Sharing the Love

I organized a little Valentine Handmade Swap with some long-distance scrappy friends. I got my friend Diana up in Chicago, and here is what I made for her.

For her card, I had this paper from K&Co and loved the little birdie and music notes. The paper was printed with "You make my heart sing," but it was too big to fit onto a card. So, I cut out the bird, layered it on some other Valentine paper and then onto a sheet music heart, and punched out a red Dymo label title.

Next, I made a couple of ATCs. I again used paper from K&Co and embellished the images to make them "special." On "Lovey Dovey," I added tiny sead beads to the heart and put Glossy Accents on the title. I added a heart-shaped eyelet and threaded baker's twine through it.

"Love is in the air" is embellished with vintage sheet music, stitching, a ribbon rosette, and fancy pin.

I also made this "Hugs and Kisses" bottle for her. I had a box of old glass bottles that I've been wanting to dig out of my shed forever. I finally did and decorated this one. The outside is decorated with vintage sheet music, lace, and dress pattern tissue. I made the title with my Dymo and tied on a vintage rhinestone heart brooch. Inside I put red, gold, and silver sequins, beads, and glitter.

My favorite project to make was this little heart hanger. I was inspired by a tiny snippet of a project on Teresa McFayden's blog. I cut out a heart from vintage sheet music and then cut another heart slight larger with my scallop-edge scissors. I added black stitching around the perimeter and coated the paper with clear glitter. I also stitched a length of red satin ribbon up the middle. I pulled the string on the ribbon to create a ruffle, and then stitched it to the paper heart.

I made a ribbon flower using the same stitched ribbon. Then I had fun embellishing! I cut out the little girl's photo and added silver German foil wings to turn her into the sweetest little cherub. I stitched a little heart onto a scrap of a vintage white tablecloth, and then stitched this to a piece of felt. This little embellishment is adhered with a pearl-topped stick pin. Then I took a little "fairy capsule" and filled it with beads, glitter, and iradescent heart confetti. I used sterling wire to attach it to the assemblage.

I punched two holes, added white eyelets, and tied on a length of pink seam binding.

I hope these little treasures remind her of how much she's loved.