DIY – Homemade Valentine’s

It’s February! That mean’s a month all about L-O-V-E! And I have a really affordable DIY to share with you that is easy to make, beautiful, and completely personalized Valentines for all your favorite people.
What You’ll Need:
– Craft/Scrapbook paper; think patterns, pinks, reds and hearts!
– Scissors, glue stick, hole-punch
– Markers
– Ribbon
– Stickers; stick to metallics, hearts and letters! (optional)
– Photos (optional)

Step 1: Gather all your goodies to create your Valentine’s; once you’ve got all your goodies and figured out who you want to make a card for – it’s time to start making!

Step 2: Pick out your papers, and determine your shape – obviously a heart is a good go-to, if you’re afraid to freehand the cut find a template online or trace on paper before. You’ll want to cut two of your papers so you can have a front and back – these can be the same or mix and match! It’s OK if it’s not perfect, because it’s handmade!! Once you’ve got your shape cut, glue the front and back together.  An optional add; is to hole punch around the perimeter of the heart and then weave ribbon in and out of the holes.

Step 3: Start to Personalize! Add your pictures; stickers and write a sweet note to your honey or bestie… and wah-la! You’ve got a personal, one of a kind Valentine for that special someone.
Since I am an avid scrapbooker, I had a lot of these supplies in-house stocked away. But scrapbook paper is usually on sale for 7 for $1; ribbon is around $3.99 a roll, stickers can add up if you buy a bunch; but finding some that can be used as accents won’t break the bank.  Not to mention you can always find a great coupon to help. If you stock up now, you’ll have a mini stockpile ready for next year, woo!

Happy Crafting!

Local Love

One of the things I love about my city is that we have so many awesome local companies and the best part is that they’re strictly that, local companies. Here are a few of my favorite locals;

CLE Clothing Co.
Local clothing with unique designs specializing in all things CLE, especially our amazing sports teams.  What makes these tees so great is how soft they are, it’s absolutely incredible. My favorite t-shirts are from CLE Clothing Co., and their instagram account is the go to place to get updates and stay current on the latest releases and sales.

Cleveland Vegan
Although I have only tried their chocolate chip cookies and some other sweet treats, I would recommend this place to anyone.  They sell variety of their bakery items at other local grocery stores, their brick and mortar store is always packed – and serve a wide offering of vegan options.  We’ll be taking a trip in the near future.

Mitchell’s Homemade Ice Cream
Thanks to Mitchell’s I am officially an ice cream snob.  Mitchell’s uses locally sourced ingredients and has seasonal flavors like; Strawberry Rhubarb and Fresh Peach. Not to mention year-round flavors include Carmel Sea Salt, Toasted Pistachio, and Cookie Dough.  I also love that they offer vegan and low-dairy/yogurt options – which is great for dietary restrictions, plus sprinkles are free!

Dawg Pound 5k
Last year this was the Bernie Kosar Shuffle (5k) – not many 5k’s have amazing swag or a kick ass metal, but here in Brown’s town we do.  A sea of orange and brown; regardless of the weather will be running the downtown streets at this year’s Dawg Pound fun run.  A group of coworkers and friends are all signed up for this October, it’s going to be a blast!

Foundry Woodprints
Brings vintage images to life by his unique technique of ‘printing’ on wood – this amazing collection of century old photography is incredible and brings this city back to an era of it’s true roots. We have a few of these pieces around the house and absolutely love them.

What are some of your local loves?