Sometimes, the simplest of materials yield the most heartwarming results. No one can deny that handmade Valentines are impossible to resist and, when combined with the power of Cupid’s bow and arrow, just might be a little bit magical. Today’s insanely simple craft comes in the form of your own arrow (or dozen), and you likely have all of the materials in your junk drawer, besides the love note of course. ;)
Materials (for 1 arrow):
– 1 plastic straw
– 1 piece of construction paper (or any colored paper will do)
– tape
– hot glue
– piece of string
– 1 love note
To make the shaft of the arrow, wrap a straw with tape. I happened to have decorative tape on hand, but any solid, colored tape will work.
Once the straw is covered, take a pair of scissors and cut .25” slits in the top of the straw to make an “X” at the top. In the next step, you will create a feather out of construction paper that will fit into these slits.
Take two 3”x3.5” pieces of paper and fold them in half. Then, cut out the shape of a feather, as shown. Next, use scissors to create fringe down the sides of the paper until you have two feathers. Apply a small amount of hot glue down one of the folded sides of one of the feathers, and adhere the other feather to it. Now you have the end of your arrow. (It should resemble the feathered end of a dart.)
Apply hot glue to the side of the straw with slits, and slide the feather in.
Next, take a 1.5” square of paper. Fold it in half, then fold it in half again. Then, unfold it once, and fold down the corners to create a triangle. (Much like you would fold the top of a paper airplane. Or, as I like to think of it, basically like making a tiny party hat for your finger!) Once you’ve folded down the corners, you should be left with a triangular shape like the one pictured above. Apply a small amount of hot glue to the open edges of the paper, so that you now have a paper tip, as shown above.
Place a decent-sized amount of hot glue into the tip of the triangle you’ve just made, and stick the other end of the straw inside.
Embellish the arrow however you see fit. (I’m partial to glitter, and nothing says Cupid like a bit of golden sparkle.)
The only thing left to do is to write a sweet love note to your valentine, wrap it around the arrow, and tie it with a piece of string. If one note simple won’t do the trick and a dozen roses is too predictable, we love the idea of making a dozen Cupid’s arrows, all with notes about how much you love your Valentine.
What DIY gifts are crafting up for Valentine’s Day? We’d love to see photos. Send a note to hello@brit.co or say hi on Twitter.
Meagan Bennett (Meggs Benedict) is the Associate Art Director for Abrams Appleseed, an imprint of Abrams Books for 0-5 year olds. When she’s not designing books, she’s usually either baking, designing, illustrating, making jewelry, running, or crafting. She writes and draws about all of the things that make her smile at her blog.
