An Easy to make Valentine’s Day Craft Card (Bee Mine Valentine)

Trying to decide which Valentine’s Day cards to purchase for your kids to hand out at school? Maybe your kids have already squealed and pointed vigorously at the VERY ones they want you to get. So, what are we going with this year? Will it be SpongeBob SquarePants, Spiderman, Batman, My Little Pony, Hello Kitty, …etc., etc., etc.? Truth is, there are hundreds to choose from! Chances are, your kids will receive some of the same cards they hand out. That’s all well and good I suppose. I mean, the kids are in it for the candy anyway, right? But, wouldn’t it be great if YOUR kids showed up with Valentines that nobody else is sure to have? Not only that, but hand-made personalized “cards” that are oh-so unique! Now don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing shameful about picking up a box of cards at the store, bringing them home, showing them to your kids, letting them,….er…, I mean, waiting until they go to bed and then sitting down and writing all 20-30 or so names onto little cartoon cards and then putting them into little envelopes…which you will likely also have to write names on. Come on, we’ve all done it! WE buy the cards and WE end up doing all the hard work! Not that we mind of course:) But why not, dare I say it, MAKE Personalized Valentine’s Day cards for your child’s classmates; and don’t forget the teacher! My son Gabriel and I made these “Bee Mine Valentine” craft cards for his 1^st grade class a couple of years ago,( from Disney’s Family Fun website). Now, I have to admit, we did get off a bit easy on the sheer quantity we made. He only had 11 other kids in his class; plus his wonderful teacher of course! So we ended up needing only one evening to make them all. I would suggest giving yourself about two evenings if you’re planning to make more than 15 or so. It really depends on how quickly you are able to make them. These things were so fun to make though; and very easy, especially once you get the hang of it. My then 3 year old daughter even enjoyed helping to pick out the googly eyes for each bee. So, you get to make great homemade Valentine’s cards all while having fun doing a craft project with your kids. How much better can it get? OK, enough of my blah, blah, blah….let’s get to the good stuff! I’ve added a link to an easy to follow instructional video in this article for your viewing pleasure. It is the same video I watched when my son and I made our cards and was very helpful. I’ve also added a link to some great heart-shaped templates in various sizes should you need them,(courtesy of activityvillage.co.uk). Lastly, I've included pictures of our finished goodies. I hope you enjoy and HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY TO ALL! Please be sure to add a comment at the end of the article to let me know you dropped by if you wish:o)

Items you will need:

~Black & yellow pipe cleaners (Qty. depends on how many Valentines you are making)

~Glue (Elmer’s glue works great; but not the “stick” kind)

~Scissors

~Small Googly eyes

~Yellow tissue paper (for you bee's wings)

~Red and Pink colored card stock (*See heart shaped Template link)

~Hole puncher

~Colored markers

~Lollipops

We purchased all of our material at Wal-Mart, but you can find most of them at any craft store if you prefer.

How To:

~The instructions are easier to follow by also watching the video I have linked~

Step 1: Fold one of your 6-inch black pipe cleaners into a V shape.

Step 2: Take another black pipe cleaner and one yellow and wrap them together around the V shaped black pipe cleaner you've already created. This creates alternating black & yellow stripes...like a BEE! Leave a little part of the V shape at the top to form your bee's antennae. Also, leave a small gap, (hole), at the bottom folded end of your V shape to slide in a lollipop later.

Step 3: Glue on your googly eyes just below the antennae. Don't use TOO much glue! Just a dab will do ya:)

Step 4: Glue on your yellow tissue paper wings. (Hint: The wings are easily free-handed. I drew a figure 8 as a starting point. Then I extended the circle parts of the 8 to make them more oval-shaped than rounded. Make sure you leave a part in the middle of the 8 to better glue the wings on,(the part where the "8" crosses over in the middle)

Step 5: Cut out your heart-shape from your red or pink colored card stock. Punch two holes in the left side of the heart. The holes should be about one inch apart. This is where you will be sliding in your bee & lollipop in step 7.

Step 6: Write "Mine" on the front of the card. That way, once you have inserted your bee...the card will effectively say, "Bee Mine." (Get it?) My son didn't want to add "Mine" to his cards, so we added, "Bee My Valentine Friend" instead. We also glued some other decorations on to make the card more interesting. But you can add whatever message and/or decorations you feel appropriate. Messages, or names, can also be added to the back of the card if desired.

Step 7: 1st be sure the googly eyes are mostly dry. Then, slide the lollipop through the loop end of the bee. then slide the lollipop into the two punched holes in the heart. Congratulations! Your "Bee Mine" Valentine is complete!!

**For best results, be sure to watch the link to the video I have included below in this article.