Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Inexpensive, Handmade Valentines Day Craft Idea




With Valentine's Day right around the corner, and a non-existent budget to shop with, I've been searching the internet for free-yet-fun gift ideas this past week. I fell head over heels in love with the following project and I thought you might like it too. :-)


"Library of Love"



Here's what you'll need to get started:

- Some type of small box to hold your library cards
(I used an old recipe box that holds 3x5 cards)

- Several sheet of heavy, white card stock

- Scissors

- Good memories!

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First, make a list of special dates, moments, and memories you want to include on your cards.

Next, using the Card Catalog Generator, create a custom card for each special memory you'd like to include in your box. The Card Catalog Generator will allow you to replace the book numbers with special dates, and the book titles with whatever you choose to title your card. You can also add what are called "scribbles" in three different places on each card. The really add to the vintage look of the cards.

Finally, print out each card and cut them out. They print out at 72 dpi, and they're a little smaller than 3x5, so you might need to adjust the size of them in another program before you print them out if you want them to be 3x5's. I used Photoshop to enlarge mine, and they since they're only 72 dpi, they did print out a little blurry, but they're still clear enough to read, as you can see in the photos above.

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Thanks to Grace Light at Poetic Home for posting this awesome idea, and happy crafting y'all!

Layla

39 comments:

Chris said...

That's it. I'm sold! Great idea, Layla!

Beautiful Handmade said...

That's crazy! Neat idea!

Prior said...

LOVe This! Thanks for the inspiration! Lezlee

Meaghan said...

Love that its straight from the heart and the vintage touch. So much better than a card and chocolate. Ok, maybe not chocolate:)
MT @ unexpectedgracemt.blogspot.com

Vanessa Greenway said...

My hubby will be getting one of those this Valinte's. Thanks for sharing this awesome idea!!

DustyLu said...

Great Idea! Love it. Iam going to do that. Thanks lulu

Mom in High Heels said...

I went and made a test card and it is FANTASTIC! So many possibilities for different uses. Thanks so much.

CarolAnne - camdesign said...

Interesting idea... and completely do able...
I am thinking a paper covered box my hubby could keep in his nightstand... would be cool to add pictures to some or all of the cards.?..
I think this means more than a purchased gift, Valentines Day is for love not how much you can spend, right...
Great post, Layla
Regards and Thank you, Carol Ann

Red Door Home said...

Love this idea. Thanks for sharing.

My Cottage Charm said...

Thanks for the idea! My husband and I will be celebrating our 25th anniversary next month, we were married on Valentines Day. :) I have SO many memories over the last 25 years.......I could fill 10boxes! LOL I will def put this idea to good use! Thanks again, I can't wait to get started!!

Jessica @ Lavender and Lilies said...

Adorable idea!

Brandi said...

Ok...seriously...that has to be the coolest thing ever! LOVE it! And perfect for me to give as a gift - I met my husband working in a medical library. :)

Sarah said...

Layla that's such a great idea, thanks!
God's blessings, Sarah :D

Carolyn {SweetTeaandLinen} said...

Love it! What a great idea! Thanks

Leen said...

I love this idea! Thanks for sharing it!

Last year I made hubby his favorite snacks dipped in chocolate. It was his favorite valentines gift in all of these 13 years!

Low Tide High Style said...

Wonderful idea! Thanks for sharing!

Kat :)

ChrisA. said...

Thanks so much for posting this with the link! I'm having so much fun remembering those little/big moments. I think my husband will love it - very romantic!

Cindy said...

Very cool idea, I like it. Will have to tuck this little idea away as a possiblitity. Thanks!

Hugs,
Cindy

www.homesimplehome.blogspot.com

Lindsay said...

That is a wonderful idea! I'll have to use it for our anniversary.... Too bad I didn't know about this last year when it was "paper"! I'll just have to wrap the box in pretty "cotton" ;)

Michelle said...

thanks for the idea. We are also working on a tight budget this year (yay, for changing careers) and I have been looking for something like this!

Anonymous said...

Very fun idea! Thanks for sharing it with us. Have a good day!

KellyMellyBoBellyBananaFanna said...

Love this!

Sara Scheu said...

Love this! Any hints on where to find a good box?
I am new to your blog and am really enjoying it! :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing! What a wonderful idea for "cataloging" ones life not just for Valentine's but everyday. Perfect for Moms, too, as a way to keep up with milestones throughout their child's lives.

Megandvd@Beauty in the Attempt said...

What a simply endearing gift. Thank you for sharing.

Cheers~
e

Deb said...

Great idea! Thanks for sharing.

Carla said...

I started this last year for our anniversary and I was coming up with so many cards to make. I never fineshed but our 20th is this summer so I will just have it done by then.
The cards turn out so cool looking if you don't like the way one looks just hit create card again and it will change how it looks. I did that allot to make the writing fit better or pick out the type I liked best. The hardest part was finding a recipe box that wasn't plastic, I wanted a metal one , I finally found one in an antique mall. Who knew that would be hard.

Wendy said...

What a fabulous idea! I'm ALL over that!!

Raylene Nicole said...

Thank you so much for sharing that idea! I'm always looking for an awesome craft! I'm totally doing this!

Stacey @ The Blessed Nest said...

That is SO cute! What a special gift idea!!
Blessings,
Stacey

Kate said...

Love this!! What a great idea to preserve great memories.

Thanks for sharing :)

Hattie said...

This is so fun! I'm a school librarian, so this is my kind of gift idea. I clicked on the link, and the man that created the program works at the coolest library I've ever seen - no wonder he came up with something so awesome! Thanks for sharing :-)

LesleySW said...

Very fun. Thanks for the idea!

Kristin @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia said...

I love this, thank you!
Kristin

Cathy said...

These are SO wonderful! I created some and printed them off within minutes of reading this yesterday. So thanks!

Anonymous said...

Saw you in The Nest and in one week am all caught up on your blog and planning to redesign my kitchen. I've also spent my lunch hour making adorable index cards for my hubby for an anniversary gift. You've managed to make me more productive in a few blog posts than anyone else has, well, EVER! Thanks for all the great ideas!

Chelsea said...

what a cute idea! I sat around playing with the catalog card generator for a long time. :) You have such a cute blog--thanks for your ideas!

Rachel Elizabeth said...

I love this. I am going to school to be a librarian. Totally cute.

Christi said...

genius you are layla!