Afternoon Style : valentinesday

2/03/2015

Easy DIY Valentine's Day Banners


I absolutely love Valentine's Day. I know a lot of people think it's cheesy and way overdone and I think it can be- but it doesn't have to be. I love decorating my home with cute Valentine's Decor and I love it even more when it's inexpensive and easy to do! 

This year I went all out and made several Valentine's decorations. I crafted four different themed banners and they were all so easy to make, so I wanted to share it with all of you! 


I don't know that this is much of a tutorial- this is going to be more of me telling you very simply how I made these banners because they are that easy!! 

1. Doily Banner 

Materials: 
-package of doilies from the craft store (I bought mine for $2 at Hobby Lobby) 
-twine or craft string (I had a whole spool on hand but you can get them from any craft store)

To put it simply, all you have to do is string the twine through the small laser cuts on the doilies until it's the desired length. That's it! Because the holes are so small, it keeps the doilies from sliding. Then just hang it up!




2. Felt Heart Banner 

Materials: 
-felt in your choice of colors- I had red and white on hand so that's what I used, but pink would be cute too :) 
-scissors 
-thread and needle 

Decide how long you want your banner to be and how big you want the hearts to be. I wanted it to be small, to fit onto this mirror in my living room. I cut the hearts free hand using the 'cut on the fold' method we learned back in elementary school. You potentially could draw them out or trace them, but I personally think they're more unique when they look handmade. Next you will take your needle and thread and weave it in and out of each heart to connect them and you're done!



3. Burlap Heart Banner 

Materials: 
-burlap
-hot glue gun
-hot glue sticks 
-twine 

I actually made this three years ago for our wedding reception and I love putting it back up during Valentine's Day. Again, this is super simple. Cut out the hearts in the size you want. I didn't want to worry about the burlap fraying, so I finished the edges with a thin line of hot glue. After they dried, I then glued a string of twine to the back of them! Just make sure you glue the twine at the top of the hearts (on the back) or they will twist and won't hang nicely. Oh and I made this wreath too. 


4. Fabric Scrap Banner 

Materials: 
-twine or ribbon 
-a variety of Valentine's inspired ribbons or fabrics

After making these banners, I wanted one more to finish off my decor. I decided that making a fabric banner would be an easy way to go. I didn't plan this one out, so I didn't have a lot of cute Valentines-ey fabrics, but can you imagine the gold mine you could find at Hobby Lobby!? It's probably best I didn't go. I found some pretty pink ribbons, white and pink lace fabric, and some feminine floral fabric in my craft closet so I used that. I cut the ribbons to be 10" long and the fabric strips to be 1-2"x10" long. Then I just double knotted them around the twine and hung it up! 


Also- that $2 package of doilies? It comes with way more than enough. So I used some of the extras for vase decorations!




Thanks for reading! Have you put up your decorations for Valentine's Day yet? If not, I hope this post inspires you to do so soon :)




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1/14/2015

The Countdown to Valentine's Day...

Happy January 14! 

Today is just an ordinary day, but one month from today is Valentine's Day! I know not everyone loves Valentine's Day, but I totally do. It's the day I had my first date ever with Brogan, it's a day full of hearts, chocolate, and flowers... and it's the day of love! What more can I say? 

I've been getting ready for Valentine's Day early this year and it has been so much fun. My house is all decked out in lovely Valentine's decor and I'm starting to think of what I will wear for our special date night. Below is some inspiration for Valentine's Day, enjoy!! 


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

More inspiration here

What outfit are you putting together for this day? 




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2/18/2014

Valentine's Day 2014


I love Valentine's Day; I have always loved it. It has always been a fun and cheerful holiday and not just because it's great to be showered with gifts from that special someone. Actually, Brogan was my first valentine. I dated others before Brogan, but I never really had a valentine. I used to joke that the first guy to give me flowers would be my soul mate. Well sure enough, he gave me a red carnation on our first date, on Valentine's Day. So I guess you can say V-Day is a little special to us!


It has become a tradition for Brogan to plan Valentine's Day, every year. This is hard for me because I am a control planning freak. I'm a total type A personality and I like to plan, plan, plan. Like every year, I had to wait up until we were leaving the house to know what we were doing- and even then I had no idea where we were going. It was exciting and gave me anxiety at the same time!

---back-up---

The night before Valentine's Day, I wanted to do something special for Brogan. So I came up with this somewhat quick idea. 




Chocolate-covered strawberries, a heart-shaped cookie cake, and heart shaped hamburgers... because nothing says 'I love you' like meat in the shape of hearts. 


Then, on Valentine's Day morning I woke up to this 




I sure love this man of mine! 

Brogan ended up taking me to the Pueblo Carriage House and Rosemount Museum. It's an old mansion and restaurant that was built in the late 1800s. We had a four-course meal and toured the museum. It was really romantic and I loved every minute of it. Then we finished off the night by getting some hot cocoa- my favorite winter treat. 
I hope you all had a fabulous Valentine's Day as well! Stay tuned for my outfit details later this week...



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