I am all about doing crafts that I can involve the kids, and they will double as decor! WIN WIN! I first saw this heart garland on www.myvintageporch.com , Natalie is amazing check out her blog for tons of DIY’s and the original instructions (she used real clay and baked in the oven and then antiqued the hearts).
This is a simple Valentine’s Day craft that can also be altered to other holiday’s and seasons.
Materials:
(plus, any kind of string, or twine you have on hand)
I tend to gravitate toward neutrals, so I picked up a bunch of white Crayola’s Magic Mold packages at the dollar store. I originally planned to order this clay, but then saw the Magic Mold and thought we could give that a shot first, since it was so cheap, right in front of me, and super kid friendly. You could also use this air dry clay. And I think that might work out the best out of all of the choices. The regular clay, would need to be baked for it to harden.
We just took heart shaped cookie cutters (a couple different sizes) and cut out hearts,
and then stuck a bobby pin in the center, with a little bit sticking out.
I let them sit on the island overnight night and they hardened.
What is really nice about the Crayola Magic Mold is that after it hardened, it is still so light. They aren’t as hard as a rock, or as hard as the clay would be, so I can’t contest to how they will hold up in storage until next Valentines Day. But for such a inexpensive craft, I don’t mind if they don’t last forever. I will do some hearts in clay with my little guy at some point to keep as keepsakes, and let him paint them. I have some that our older two kids made, and love them!
If we made these with clay we could have painted them. But I do love the neutral decor, so I like how the white turned out. After they hardened, I just strung them on string (that I already had) and made garland out of it.
Simple, easy, cheap and I really like how it looks hanging in our living room!
If you have play dough already, I bet this would work. I know it always hardens when left out, so I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. If you decide to use clay, you could paint, or even stain or antique the hearts.
In the winter, you could use this same method with snowflake cookie cutters. If you have theme birthday party, this would make a cute garland to hang in the background of where the photos will be taken, of whatever the theme is, or their age!! In the spring, your could use flower cookie cutters, or bunnies at Easter. Summertime, you could use pails and shovels, or sunshine, or sunflowers. Leaves in the fall, turkeys for Thanksgiving, so many options for Christmas, gifts, stockings, trees… One method to use all year round! Please tag me, if you decide to make any garland this year, I would love to see it!
Happy Crafting,
XOXO,
Leandra
This post contains affiliate links that creates a small income for Our Home Days, at no extra cost to you.