Valentine Treats using 3 x 3 cards

My son loves to give those red heart lollipops on Valentine’s Day.  I always think they need a little dressing up, and this year, I came up with a fun idea based on 3 x 3 cards.

I enjoy making 3 x 3 cards as gift enclosures, notes in my son’s lunchbox or tucked in a book I’m giving as a gift.  Best of all, when you use a 12 x 12 cardstock, you can get EIGHT cards from one piece! 

I gathered together a 12 x 12 piece of Brown Bag Kraft cardstock, an 8 ½” x 11” piece of Malmero Perle Blanc cardstock, some copic markers, a stamp set (I used Kid at Heart by Taylored Expressions), Atyou Spica pens in Sand, Silver, and Melon, Memento Black Tuxedo Ink, Holiday Red, Topiary, Lagoon, Pacifica and Pear ink by Close to My Heart,  3D Foam Tape, Tim Holtz tiny attacher, and of course, a package of the red heart lollipops. 

First, I cut my 12×12 Kraft cardstock into four 3” x 12” pieces.  Then, I cut each strip into two 3” x 6” pieces.  Be sure to score the cards you’ve created to make a crisp top fold.  I then used the heart stamp to stamp around the edges of each card (the middle doesn’t show with the frame on top).

I used CTMH’s Holiday Red ink to stamp the border stamp several times on the Malmero Perle Blanc cardstock.   I cut these out, and stamped sentiments using the Memento Tuxedo Black Ink. 

I had fun with the images from this stamp set.  I stamped each on the remaining Malmero Perle Blanc cardstock.  On the dinosaur, I was unhappy with the way he stamped using CTMH’s Topiary ink, so I colored over the image with a Copic marker.  I think you’ll agree he looks a lot better!

I used 3D foam tape to raise up the images on the frame, then used 3D foam tape again to adhere the frame to the card. 

It is really easy to make fun Copic hearts on your art, as I have done here.  First, you place the brush side of your marker onto your paper from tip to mid-nib.  You’ll see it makes a teardrop shape.  Then, you place your marker next to the teardrop to connect another teardrop.  Voila!  A cute Copic heart!  I suggest practicing this technique a few times before trying it on your art!

Finally, I placed a lollipop inside each 3×3 card and used my tiny attacher to staple the card together.

Happy Stamping!