Do you remember when the Olympics used to be every four years? When the summer and winter versions were in the same year, and we’d have to wait four long years for another exciting Olympics? (I just searched and learned that 1992 was the last year that the games were held in the same year.) Well, I remember it (age reveal!), and I’m so glad that now we only have to wait two years for the next installment of global sporting fun.

And it also means that I only have to wait every two years to exercise my Olympic crafting muscle!

What you’ll need:

• Square gift box
• 2 strong magnets
• Clothespin
• Cupcake liners
• yarn
• Pipe cleaner
• 2 small beads
• One 1/2″ bead
• Paint
• Paintbrush
• Pens
• Hot glue gun
• Scissors
• Wooden doll head

Make it!

1.Paint hair on the wooden doll head and paint the ends of the clothespin white. Let dry.

2. Paint the magnet sides and top white. Let dry.

3. Draw face on the head and hot-glue the 1/2″ bead to the top of her head. Set aside.

4. Fold cupcake liner in half and cut a small half-circle from the center; cut slit up to the center hole. Trim off edge of liner to form ice skater’s skirt. Repeat with the second liner if you want a layered look.

5. Glue cupcake liners around the middle of the clothespin.

6. Glue head to the top of the clothespin.

7. Wrap exposed clothespin with yarn and glue ends to secure.

8. Cut a 3-inch piece of pipe cleaner and glue to her back. Stick small wooden beads on the ends as her hands.

9. Cut a small tiara from the scraps of cupcake liner and glue onto head.

10. Hot glue the feet of the clothespin to the top of the painted magnet. Place the other magnet underneath the box and place the skater on top. Drag around the bottom magnet so she skates!

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What’s better than 2 for 1? What about 4 for 1! When we started thinking about fun ways to make hearts for V-day, we couldn’t choose just one, and luckily you don’t have to either!

The secret to an armload of hearts is a silicone mold pan – it’s perfect for transforming all sorts of supplies into Valentines treats. Maybe your kids want to make gifts for their teachers and need candy-free cards for their class, or maybe you want to share self-care treats with your girlfriends for Galentine’s Day. Below are how-to’s for heart shaped crayons, perler bead pendants, toy-filled soaps, and sprinkle bath bombs. Make just one or try all four and take advantage of all the options your tray offers!

Heart Crayons

What you’ll need

• Heart shaped silicone mold pan
• Assortment of crayons  

How to make them

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Peel all paper off crayons and snap them into small pieces.
3. Fill cups with approximately 3 to 4 crayons or until the cup is full.
4. Bake for approximately 15 minutes.
5. Take out and allow to fully harden and cool before popping crayons out of mold.

Perler Bead Pendants/Pins

What you’ll need

• Heart shaped silicone mold pan
• Assortment of perler beads
• Optional: pin back, magnet, string or ribbon
• Hot glue

How to make them

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Separate beads by color for a monochrome look or mix together.
3. Fill cups with beads until bottom surface of mold cups is covered with beads.
4. Bake for approximately 45 minutes, checking on them every ten minutes or so.
5. Take out and allow to cool before popping out hearts.
6. Glue magnet, pin back, or necklace string to the back.

Bath bombs

What you’ll need

• Heart shaped silicone mold pan
• 8 oz baking soda
• 4 oz Epsom salt
• 4 oz corn starch
• 4 oz citric acid
• 2.5 tablespoons vegetable oil
• About 1 tablespoon water
• 4-6 drops of soap colorant
• Small toys (we used magic grow capsules)
• Large bowl
• Small jar or bowl
• Spoon
• Measuring spoons
• Optional: sprinkles or biodegradable glitter  

How to make them

1. Add all the dry ingredients (baking soda, Epsom salt, cornstarch, and citric acid) together in a large bowl. Stir until the mixture is clump-free. Add sprinkles or glitter if you’d like and continue to stir.
2. Next add all wet ingredients (oil, water, and food coloring) to a clean jar and shake them up. Add more food coloring for a brighter hue.
3. Slowly add the liquid to the dry mixture, stirring as you go. If things start to fizz, go even slower! You should end up with a mixture that just barely clumps together, like damp sand.
4. As soon as you have the right consistency, fill each mold cup halfway with the mixture and pack down firmly. Add the toy and continue to fill the cups, pressing firmly again at the top.
5. Let the bath bombs dry a full day or overnight before popping them out of the mold.

Heart Soap

What you’ll need

• Clear Glycerin Melt & Pour Soap Base (2 lbs)
• Small plastic toys or erasers
• Glass measuring cup
• Spray bottle with rubbing alcohol 
• Soap Colorant
• Knife
• Spoon
• Plastic Cutting board

How to make them

1. Start by cutting soap base into cubes and then small slices and filling the measuring cup. NOTE: It’s easier to make in small batches so start with 8 oz of glycerin at a time. If your glycerin came in a grid, 8oz = 10 cubes. The amount of soap base you need to fill each cup will depend on your mold size. Our mold had 8, 2.5 oz cups which required approximately 4 oz of liquid soap per cup.
2. Microwave measuring cup for 30 seconds, take out and stir. If necessary, continue in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until glycerin has become clear liquid.
3. Add colorant to the measuring cup, 4 drops at a time, and stir until you reach the desired shade.
4. Pour the soap into molds, filling them halfway, and then spritz with alcohol to remove bubbles. Let set for 5 to 7 minutes. Spritz toy with alcohol then place in soap and spritz once more.
5. Leave for twenty minutes to make sure toy is secure then spritz again with alcohol, remelt soap and fill the remaining space. Spritz one more time and leave until completely hardened.

I am certainly no master at origami, but these hearts make me feel like a real whiz! They are super-fast to make and your kids will get the hang of it very quickly, sans frustration, I swear!

Check out this video that we made that shows you how easy and cute they are!

What you’ll need:

• Origami paper
• Scissors
• Letter stamps
• Ink pad
• Glue dots

MAKE IT:

1. Place a 6″ x 6″ square of origami paper colored-side down. Fold paper in half on the diagonal, bringing top corner to bottom one. Unfold. Fold in half again, bringing right corner to left one. Unfold.
2. Fold top point of paper to meet center crease.
3. Fold bottom point up to meet top fold.
4. Fold right side up diagonally to align with center.
5. Repeat on left side to meet center crease.
6. Flip over folded paper; fold side and top points in 1/2″.
7. Flip over and insert a slip of paper with a message into pocket of heart.
8. Cut 3/4″ strips from origami paper.
9. Stamp names in the center of each strip.
10. Fold the ends around the name and trim off about ½”. Cut out triangles on the ends of the strip.
11. Glue-dot the name strip to each heart.

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Do you knot have time for labor-intensive class valentines? Are your kids knot making it easy on you? Do you knot want to give candy? Do you knot want to have to think about it any more?

Here is a very easy, sugar-free, stress-free class valentine that you can make for 30 kids in 20 minutes flat.

Step one: Buy these pencils.

Step two: Download this template and print.

Step three: Cut, punch a hole, tie the pencil. Done.

Your kids can KNOT say no to this Valentine!

Stores may have been hinting at it for months, but February 1st means its officially time to start thinking about Valentine’s Day! Trust us, you have more than enough time to create A + cards. We’ve collected ten ideas for class valentines that are both easy and enjoyable to make. Whether your child wants to share candy, a toy, or an artistic masterpiece – we’ve got you covered!

1.

The simplest heart stamps ever are waiting in your recycling bin! Project Kid’s very own Amanda made these sweet squares, above, for Parents magazine.

2.

Handmade Charlotte‘s charming cardboard cards will cause hearts to flutter! Brads and string are the secret to making the wings work.

3.

Make the holiday even happier by giving your kids classmates rose-colored glasses. This cereal box upcycle from Pink Stripey Socks is sure to be a hit. (We want a pair of these for ourselves!)

4.

Follow Mermag’s lead and animate envelopes with paper ears and heart noses. Who cares what’s inside when the outside is so cute! (Clearly we love envelope crafts here at Project Kid!)

5.

For a 3-D fuzzy friend, add pom-poms to Hello Wonderful‘s sheep printable – the more multicolored the better!

6.

A pretty printable option are these paper flowers from The House that Lars Built. After making enough for the class, a bouquet for the teacher will get extra points – especially if they love You’ve Got Mail .

7.

For creative valentines that will inspire future art-making, these mini palettes by our friends at  Super Make It (featured in Parents) are a great option. Your kids will have so much fun splatter painting the labels that it won’t take any time to make enough for the whole class.

8.

A mini maze card is an even quicker way to craft a valentine whose fun will outlast the holiday. Idea via Oh Happy Day.

9.

Out of all the choices for candy cards, we’ve cherry picked this sweet option. Wrap two lollipops in crepe paper to create fruits that are almost too cute to eat. Via The House that Lars Built

10.

A stick of rock candy feels so festive that all you need to add is a punny tag to make it the perfect valentines treat. Get the print out from Sugar and Cloth.

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