brown brads and a large, clear Sparkle created centers for my flowers. The sentiment on my card - "Where your treasure is, there too will be your heart" - is from the Treasures of the Heart stamp set. I completed my card with a length of brown ribbon from the Chocolate Designer Ribbon Rounds collection and thought as I was tying my bow that making Valentine's Day cards and gifts is still fun . . . after all these years.