Valentine's Day Cookies and Crafts

I made these for Valentine's Bunco!  

I know you expect cookies, here they are.  But how about a craft or 2?  And my reflections on Valentine's Day, even though no one asked...

It's the 70's and I am one of 16 kids in my small class in Iowa.  A day or two before Valentine's Day we all bring a shoebox to school and spend an hour in Art Class (everyone had it back then) gluing construction paper and doilies to the box. Sister would cut the hole in the top with the scissors that had a point.  And then on Valentine's Day, we would perch the box on our desk.  The little paper Valentines we had bought were signed and the little white envelopes that never stayed closed were addressed with each kids name.  And one for Sister.  We didn't bring candy, there were no Valentines with superheroes or cartoon characters.  They were sweet girls and boys holding hearts and saying Happy Valentine's Day.  Our class party would involve no parents, no chicken nuggets, no favor bags and no games.  We would have a napkin with a cookie or a cupcake and a paper cup of Kool Aid.  And we would sit at our desks and open our valentines and laugh and carry on like kids do. Sometimes we would do a craft, like making a Valentine for our Mom.  It was a great childhood.

Today I saw a commercial for a party store for all your classroom Valentie party needs.  Cupcake towers, pre-made boxes, bouquets of balloons, color coordinated M&Ms and streamers. Really?

This year I had a few Valentine projects.  The first was napkins for supper club.  I found a graphic print, 100% cotton.  Much to the dismay of many sewers, I did not prewash the fabric.  I think it makes mitering corners easier with stiff fabric.  You can learn to miter corners at Hipline Media,  It is found on the Home Decor download. I made 10 napkins with about 3 yards of fabric. Shop after the holidays for great prices and fill your stash!

Head to the quilting store for high quality cotton to make napkins for every occasion.  These have mitered corners and are oversized at 20" X 20" . 

This silly project was designed to bring a little light to my bar.  I really love this bottle.  Mr. Preppy drilled a hole in the back large enough to feed a small strand through, and then I found all kinds of things at Hobby Lobby to adorn the top.  It changes with the season!

Then I headed back to the sewing room for a Martha project.  These heart shaped potholders are so easy.  I whipped up a bunch and decided I didn't do a very good job with the binding.  But they are colorful and fun, and never look a gift horse in the mouth.  What does that mean anyway?  I did the pastel fabric for most of my friends.  The black and red for my friend that has a white kitchen with darker accents and finally, the mustache one for my mom.  She is a docent at the Dali museum, so I couldn't resist!