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Valentine Card Crafts

by Contributing Writer

Overview

While the stores are full of beautiful cards, it is quite easy to make Valentine greetings and crafts at home. There are several styles to choose from, all made with supplies you can find at a drug store, craft outlet or art supply shop.
Traditional Cards

Traditional cards are flat with a short saying written on the front, and a longer message and signature on the back. These cards are usually a heart shape, and are heavily decorated on the front. Traditional trimmings and decorations include paper doilies, glitter attached with glue and images or cutouts of arrows, cupids and birds. Many of these images originated in the mid-1800s, when Valentine exchanges began to become traditional in the United States. The practice of creating traditionally styled, homemade Valentines evolved from this initiation of Valentine exchanges.

Modern Styles

Modern styles tend towards the more minimalist. These are cards made and exchanged between adults, and have less of the heavily textured, glitter-ridden look to them. Usually they are made out of rectangular card stock, folded over like a traditional bought greeting card, with less emphasis on the image, and more on the message inside. Decorations for these cards often rely on traditional Valentine iconography but with a lighter hand: a small heart or cluster of hearts, a bird, a cupid or other objects in the red, pink, white and sometimes purple spectrum. Another popular device involves cutouts, also to a more minimal extent than the traditional approach. One example is a small heart cut into the front of the card, revealing a different color on the inside, or the beginnings of an internal message. In every case, the focus of any imagery is on a more message-based illustration, either in the form of linear images or simple, carefully arranged shapes or cutouts.
Crafted Trinkets

As the craft movement has gained new momentum, small items have begun to serve as Valentines in themselves. These diminutive objects, easily concealed in a pocket or purse, are meant as sweet reminders of the person who gave them. Usually they rely on the tactile as much as the visual impact, and are without a message or elaboration. The most popular forms of these are small hearts, either knitted, crocheted or sewn with fabric or felt. They can either be constructed as two sides sewn together for stability, or stuffed with filling to create a softer, three-dimensional look before being sewn up.
Cards as Decorations

Cards can also be cut out to form a garland--either a continuous cutout formed by a piece of card stock folded numerous times and cut along the fold to form a chain when unfolded, or with several heart, bird, or other Valentine shapes strung on a string and collected together to fit in an envelope. In either case, these cards, when unfurled, can be draped or hung to decorative effect. Another result of the craft movement are Valentines that can be framed to hang up, either exclusively for decoration during the Valentine season, or for enjoyment throughout the year. One popular form of framed cards is an elaborate paper cutout, usually rendered with fine detail using a craft knife or scalpel, and pasted on a contrasting color. These silhouettes can portray a single object or an elaborate scene. Another popular medium for this kind of card is embroidery. With the emergence of companies such as Sublime Stitching and Subversive Cross Stitch, embroidery has become popular across the age spectrum, and is becoming a reasonable and attractive medium for gift- and card-giving.
Containers for Food and Gifts

Foodstuffs, especially sweets, are always a popular gift at Valentine's Day. One way to make an expected gift more special is to make your own--whether it's homemade candy or truffles, a box of cookies or one or more cupcakes. But yet another way to maximize the appeal of this gift is to make your own container. Small fabric bags for candy (either made or purchased) can be easily made out of a small scrap of attractive fabric. Anything from gauze to velvet is effective. With a small drawstring fashioned into the bag, this can be a lovely accompaniment to a small treat. Wooden boxes attractively decorated are also popular. Craft stores like Michael's, BJ Craft Supplies, Pacific Fabrics and Crafts and chain stores have a variety of boxes, as well as paints and other decorative items that are appropriate for the Valentine's season.