Free DIY Printable Valentine's Day Card

print-it-yourself valentine card

The printable Valentine's Day card will require a little bit of work (complete with instructions) but I hope you enjoy putting it together and sharing it with your loved ones... or maybe keeping it for yourself? ;)

printable valentine with niko darling

(free download here)

materials:

8.5" x 11" card stock paper

xacto and/or scissors

scoring tool (optional)

ribbon

hole puncher

tape

glue

hearts & My Dear Darling bows patterned paper

step 1: Print My Dear Darling Printable Valentine and the hearts and bows patterned paper onto an 8.5" x 11" paper. I suggest using regular paper for the hearts and bows and card stock (thick paper) for the printable Valentine.

step 2: Cut out the card and as many hearts as you wish. You can use an xacto knife with a ruler to get a clean straight cut for the card itself. (A metal ruler would be best but I only had an "ultraflex" that Husband let me borrow.) :p

step 3: Fold the card in half. I used a scoring tool to get a cleaner fold line.

step 4: Punch out the white circles on Niko's hands with a hole puncher.

step 5: Tape the hearts on ribbon and tie onto Niko's hands. You can write a message on the hearts before you put it on the ribbon.

back view of card at this point

step 6: Glue the patterned paper onto the back of card and trim down.

step 7: Write a love note and gift it to your Valentine. Hehe, Bruce just happened to make this cute little face when I showed the card to him yesterday morning. I think he liked it. ;)

you can gift your card by itself...

or with a package wrapped up in hearts too!

I hope you like these printables! I'd love to hear feedback so if you get a chance please leave a note. :)

Lots of Smiles,
Akiyo

Please note: The Printable Valentine's Day Card design and PDF download are copyrighted material. For personal use only. Please do not reproduce, copy, and/or sell. Thank you!

Free Printable Valentine Hearts Wrapping Paper

a box of chocolates wrapped up in hearts for Valentine's Day

Good news! :D Over the weekend, I put together the free printables (yes, 2!) and got it ready to share with you today. Are you excited as I am? ;)

The first of the two is this hearts and My Dear Darling bows patterned paper:

printable hearts & My Dear Darling bows pattern

(free download here)

I wanted the first design to serve multiple purposes. You can print it to wrap a small gift or print lots, tape it together and wrap something bigger. You can use it for scrapbook backgrounds, cards, envelopes (see below) and tags. I'm sure you can think of other creative ways to use the patterned paper too.

hearts and my dear darling bows patterned envelopes

line a greeting card

If you have a chance to download and use this free printable, I'd love to see what you do with it so please share and link back. ;) I'll be posting the Printable Valentine later today!

Lots of Smiles,

Akiyo

Please note: The hearts and My Dear Darling bows pattern and the printable PDF download are copyrighted material. For personal use only.  Please do not reproduce, copy, and/or sell. Thank you!

Sneak Peek: Valentine Hearts

hearts & my dear darling bows

Since my last post, I've gained a few Google followers, Facebook fans, and Twitter friends so I wanted to say hello and thank you! :) And thank you to those who are long-time supporters too!

I think I'm all set with the Valentine card design! I'll be test printing this weekend at a local FedEx since I didn't bring my printer and I'm excited to see how it turns out. Hoping to share it next week so you have plenty of time to make it for your Valentine. ;)

Have a lovely weekend!

Lots of Smiles,

Akiyo

Shop Closed (Temporarily)

penguins and pillows all boxed up for the move

Hello from Los Angeles! :)

As you may already know, we've been busy with the move from SF to LA for my husband's new job.  2012 has started out with an exciting big change! We drove here last night and have settled into our temporary housing as we wait on our permanent home situation which we'll be moving into next month. Sounds a little crazy, right? Moving twice! But thankfully, we'll be moving all our belongings only once: from our old home to our permanent home. (Does this make any sense to you? :x I hope it does.)

brucie checking inventory

So the sad news is, My Dear Darling shop will be closed temporarily. Apologies for any inconvenience. I've been receiving quite a bit of Valentine inquiries and I've had to turn down every single one. :( It bums me out to no end.

So I've been thinking, for those that were looking forward to My Dear Darling Valentine's products; Although I'm unable to craft any plush dolls or pillows (because my tools and supplies are boxed up in SF), I could possibly make some downloadable items for Valentines Day. What do you think? I'm brainstorming ideas right now but maybe some cards that you can print out and give to your Valentine? Would that be something you'd use? :)

my new workspace in LA

I was able to fit my iMac and a mini penguin in the car so I'll be working hard on the computer the next couple months in hopes of creating some digital love for you. ;) It's still surreal that we're living in LA. I feel like we're just on a very long vacation and our apartment back in SF is still waiting for us to come home to. Maybe in a few days it'll really hit me...

Have a wonderful weekend!

And as always, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. :)

Lots of Smiles,

Akiyo

Cookies In A Jar With A Mini Wreath Ornament

chocolate chip cookies in a jar

with a handmade wreath ornament

I've been meaning to share this with you but it's been quite hectic over here. Our whole family has come down with the flu and in the midst of all the sniffles and coughs, Brandon and I have been packing up to move to Los Angeles this week! Eeek! But I got a little down time right now so I thought I'd share my handmade Christmas gift I sent out to a few of my family and friends last year. ;)

I used Julia's best ever chocolate chip cookies in a jar recipe, printed out directions, and added a handmade ornament which was also part of our phamily Christmas card/magnet that we sent out. It was so much fun to put together, I can't wait to make more for other occasions with possibly my own recipes! :D

Things to note:

• I tried other versions of the recipe that some of the reviewers suggested, but I've found that the original recipe is perfect the way it is.

• Mix the flour, baking soda, and sugar together to make different layers - flour mixture, chocolate chips, brown sugar, chocolate chips, flour mixture. I suggest packing firmly after you put the brown sugar, if you're layering it like I did.

• The round piece of fabric should be at least 7 inches in diameter. It's easier to tie the ribbon on without having to shift the fabric a million times. ;) You can also place the fabric under the screw part of the lid but personally, I liked the way it looked completely covered.

• Double knot the fabric piece on first then tie on the instruction card along with the ornament or trinket.

• This might be a no-brainer but when baking the cookies, use butter that is NOT melted. I've made this mistake many many times when I first started baking so I thought I'd share. :)

I'm looking forward to baking some more once we move and get settled in our new home. :) If you try this out, let me know how these cookies turned out for you!

Lots of Smiles,

Akiyo