With just a few days to go, I figured I should probably get started on my Valentine’s Day cards. Better late than never, right? Thankfully, we don’t have to hand one out to everyone in school, or work for that matter. Our list is short, but oh so important: Dad-oo and the Grandparents.

Heart hand stamps by Kahli from Little. Lovely.

I was inspired by this adorable project on BloesemKids (originally posted by Khali at Little. Lovely.) and I thought to myself, self what a great idea for a Valentine’s Day card. The kiddo can help create them, and they make a beautiful keepsake for the important people in our lives. In fact, I think that we may just do this every year (or as long as the kiddo will put up with it), to record how the little man grows from year to year.

My Version

Now I’m thinking that I need to get more embellishments for these cards. I surprised myself and really enjoyed making the cards by hand, with the little bit of fun paper I had in the house. Does anyone know where I can order some fun scrapbooking supplies, for cheap?

More Valentine’s Day Crafts

Check out some of my favorite craft sites. I only wish that I had enough time to create all of these little gems before the big day arrives.

Fortune Cookie Valentine from Kerry at kidgiddy

Valentine Pendants, by One Golden Apple, a great idea to turn your kiddo’s artwork into jewelry.

These heart-shaped glasses by Mom Tried It would be great for kids of all ages (especially the dad-aged kids)

I love these elegant yet fun 3-D hearts by The Mother Huddle

And of course The Crafty Crow for their endless supply of ideas.

I have to admit, I had no ideas for this week’s craft. None. I was so worried about it that I fell asleep on Tuesday night thinking about it, and even dreamed about it. I know, that’s kind of sad.

So, what do I do when I have zero ideas for a fun Valentine’s Day craft? I turn to my other passion, baking. I needed an excuse to make some cookies anyway. The last time I made any cookies was, let’s see, before Christmas. When the cookie binge of 2009 happened. Now I remember what I gave up sweets for 30 days.

I decided that cut out cookies would be our craft for this week. But not just your normal heart-shaped cookies. That is way too boring for me. I decided to mix it up a little and created some fun, arty, abstract Valentine’s Day cookies.

For this craft you can make it as easy or as difficult as you want. Me, I of course made it difficult. I made everything from scratch, including the frosting. I even cut each individual heart out of the dough with a knife. Yes, I’m just a tad bit crazy. As if you didn’t already know that. You could by all means use store bought sugar cookie dough and frosting. You might however have to make the egg-wash at home, but considering that it’s only 2 ingredients, I think that just about anyone can handle it. Or go ahead and use your favorite sugar cookie recipe. Or use mine (at the end of the post).

Abstract Valentine’s Day Cookies

1. Divide the dough in half. Half will be for the base of the cookies, the other half will be for the hearts.
2. Roll out the first half of the dough on a well floured surface until 1/4″ thick. Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut out various sized squares and rectangles. These should not be perfect, their beauty is in their uneven, odd shapes and sizes. These are supposed to be abstract after all. Let the kids get a little crazy, who says the shapes even need to have 4 sides?
   
3. Using the egg-wash (see below) and a pastry brush, splatter each square and rectangle. This is a really fun part for kids. They can make a mess and not get in trouble. Use 2 or three different colors, pinks, reds and purples work best for Valentine’s Day.
   
4. Next, with the second half of the dough rolled out, using a knife cut out hearts. Big ones, small ones, lop-sided ones. You get the picture. I suppose that you could also use a cookie cutter, but where’s the fun in that? (Ignore the coloring in the photo, I accidentally photographed an extra heart that I had egg-washed)
   
5. Now, bake all of those funny shapes and lop-sided hearts according to the package/recipe’s direction. For me that was 8 minutes at 350º.
6. Once those cookies have baked and cooled, frost the hearts and let them dry. I used a very simple powdered sugar/milk glaze. I just dipped the cookies in and let them dry. Really easy.
7. With the left over frosting/glaze, put a small dot on the back of each heart and place it on top of the egg-wash splattered base. It doesn’t have to be perfectly centered. In fact, I think the cookies have a lot more character when they are a little off balance.
   

That’s it. You are now the proud owner of some sassy looking, oh so delicious Valentine’s Day cookies. Share them or gobble them all up yourself. I won’t tell. I swear.

Sugar Cookie Recipe

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla (or any other flavor)

Cream together the sugars and butter. Add egg and mix. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4″ thick. Cut out in desired shapes. Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350º, or until the edges are a light golden brown.

Egg-Wash

1 egg yolk
1/4 teaspoon water

Mix the egg yolk and water together. Separate into 2-3 small dishes and color with food coloring. If the wash starts to thicken, add just a little water to thin it out.

Frosting/Glaze

Powdered Sugar
Milk
Vanilla or Almond

There really are exact measurements for this. You just make as much as you need. But it’s best to start out with a lot of sugar and a little milk. Add milk slowly until you reach the desired thickness.