Would you be my Valentine? Please don't make me beg. I've been busy getting ready to have some of my favorite little guests over. We will immerse ourselves in sprinkles, glitter, gems and Valentine magic.
Since the majority of my guests are in the under 6 bracket I like to make sure that I have everything in an easy to assemble fashion when they arrive. Especially the ironing (I barely trust myself with one, let alone them.) One of the projects we are going to make is No-Sew Valentine's Banners.
I will cut out all of the pieces and the kids can just assemble them when they arrive.
You will need to assemble a few things:
Assorted fabric scraps or heavy paper (if using paper, there is no need for the iron-on adhesive)
A few yards Heat n' Bond Adhesive Paper (I got mine at Wal-Mart)
Tacky glue such as Jewel-it
Small spool of twine, string or thin ribbon
Googly eyes and gems (because they are just plain fun)
For the Be Mine Banner cut (3) fabric rectangles that are 12-inches wide by 17-inches long. Then cut (3) heat n' bond strips that are 6-inches by 17-inches long.
Place the heat n' bond as close to the edge of the fabric as possible, run a medium-hot (no-steam) iron over it for about 2-5 seconds, let cool a few seconds and then remove paper. Fold the fabric with the side facing farthest away from you and bring it to the side closest to you. Press the fabric together for 8-10 seconds or so until the fabric is bonded. Trim off edges where there is no adhesive.
Cut the fabric into (9) 6-inch by 5-inch squares and trim off sides of each to form a triangle shape. (You can reserve the scraps for another project.) You can do it visually or by marking the center of the bottom and lining your ruler up with that point and the point at the top edge.
Cut a piece of heat n' bond that is 2 1/2-inches by 17-inches and fuse it onto the back side of a piece of fabric at least that size in the color you want the letters to be. Use a pencil and draw letters that are approximately 2 1/2-inches by 2 1/2-inches. I will draw lines every 2 1/2-inches so that I keep my letters uniform. Be sure and remember you are drawing the letters in reverse of the way they will be when ironed on. If I can't figure out the way a backwards letter looks, I will draw it on a scrap piece of paper and cut it out and reverse it and trace it onto the bonding paper.
Cut out all your letters, then peel the paper and place them on the triangles, then place the hot iron on them to fuse for 4-5 seconds.
To assemble the banners punch a hole about a 1/4-inch in from each of the top edge. Cut (2) pieces of twine that are 13-inches long and cut (8) pieces that are 3 1/2-inches long.
Thread a 13-inch piece of twine through the left side of a triangle that is blank and tie the ends in a knot. Thread a 3 1/2-inch piece of twine through the right side of that same triangle and knot. Pull the other side of the twine through the left side of the triangle with the B on it. Repeat. Finished banner is about 68-inches long.
The Snap I Love You banner requires a few more cuts, but it's totally worth it since it's so cute.
The head and tail started out as 6-inch wide by 6-inch long rectangles that were trimmed down to form a head and tail. The body of the alligator is (10) 3 1/2-inch by 3 1/2-inch squares and the triangles on its back are formed by cutting 1-inch and 2-inch squares in half on the diagonal and then glued on from the back side along with the feet. Don't forget the googly eyes and bling.
I cut a strip of white and glued it behind the opening of the mouth and cut little triangle shapes out to look like teeth.
Go ahead; tell me I'm not just the cutest thing ever!
Snappy Valentine's Day!
Just had to share these Almond Balls from Katty's Kitchen I tried this week. They were so darn good we couldn't stop eating them; I don't think you could either.