15 Adorable DIY Valentines

I love making DIY valentines for the boys to give out to their friends every year.

Well, I should probably rephrase that. I love PLANNING to make DIY valentines for the boys to give out to their friends every year. It doesn’t always actually happen, especially now that they’re all in school and we’re talking about a total of about 50 kids’ valentines and about 15 teacher valentines, so there have been several years where I end up running out to Target at the last minute to pick up some of the plain old boxed ones. 

But this year, darn it, I’m going to make them. So while I think about it, I decided to share some inspiration with all of you and feature some of my favorite DIY Valentines. I honestly can’t even believe how cute some of these are. 

NOTE: I have compiled these projects from some of my favorite blogs and websites. To pin any of these individual projects, please click on the link below each photo and pin from the original source. To pin the entire collection, use the photo above. Thank you!

“Will You O-Fish-Ally Be Mine?” Valentines from Tammy Mitchell Designs

I made these last year for Mason to give out to his preschool classmates. Because he wasn’t even 2 yet, I loved that we were giving his friends a treat of something besides candy. I got the pillow boxes from Paper Mart, but I’ve also seen them at Michael’s. 

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Forceful Valentines from Stitch/Craft Creations

These are what I made for David and Connor to give out last year. Again, no candy, which was nice. {NOTE: I am in no way against candy. My kids have candy all the time, and I actually used M&Ms as a bribe incentive to get Mason to use the potty. I just think that kids get SO MUCH candy around Valentine’s day — which is right after Christmas, which is right after Halloween — that it’s not a terrible thing to offer up an alternative.} The kids LOVED them, because, well: Star Wars + glow bracelets = most awesome thing ever. {Here’s another cute light saber valentine too!}

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“I Dig You” Shovel Valentines from Spoonful

So stinkin’ cute, and so super easy to make. I am thinking about doing these for Mason’s class this year. {Parents of Mason’s classmates: if you see this, pretend you didn’t.}

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Need S’more Friends Like You Valentines from Domesticated Lady

I made these for the boys’ teachers last year, and they loved them. Again, a super easy, super cute, super inexpensive little treat!

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Ginormous Lollipop Valentine from Spoonful

I did these a few years ago for the boys, and people really loved them. I did some like this, and some where they’re holding out their hand with the lollipop, like this one from 24-7-365. They both turned out so cute, and they were really easy to do, which is always a bonus. {For super inexpensive photo prints, check out Walmart — you can order them from home and pick them up in an hour!}

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Blow Me A Kiss Valentines from Plum Adorable via The Frugal Girls

First of all, I am slightly obsessed with those pearlized pink gumballs. They are so pretty, I can’t even take it. Second, what a cute idea! When I first saw these, I didn’t even notice the little Hershey Kiss on the top. Such a fun valentine.

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Blow Me A Kiss Valentines from At Second Street

Here’s another variation on the “blow me a kiss” theme, except this one includes a whistle. Now, if someone gave my kid a valentine with a whistle on it, I might have to hunt them down. But I am all about giving them to other kids, especially when they are shaped like lips and come on cards as cute as these. {I realize that makes me a horrible person, and I don’t really care.}

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Finger Light Valentine from Haley’s Daily Blog

I didn’t even know that these finger light thingamawhatsits actually existed until this summer when we visited Latitude 40 in Pittsburgh. {Aside: if you’ve never been to a Latitude restaurant, you need to find one ASAP. They are SO much fun — along the same lines as Dave & Busters, but way, WAY more awesome. Our kids — and, if we’re being completely honest here, Dave and I — went completely bananas for the place.} Anyway, we went to exchange the tickets we won in the game room, and the boys were immediately draw to these. While I could not figure out what they were for {“They’re not FOR anything, Mom, they just light up! Sheesh…”} you’d have thought they discovered gold. So if you’re sitting there thinking, “What the heck are those things?” trust me, kids love ’em.

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Free Printable Minecraft Valentines from Over the Big Moon

Speaking of discovering gold and going bananas, I’m pretty sure these are the valentines I’m going to have to make for David and Connor this year. They ask to play it every single second of every single day, and when they’re not allowed on electronics, they actually play Real-life Minecraft, which appears to just involve hiding things and then chasing each other around the house while yelling at the top of their lungs. They are actually doing their science fair project on “The Minerals of Minecraft.” Even Mason is slightly obsessed with this game, and he has no earthly idea what he’s doing when he plays it. So yeah, I think these might have to be The Ones this year.

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Heart-Shaped Crayon Valentines from The Nerd’s Wife

These multi-colored crayons are so much fun to make. I should know, because we made over 500 of them {seriously, that’s not an exaggeration} last summer for David’s booth at Arts Fest. And not only are they fun to make, they’re also fun to color with! If I don’t do the shovel valentines for Mason’s class, I think I’m going to have to do these. Bonus: I think we still have tons of heart-shaped ones left over from Arts Fest! Jackpot!

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Matchbook Valentines from My Sister’s Suitcase

How cute would these be for a Grandma to keep in her purse? I know my mom would love whipping this bad boy out to show her grandsons off to her friends. I can also these being super popular with tween and teen girls. And best of all, they come with a free printable so you can whip them up in no time!

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Loom Band Printable Valentines from The Crafted Sparrow

The Rainbow Loom craze is still going strong in our neck of the woods, so I know a lot of kids who would love to get this valentine. Although this might be better if you’re only handing out a few, as it may take some time to make a ton of fishtail bracelets. {Trust me: I had the brilliant idea that David and Connor should make red, white and green Rainbow Loom bracelets for each one of their classmates for Christmas. David thought it was a fantastic idea, so he got started right away. You know how many he made? One. Yup, one. Apparently, it was a much better idea in theory.

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Bouncy Ball Valentines from Nellie Design

What kid doesn’t love a bouncy ball? Especially these ones, with the stars in them. {Love!} Another no-candy option that kids will go crazy over. 

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“You Rule” Valentines from Re:Located Living

I think these would be such a great valentine for teachers. I love the old-school-looking wooden rulers, and they pretty much don’t get any easier than this one. Literally print out a card, cut some slits, slap your ruler in there, and you’re good to go.

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“Let’s Build Something Together, Valentine” Lego Bags from Kojodesigns

As the mom of 3 boys, including one in 3rd grade who is just beginning to notice girls {please don’t tell him I told you this, he would die of embarrassment}, I’m realizing that it can be hard to find valentines that aren’t super girly or “gross” for a boy to give a girl. {I’m thinking of suggesting one of the “Blow Me A Kiss” options above to David just to mess with him and see his reaction. It would be funny.} These are a great option for boys to give to anyone!

So you tell me: do you usually make your kids’ valentines, or do you buy ready-made ones from the store?

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