Matchbox Valentines

Last weekend I was basically snowed in so I spent my time making valentines for my family, friends, and colleagues (while watching Downton Abbey).  You would think I was an elementary school student!  All I need now is a shoebox covered in tin foil, doilies, and construction paper hearts!  Seriously, I really enjoy celebrating holidays and it makes me happy to give handmade gifts to the people in my life.  I know they enjoy it...sometimes I even get requests!  I blatantly stole all of these ideas for handmade valentines from some of my favorite blogs and I am going to share them this week so you can too!

I found these Matchbox Valentines here and decided to make them for my family.  I think this is the cutest idea and they were pretty easy to make.

To make them you will need a large box of matches (I'll show you what I did with the matches in another post), a bag of stick pretzels, a bag of Wilton red candy melts, some red decorator sugar, and the free printable from the original tutorial.  Go here to download it.

To make the edible matches microwave half the bag of candy melts for 30 second intervals until completely melted.  Dunk the tip of a stick pretzel in the melted candy and then dunk it again in the sugar.  Place the pretzel on some waxed paper to set up.  Now repeat this process about eleventy billion times!

Place a piece of tissue paper cut to size in the empty match box and then fill with the pretzels once they have set up.  If you don't want to spend your morning dipping pretzels, you could fill the box with plain pretzels and cover them with a couple of rows of the dipped ones.  Use a paper trimmer to cut out a cover (you will get three different sayings) and attach it to the top of the box with a tape gun.

Thanks to Desiree at The 36th Avenue for this adorable idea (and free printable).  Give it a try!

 

Note:  Speaking of Downton Abbey...has anyone else made it through all of Season 3?  I know these people are fictional characters but I cried my eyes out...