Valentine's Day Crafts for Kids

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and though it's meant to harbor feelings of love and friendship, many parents are stressing out. That's because for the most part some feel they have to come up with some fabulous and unique crafts for their kids to assemble. Homemade Valentine's Day gifts seem to make the heart grow fonder, so parents and their kids need not fear. Here are some inexpensive and quick crafts that can be made.

Valentine's Day Scroll - All you will need is a piece of canvas paper or white construction paper, red and green craft paint, paintbrush, marker, and a ribbon. By the way, your child's hands are the most important piece of material! Lay paper flat on table and cover one child's entire palm with red paint. When the painted hand is placed on the paper, it will resemble a flower. This craft comes out best when using only two handprints to make two flowers. Repeat with the other hand, and you're halfway there. Next, paint on the stems and leaves with the green paint. Using your marker, your child can write a Valentine's Day message to the intended recipient in between the flowers. You can either finish with the scroll at this point or make a border around the paper by drawing tiny flowers or hearts around the page. Once dried, roll the paper up and tie with the ribbon. Voila!

Hand Painted Rocks - Kids love the chance to paint, so this craft is especially exciting to them. Small, store bought stones from the store work best on this project. If possible, look for triangular or heart shaped rocks to resemble the tiny candy hearts usually sold in small bags or boxes. (It is very important to remember to monitor young children while working on this project due to choking hazards.) The next material needed is paint markers in the color of your would-be hearts. You will also be using these to write inscriptions on the stones, so keep that in mind while choosing colors. See- through cellophane paper and ribbons will be the final touch on this craft. Before beginning, wash the stones in soap and water and allow to dry. Now the fun begins. Your child can paint the stones different colors and after they dry, write messages on the stone hearts with the paint marker. Be Mine, Love, and Kiss Me are some favorite sayings. Cut up your cellophane paper in a circle big enough to hold the amount of stones that you have created. The finishing touch will be to tie up the filled bag with your ribbon to resemble candy hearts. There are many variations of this Valentine's Day craft, including using markers instead of paint. Let this activity be a guideline for your own ideas.

Love Poems - This craft needs no explanation. It is probably the quickest activity of all, and one that parents and grandparents treasure for a lifetime. Framing the finished product is a nice touch.

Cupcakes - A great idea for kids to bring to school, but must be cleared through the teacher. Simply add candy hearts to pink and white cupcakes made with red velvet cake mix. There are also many nutritional alternatives to cupcakes on the web, such as carrot cake and substituting applesauce for oil in recipes.

So, taking one idea and turning it into your own is what makes your Valentine's Day craft special. Kids love the fact that they made something unique to give to someone they love. Who knows? You may be the recipient of their affection!