This is the second article in a series about Valentine Decorations and Gifts.  In the first one I shared some inexpensive ways I added a touch of love to my mantel.  Sharing how I pulled together a crocheted bunting and a mandala created with rubber stamps.  Click back one day on my blog to check it out if you are interested in it.  Today I’m sharing with you a few other goodies that are quick and easy to brighten our living spaces for the holiday.

Lovin’s in a Jar

The great thing about Pinterest is that it shows us how decorating our rooms can be as easy as adding a few bright accents to a shelf,  tossing an Afghan over the arm of your couch, or picking some flowers and arranging them nicely to set on the nightstand in your guest bedroom.  With so many ideas from thousands of people – it’s one of the first places I look to for inspiration.

In my Pinterest saves I have two albums where I store inside the house decorating ideas. One is for table top vignettes and mantels.  The other is for buntings and wreaths.  When looking for a few Valentine ideas this year I wanted to see what folks were piling hearts into.

I spied a toy truck that i just loved over at a Cultivated Nest plus several heart stuffed baskets, and jars too.  Hearts made from plastic, burlap, paper cutouts, and more.  If I had a truck I definitely would have borrowed that idea.  Unfortunately I don’t have such a little gem. So I opted for a large mouth vase to tuck my hearts into.

I used two different remnants from my fabric stash and cut heart shapes using pinking shears.  Then I hand stitched them and stuffed them with polyfill. Another idea?  You could stitch them on a sewing machine wrong sides together then turn them right side out and you’d have finished edges to give you a more refined look.  These are a great size for sachets also.  You could easily fill them with yummy smelling lavender or simply add drops of your essential oils to them.

After doing up a couple dozen of these, I stacked them inside this vase that my friend gave me recently when she was purging through her goodies.  It’s the perfect size vase to use for decorations for just about any holiday.  Think pinecones for fall, ornaments at Christmas, flowers in the summer, colored eggs for Easter.  I think it works pretty good holding these hearts for Valentines day too. 😀  Sitting on my farmhouse style coffee table and handmade doily, it gives just the right punch of color.

Sweet Wreaths

To make a wreath, I took a few of the stitched up hearts from the above project and attached ribbons of different lengths to them along with a few beads – using my trusty hot glue gun.

Then I cut some of the left over polkadot fabric into strips of about 2″ and wrapped a foam wreath form with this ribbon of fabric.  Then I pinned the fabric and the hearts to my wreath using straight pins on the back side, where they wouldn’t be seen.

I added a coordinating bow and this pretty little wreath will live on my front door through February.  It’s super easy to recycle this type of wreath too.  Just remove the straight pins.  Replace everything with new colors and ribbon styles for the next holiday and you’re ready to go again! 🙂

Even Easier Decor Ideas

Looking for the quickest and easiest themed decoration ideas?  You can use these ideas at Valentines or anytime:

To make a wreath similar to the one above except even quicker – grab a foam wreath form and a spool of wide ribbon (in any theme you want).  Wrap the ribbon around the wreath form and use straight pins to hold the ends in place.  Add a bow and hang that little beauty on your door.  Walah – could it be any easier?!

Simply add a strip of themed ribbon to any vignette you have sitting on your table.  Here you can see a cluster of items I have sitting in a tray on a wall table.  For Valentines, I only added ribbon to the candles, on top of Mr Owl, and at the end of an iron-works key.  Now this was about as easy as it gets… Quick and easy is the key to my heart when I’m in a rush but want to spice it up a bit.  😀

Add a scarf or slip of themed fabric on top of a table, or include jar of colored potpourri to any nitch and you’ve got a space to share a taste of the holidays with family and visitors.  This burlap and lace table runner along with the plant, sit on my buffet almost all year long.  I just add a little something different here and there each month that goes along with my seasonal theme.

Use a small chalkboard to add love notes on any table top in your house.  You can find them in just about any department store or craft supply store these days or even make one yourself.  I’ve added some potpourri and stringed beads to a small jar, and clustered a few themed plates to this vignette along with a candy jar with…. yes you guessed it – Hershey kisses for Valentines and dark chocolate M&Ms too!

Cheers and Well Wishes!
~Cindy

Up Next ——-> A stack of Handmade Valentine Cards!