Pink Valentine Mailbox

Okay, I have to admit that I did do a little corrosion with this one.  My daughter is in preschool, and this was her first year to have a Valentine box.  She didn’t even know what she needed a box for, but she knew that she wanted it pink.  It was Mommy that saw the cute mailbox on Pinterest and showed it to her.  A little, “Oh! Wouldn’t this be so pretty!! Do you want one like this?” and it was done, Mommy was making a mailbox. 

So first thing’s first, I needed a mailbox.  I saw where Hobby Lobby had a cardboard one, but we don’t have a craft store close by, so I can only make it to one once in a blue moon.  I was just contemplating how to construct one out of cardboard, when I saw that Walmart had these cute little themed mailboxes for Valentine’s Day.  They were perfect!

I grabbed one that my daughter wouldn’t mind me painting over, because the world would stop spinning if I painted over princesses or puppies.

We went with Star Wars.  Plus, the Valentines inside were perfect for my son.  It was a win-win here!

So, here’s where I made my mistake.  I wanted to save time and spray paint the box instead of painting it all with my acrylics.  First, I spray painted it white as a primer to cover the dark design.  At the same time, I painted a glass candle holder that I found at Dollar Tree for only $1.

Then I spray painted the box pink.

 

However, it was cold and I was in a hurry, so I went too fast and put too much on.  Plus, the mailbox I bought was a finished product and the outside was shiny and slick before I started painting.  Put together that equation…  Yep, it started to run, and I was kicking myself for not hand painting it instead.

Once it was all dry, I had to do some major cover up.  Taking wadded up plastic wrap and some dark pink paint, I went around and blotted color over the entire box.

Afterward, I thought it was a little too bold, so I took a light pink and went over the top of the brighter pink in a few spots.  This helped to tone it down some.

 

Next, it was time to decorate.  I drew and cut out a large flower from white paper and gave it to her to color while I cut out the green leaves that it was going to lay on.  Then we glued the flower to the back of the mailbox.  I then glued on a big B to the front that was cut out of pink paper, along with white strips to give it some depth. 

Then there was the flag.  What’s a mailbox without a flag?  I cut hers out of extra cardboard and glued it to the side.

**I also thought to connect it using a brass fastener.  It would have made it so cool if she could have actually moved it up and down, but time and supplies were not on my side.**

Next, I measured and found the middle of the mailbox on the bottom, and glued the spray painted candle holder onto the spot.

Then we needed a handle to open and shut the box.  I dug through my craft box, and came out with a handful of marbles.  I used my hot glue gun and stuck the marble to the top of the door. 

The mailbox was SO cute, however my daughter wanted to put her own little flare on the box.  What better way to jazz something up then with shiny sequins? 

She picked out all the ones she wanted, told me where to put them, and I used my glue gun to attach them. 

**In hindsight, the sequins could have more than likely been glued on with Elmer’s, but I wanted to make sure they held.  The glue gun melted them some, and burned my fingers a lot.  Next time, I’ll probably use Elmer’s.**

There, everything was done.  With this mailbox, I think the box was too big for such a small candle holder, and so the proportions were somewhat off.  However, she was happy, and that’s all that matters.  It was big enough that her Valentines could fit into, but small enough to where she had no problem holding it.

Overall, I think it was a wonderful first Valentines box for her.  With her, you never know what next year will bring, but I can bet money it will be pink.

Until next time…

Happy DIY-ing!!

Leonardo Ninja Turtle Valentine Box

My younger son is addicted to Ninja Turtles!  I used to love them as well, my favorite being Michelangelo, same with my husband. My son, being the goofball he is, I was surprised that his favorite wasn’t the same.  No way!  He likes the man in charge, or should I say “turtle”, Leonardo.  So I got started on his Valentine box.

For this box, the obvious step was to spray paint the box green.  Yes, you can use paper to cover the box, but I didn’t want the hassle of trying not to mess the paper up while gluing onto and cutting into the box.

   

Then, I cut a small hole into the top of the box to slip the Valentines in, then I cut a larger hole in the back, so he could get them out. 

Next, I used construction paper and cut out the mask.  Once I glued white paper to the back of the eye holes, I then glued it onto the box.  Then, I cut two more strips of equal width and glued them around the box to make it look like a continuous strip around his head. 

Now, because my son has brown eyes, it was obvious what color I had to make Leonardo’s.  I drew the eyes on with pencil, then colored them with markers.

**Helpful hint:  Before doing ANYTHING permanent such as using markers or paint, draw it out with pencil first!  Pencil can always be erased it you don’t like the look.**

Then it was time for the mouth.  I could have easily drawn a smile, but that’s Michelangelo.  Leonardo is so serious and tough.  Of course he had to have the scowl.  I drew it on a piece of paper, before cutting it out and gluing it to the box. 

Next, I grabbed some extra cardboard and cut out the shapes for the front of the shell, back of the shell, and the swords. 

Now, I needed to make the back shell hinged so it could cover up the large hole, but still come down when he needed to get out the Valentines.  Since cardboard is made up of layers, I scored the cardboard, but didn’t cut all the way through.  That way, it made it bendable. 

Time to break out my paints.

I painted the front shell, and made sure to shade in the ridges.  Then I painted the back shell and both sides of the two swords. 

Once everything was completely dry, I glued the front shell to the box.  Then, I glued just the bottom of the back shell to the box, so it could open and shut.  Then, I judged the height I wanted the swords showing in the front and glued them on top of the back shell.

Now for the cool part.  I used two sets of Velcro pieces and hot glued them to the box and the shell on each side so it would hold shut until he wanted it open.

 

**The picture shows a blemish in the middle because I started with one in the middle, but the hot glue wouldn’t stick to the tape on the box, so I had to take it off.**

Let’s not forget the brown straps that run across his back, front, and over his shoulder.  I just cut those out of cardstock paper and glued them on. 

Everything looked great, and my son was ecstatic to show off his box at school!

He’s already planning next years.  Right now it’s Spiderman, and I have SO many cool things popping up in my head on what I can do with that one.

Guess we’ll just have to wait and see…

Until then…

Happy DIY-ing!!

Chocolate Bar Valentine Box

For Valentine’s this year, my ten year old son wanted his school box to be something cool, but not too “babyish” as he put it.  He's addicted to chocolate bars, so the choice was easy.

 

This was so easy to make.  It took minimal effort, and was done in no time.

First, I spray painted the entire box brown.

Then once it was dry, I cut a large enough hole in the top so his hand could fit through to grab out the Valentines.

Next, I used some spare cardboard and cut out pieces to make the chocolate squares.

 

I painted them a brown color that was slightly darker than the box, so they would stand out. 

**Don’t forget to paint the sides of the pieces.**

I then took my hot glue gun, and glued the pieces symmetrically to the front. 

For the wrapper, we used a long strip of tin foil and wrapped it around the bottom.  To look like the candy bar wrapper was peeled back, we rolled the top over and strategically crinkled it in different places.    

To make it somewhat more secure, I hot glued the foil in random spots, so I knew the design would hold.

That’s it!  We then had a delicious looking Valentine box.  What could be more perfect then putting Valentines into chocolate, the staple dessert for this holiday?

This was so fun to make, and it was great to see my son enjoying it so much.

Who knows what next year will bring?

Until next time…

Happy DIY-ing!!

Valentine Jell-O Bugs

It’s an infestation!!!

Of love bugs that is….

Love Bug Fruit Cups

When I was looking for Valentine DIYs, I came across these cute little critters, and practically shoved them in the face of the moms at my daughters preschool PTA.  I HAD to make them for the Valentine party!!

I made a few adjustments to the original design.  The first being that I changed the fruit cups.  I needed over twenty of these bugs and the Snack Pack Sugar Free Jell-O was $1.23 cheaper for four than the pineapple cups that were used.  Plus, BONUS… They were “Sugar Free”.

The only downfall to these cups was that they are handled so rough, and the plastic is not as hard, so they take a beating before hitting the shelves.  I just turned them until I found an undamaged side. 

Time to break out the hot glue gun.

**You will NOT melt the side of the Jell-O cup when gluing on the pieces!  I was worried about that too, but it was just fine.**

Here’s everything you need:

Jell-O cups
Googly Eyes
Mini Pom Poms
Small Pom Poms
Pipe Cleaners

Foam Hearts / or foam paper to cut out your own

**Glitter Pom Poms and Pipe cleaners are optional.  I was lucky enough to find a multipack at Michaels that had pipe cleaners and an assortment of sizes for pom poms, some glittery and some not.  That way, I got to play and mix colors to make them all different and unique.**

Take a pipe cleaner, and cut it in fours. This will give you two sets of antennas.

Take your small pom poms, and glue them to the tops of the pipe cleaners to make balls on top of the antennas. Set aside.

Find the best side of your Jell-O cup and glue on a set of eyes.

Then use a mini Pom, and glue on the nose.

Next, flip it over and glue on the antennas.

Now, you need the feet.  Take your foam hearts.

**I found a pack of 60 glittery hearts at Dollar Tree for $1.**

Glue them to the bottom of the Jell-O cup on the corners with the round side poking out.

I then cricked my antennas to each side to give it a little more character.

That’s it.  You’re done.  Now, you can make a little infestation of your very own.

Once I did a couple bugs to make sure everything went smoothly, that’s when I set up my assembly line to do the rest.  It didn’t take too long, and they are so worth it.

These make such a cute addition to the plate of a valentine party, and I can see how you can change it up for different holidays as well.  The possibilities are endless!

Stay tuned for more projects to celebrate this month and Valentine’s Day!

Until then…

Happy DIY-ing!!!