Secret Messages

I know that Valentine's Day is over and we have moved on, really. But these secret messages that started out as Valentines have become so much more. We are hooked on making these and I think you might be too once you see how easy it is. All you need is heavy paper or card stock, a white crayon, a washable marker, water and a paintbrush.

Write a message or draw a secret picture with the white crayon on the white card stock. Gently color over the entire thing with a washable marker. Give it to a friend or anyone special and tell them to paint it with water to reveal the secret message.

 

The water blends the choppy lines and pops out the white writing.

Valentine's Day Shirts

I had been planning to make doily print shirts with Hollin since I saw the idea a few weeks ago over at The Artful Parent.

While inking up the doily, we could not help but notice how nice the stencil effect of the doily looked on the paper underneath it, so very impulsively, we put the doily on the shirt and rolled over it.  I think it came out cute. It was hard to hold it perfectly still, but between the two of us we made it work. So instead of making doily prints, we ended up using the doily as a stencil.

I am not opposed to boys wearing hearts and pink, but I thought a pink doily shirt might be a touch too much. So, I jazzed up an old shirt with a cute boyish Valentine design using freezer paper stencils.

I really like heart art. There. I said it. We have been doing a lot of lately and I will try to get some more up before the big day.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hollin made about 3 of these before getting bored (I am not sure if there are any 4-year-olds out there that will sit and make 20 identical cards...). Good thing her Mama likes glitter and glue!

A Chilly Valentine

Just Plain Painting

Valentine's Day doesn't have to be all hearts and lace...sometimes just a little red, white and pink paint are all you need... And maybe a sponge or a dinosaur.. some Q-tips, toothpicks and a race car...

Pure joy!

Valentine's Day Decorations

Many of my fondest memories are linked to preparing for holidays, and I know I am not alone. There is simply something special about the decorations and activities that only come out once a year. A few little touches are all it takes. As you might have guessed, I prefer handmade to store bought--or better yet, kid made. I do believe they thrive on such things.


Hollin and I made these flowers. They are the classic pipe cleaner and tissue paper flowers we all made in elementary school. Both kids have played with these, arranged them and moved them all around the house. I made these felt cookies as a Valentine's Day gift last year. Much more fun when they only come out once a year. (They would probably have even more dog hair on them if I left them out all year....)

Our seasonal tree always changes to reflect what is happening every month. In the past we used some pretty little hearts I had made. Hollin would decorate the tree with my ornaments. Just they other day she asked for paper. She made all the pipe cleaner heart ornaments and put them on the tree. Waylon made the heart shaped sun catcher on the bottom right.

Nothing fancy, just a few simple additions to our home to remind us that this is the month we get to hug and kiss a bit more, write love poems and make yummy things to eat.

Lace Prints

This is without a doubt, my new favorite technique. It is so fun and the results are lovely. This is something that can be done any time of year, with any color or colors--but it is especially perfect for Valentine's Day. We made several (too fun to only make one) so we may cut a few to make cards or hearts or for collage. For now, I just need to share the joy! First, go to your local thrift store and buy a lace curtain. I got mine for $2.99. If you can't find any, you can get a piece of lacy fabric at a craft or fabric store. You really do not need much--1/2 a yard will be fine. You will also need an empty clean spray bottle, liquid watercolors, watercolor paper and something to cover a large work area. I will warn you, this can get pretty ugly if your little artist is not careful. I would not dream of letting my 2-year-old do this indoors (and I am pretty relaxed about art messes). My 4-year-old is probably more careful than me, so we did not have any problems.

Cover the work space and set your watercolor paper in the center. Spread the lace over the paper and try to avoid wrinkles. Put your liquid watercolor paint in the spray bottle. I diluted it with some water which is totally optional.

Start spraying. For best results, aim for a quick misty spray. Encourage your child to keep the lace in one place.

Lift the lace off the paper to reveal your lace print.

Oooh la la! We LOVED this. I so enjoyed Hollin's enthusiasm. She just could not get enough of it. I hope this becomes a favorite for you too!

Contact Paper Resist

I can't resist a resist project (hee hee). We have been going a little crazy with hearts this week and I thought I would share this one. I cut the heart shapes out of contact paper. My little artist peeled off the backing and arranged them on a sheet of watercolor paper. She can cut hearts, and this would have been a good 2 part project, but sometimes it is nice to collaborate. She also drew a few "secret" hearts with a white crayon. Next come the paint--a nice wash of liquid watercolors. We peeled the contact paper off right away to reveal bright white shapes beneath.

Doilie Stencils

We had something of a Valentine's Day craft free-for-all this morning. I think these came out really nice and were very "ooooh, ahhh" inspiring. First we mixed up some tempera paint to get the colors we wanted to work with. Each kid got a large sheet of heavy white paper and a big paper doilie. Our doilies were pretty thin and worked just fine. The object is to hold the doilie still and paint over the pretty pattern. I had to help my 2-year-old hold it still. Once you finish painting, just lift up the doilie to reveal your lovely stenciled pattern.

A few cookie cutter heart prints for some extra flair...

Special bonus is you end up with a painted doilie for another craft!