DIY projects

Robot Valentine Boxes

Here is a sweet little homemade Valentine. It is great for kids because they can decorate the boxes. The materials are pretty simple. I had the matchboxes around from another project and then was inspired these awesome matchbox valentines by Brooke. They were easy to make and a fun little project.

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Valentine’s Garland Mailer DIY

by Chiara Alberetti Milott

When I spotted these gift mailers at The Container Store, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them (I love how inspiration might strike while you are looking for a kid’s thermos for school lunches). Who wouldn’t love to receive this pretty and sweet Valentine’s garland in the mail? It’s very simple to create, and really – no rules…….say whatever you want to say (I Love You, Be Mine, Love Is All You Need, or just X O X O X O).

Step 1: Cut out your letters, using a variety of red, pink and gold papers. Make sure your letters are smaller than 1″ so they don’t get squished in the tube.

Step 2: Punch holes in the tops of your letters. String pom-poms, big dots, and letters, tying a knot at the top of each letter and dot.

Step 3: Wind-up the excess string on one end and tape it to the inside of the container lid. Make sure you remember which end it is – you will have to mark it so the recipient knows which side to open first.

Step 4: Seal and address the tube. Postage for the garland shown was $1.95. I love the way a mix of pretty postage looks.

Step 5: Mark which side the recipient should open first – so that when they open it up, the garland automatically unfurls, and they are delighted by your message of true love!

PS – You could even throw some confetti or Valentine’s candy in the tube, for even more fun and sweetness. Just make sure you throw a few extra stamps on as well!

2 Ideas for a Going Away Party

The hard part of living in the city so long is that you see your friends start to move away. It seems like we go to a lot of going away parties these days. Here are a couple of my favorite ideas for a going away party. The first are these little favor baskets filled with the guest-of-honor’s favorite locally made treats put in little wood baskets. A perfect way to celebrate where they’ve been or where they are going. The second idea is putting the face of your friend that is leaving on little buttons. It is a little silly and a great way to give a nod to your friend without getting too sentimental. Find more details below.

For the baskets we chose local products from San Francisco. (you could even base them off where the person was moving to.) For the baskets we ordered them from here and we made the ribbon by making quick drawings on cotton ribbon with a pen.

For the buttons you’ll need a button maker or else order them from somewhere like Etsy. My friend has one that I borrow but if you don’t have any nice friends with buttonmakers then they are really affordable to order (like here.) To make the image I just take a picture with my phone and then trace their head in photoshop and then layout each button with a smiley face.

Credits + Contributors:

All photography by Aubrey Trinnaman for Oh Happy Day
Art Direction by Jordan Ferney
Production by Stacy Wichelhaus
Styling by Milan Shimono Lee
Crafting by Irene Yu
Assisted by Harper Casimiro

Giant Valentine’s Day Posters + Free Download

Here is another Valentine’s Day Project! I made these giant Valentine posters 5 years ago and we thought it would be fun to put together another version that people could download. It is so easy, you just download the files and take it to your nearest Kinkos and print it out giant for $5 on their giant copy machines. I like the idea that these could stay up for a while even after Valentine’s Day is over. See all the instructions and details below!

Materials Needed: Download the images right here, Kinkos

Step 1: Download the six poster images and print out or else email the files to your nearest Kinkos.
Step 2: At Kinkos print out the images in giant poster size (each one should be about $5.)
Step 3: Fold up and give to someone you love.

All photography by Aubrey Trinnaman for Oh Happy Day
Art Direction by Jordan Ferney
Production by Stacy Wichelhaus
Styling by Milan Shimono Lee
Crafting by Irene Yu
Assisted by Harper Casimiro

Giant Letter Valentine

Here is another Valentine’s Day idea to do a for a friend or lover. It is easy and cheap and all you need is a roll of white paper. (On a sidenote: we make it a family policy to always keep a cheap roll of white butcher paper around for art projects etc. My mom always kept one around when I was a kid and I remember it was my favorite thing.) For this project you fold up these big letters and then send one every day until your message is spelled out loud and clear. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Materials Needed: Roll of white butcher paper, bone folder, envelopes, stamps

Step 1: Trace out a giant letter on the white paper and cut it out.
Step 2: Fold the letters down using the bone folder (it gets bulky without it.)
Step 3: When it is small enough to fit in an envelope, tie it up and put it in the envelope. Address, Stamp, and Send.

All photography by Aubrey Trinnaman for Oh Happy Day
Art Direction by Jordan Ferney
Production by Stacy Wichelhaus
Styling by Milan Shimono Lee
Crafting by Irene Yu
Assisted by Harper Casimiro