The weather isn't cooperating the way I was hoping it would. Far from what promised to be the beginning of a run of sunny boat days, this weekend brought thunder, lightning, rain, and hail. Where am I? Back in Pennsylvania? After complaining for a little while, I decided to perk up; after all, one can't be a grumpy-pants forever. So yesterday, to add a little cheer to the gloom, Gabbie and I made a heart garland. You can't help but feel happy when you have one of these hanging around. Here's how to do it.
What you'll need:
* Construction paper
* Glue stick
* Scissors
* Needle & thread
Optional:
* Heart punch (for the artistically-challenged)
* Tape
* An old book
I made one of these for myself a couple of months ago. I wanted to use a variety of materials, so I chose construction paper, scrapbook paper, pages from a book, and those corrugated cardboard hot beverage sleeves that come around latte cups at your favorite coffee joint.
I specifically wanted an old hard cover book of poems for a couple of reasons. Older books usually have thicker, and therefore sturdier, paper. I chose poetry because of the likelihood of getting a lot of lovely words contained in the small shape of a heart. It's like an instant mini poem!
Yesterday when we started the project, Gabbie looked at me wide-eyed when I pulled out the book and asked if we were really going to cut pages out of it. I let her know that you NEVER, EVER, EVER hurt a book. Unless, of course, you bought it expressly for that purpose.
I started by folding sheets of paper and outlining half a heart so that Gabbie could cut them out. She's not perfect with scissors yet, but this was great practice for her hand-eye coordination. If you have a tough time drawing, you can always cheat and use a heart punch and presto! Instant crafty perfection. But if you do use a punch, you only get one size, so I recommend branching out and challenging yourself.
After cutting hearts of all shapes and sizes, we took the smaller ones and glued them on bigger hearts to add layers and pizzazz. (Who doesn't love pizzazz?) I even found a few classic nursery rhymes in my book that we were excited to use for our garland.
Once you have a good sized pile, you have a couple of options. Taping the hearts to thread or twine will take you a second and a child can easily help with that. The other option is to sew them together. I'm not a seamstress; in fact, I never sew. But I do know how to thread a needle and punch the sharp end through paper, so that's what I did.
Once I was done sewing and we had a nice long string of hearts, the only thing left to do was to display them for some instant happiness!
Spread the love!
What you'll need:
* Construction paper
* Glue stick
* Scissors
* Needle & thread
Optional:
* Heart punch (for the artistically-challenged)
* Tape
* An old book
I made one of these for myself a couple of months ago. I wanted to use a variety of materials, so I chose construction paper, scrapbook paper, pages from a book, and those corrugated cardboard hot beverage sleeves that come around latte cups at your favorite coffee joint.
I specifically wanted an old hard cover book of poems for a couple of reasons. Older books usually have thicker, and therefore sturdier, paper. I chose poetry because of the likelihood of getting a lot of lovely words contained in the small shape of a heart. It's like an instant mini poem!
Yesterday when we started the project, Gabbie looked at me wide-eyed when I pulled out the book and asked if we were really going to cut pages out of it. I let her know that you NEVER, EVER, EVER hurt a book. Unless, of course, you bought it expressly for that purpose.
I started by folding sheets of paper and outlining half a heart so that Gabbie could cut them out. She's not perfect with scissors yet, but this was great practice for her hand-eye coordination. If you have a tough time drawing, you can always cheat and use a heart punch and presto! Instant crafty perfection. But if you do use a punch, you only get one size, so I recommend branching out and challenging yourself.
After cutting hearts of all shapes and sizes, we took the smaller ones and glued them on bigger hearts to add layers and pizzazz. (Who doesn't love pizzazz?) I even found a few classic nursery rhymes in my book that we were excited to use for our garland.
Once you have a good sized pile, you have a couple of options. Taping the hearts to thread or twine will take you a second and a child can easily help with that. The other option is to sew them together. I'm not a seamstress; in fact, I never sew. But I do know how to thread a needle and punch the sharp end through paper, so that's what I did.
Once I was done sewing and we had a nice long string of hearts, the only thing left to do was to display them for some instant happiness!
Spread the love!
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