Ever look at kids’ valentine box ideas and wonder why they get to have all the fun? SAME. So we rounded up some supplies, called in some Hallmark artists, and turned them loose to make mailboxes for sweet little Valentine’s Day cards. Try a dinosaur, camera, rainbow or koala with our free downloadable instructions and templates, or gather up the supplies and go your own way. (We’ve got a traditional mailbox design, too.)
HOW TO MAKE KIDS’ VALENTINE BOXES
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
Art projects can be easier to start if you limit your color palette. We used different shades of red, pink and purple, with a light, bright blue thrown in for fun. Oh—plus some shiny stuff.
Acrylic paint
Tissue paper
Irridescent cellophane wrap
Glitter paper
Ribbon
Pom-poms
Card stock or construction paper
Cardboard boxes (tissue boxes work great) and gift boxes
Cereal boxes (for building structures)
Single face cardboard
Craft paper
Craft knife
Cutting mat
Scissors
Hot glue gun
Glue stick
Masking tape
Pencil
Random supplies from around the house
FREE VALENTINE MAILBOX DOWNLOADS
We asked our artists to give us instructions and tips for their kids’ valentine box ideas. In a few cases, we’ve simplified things a little.
Dinosaur
Camera
Roller skate
Rainbow
Koala (thanks to our friends at Hallmark.com)
Tips for kids’ valentine box ideas
A few of our artists were part of our piñata-making workshops and used those tips to make their valentine boxes. Start with a box big enough to hold lots of valentines and go from there. Our dino, camera and koala are built around basic cardboard boxes and gift boxes.
If your design doesn’t start with a square or rectangle, build your own box. Regular, rigid cardboard and paperboard (like cereal boxes) are perfect for flat surfaces. To go around curves, try single face cardboard—it’s available in rolls on Amazon.com.
So the printing on your box won’t show through your design, cover it a coat of primer or cover your box in craft paper before you start painting.
By all means, add heart shapes wherever you can.
Our easiest valentine box idea was this cute koala. Zip over to Hallmark.com for full instructions and the gift box and pom-poms bows we used.
And again we say: Why should kids have all the fun? Why not suggest a Valentine’s Day card exchange at work?
We’d love to see your kids’ valentine box ideas. Share a pic with us on Facebook or Instagram @think.make.share!