PAPER HEARTS

If you are looking for a quick, easy and cheap way to decorate then consider making paper hearts. They only take about 2 minutes or less to make each one and they can have a lot of visual impact when grouped together. I created the centerpiece above by stacking 3 hearts on top of each other, sprinkling fake rose petals around them and adding tealights – how easy is that!!

I have also used paper hearts as party decorations by hanging them from ceilings and walls, and also to add visual interest when taking pictures. Consider using them to make hanging mobiles, to decorate on valentine’s day (i’m thinking lots of red hearts hanging from a ceiling), or to create a romantic environment when proposing to a partner. You can even give a paper heart to someone and write on it, ‘I ♥ U’, so corny I know!! But the possibilities of how to use paper hearts are endless.

See below for instructions on how to make them.

Instructions:

1. You will need coloured paper (I’ve used large cardboard sheets which I bought from WHSmith), a ruler, a pair of scissors, a pencil, a stapler, a hole punch and invisible thread or ribbon. I use invisible thread because I wanted the hearts to look as though they were floating.
2. Measure and cut out 7 rectangles – two 30cm x 3cm, two 22cm x 3cm, two 14cm x 3cm, and one 9cm x 3cm. These measurements are a rough guide. You can make the hearts as big or as small as you want, just make sure there is a 5-8cm difference between the 3 lengths.
3.  Arrange the rectangles as shown in the picture above, which the shortest rectangle in the centre, flanked by the two longest rectangles, then the shorter rectangles
4. Stack the rectangles on each other in the same order as laid out in step 3 and staple them together at one end.
5. Then bring the free ends of the two shorter rectangles together to make a heart, then so this for the medium and longest rectangles so that you have 3 love hearts and staple all the ends together.
6. If you choose to hang the hearts, then use the hole punch to create a hole in the free end of the short centre rectangle that points upwards. Use invisible thread or ribbon to thread through the hole.

 

So, you should have a complete paper heart that is ready for use. I have made a whole box of paper hearts in the space of a few hours, and I keep them in a box with sheets of newspaper in between layers of the hearts so that I can re-use them again and again (see the last picture in this post to show you how I store them). Let me know how you choose to use your paper hearts.

 

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