—Siobhan Prout, Outreach Educator
Instead of buying sets of paper valentines from the store, you and your children can flex your creative muscles and create homemade valentines out of materials already in your house or right outside your front door. This allows for creative expression, the pride of giving out homemade gifts, as well as the chance to make something that can give back to the plants, animals, and earth around you.
Here are just a few ideas to inspire you while brainstorming ideas for eco-friendly valentines that you and your children can create together:
Birdseed Ornaments
Photo courtesy of One Little Project
Let the birds to join in on the Valentine festivities by gifting classmates and friends with birdseed ornaments. You can combine mixed birdseed with gelatin and use cookie cutters in fun shapes as molds (tip: a bit of corn syrup along with the gelatin will help hold the seeds together). Alternatively, use your hands to mold the birdseed into any shape you can imagine. Make a hole near the top of the shape by inserting a straw and allow the ornament to set. Tie a string or ribbon through the hole and the birdseed ornament is ready to be placed in a tree branch. This is the perfect invitation for the birds to come feast while young birdwatchers observe nearby.
For step-by-step instructions, click here.
2. Seeded Paper
Photo courtesy of Not Your Average Fox
Instead of giving out paper valentines that may end up thrown away at the end of month, you can make recycled paper valentines laced with seeds that will turn into new plants. Shred newspaper or other recycled paper into small pieces and allow them to soak in warm water for a few hours. Use a blender or food processor to mix the paper until a slurry forms, add a few drops of your chosen food color, and sprinkle in a few wildflower seeds. Lay a piece of mesh material on top of a towel and place your chosen cookie cutters on top. Scoop a thin layer of slurry into the cookie cutters and gently press the slurry against the mesh to remove excess water. Once the paper has fully dried, you can write an individual message for each friend. When the temperatures increase and the ground thaws, the valentine can be planted outside. The paper is biodegradable and should eventually break apart, while the seeds will sprout and become a living and growing reminder of a thoughtful valentine—all while offering food and shelter to pollinators! Some suggested seeds for your paper are strawflower and cornflower seeds, as they are small and thin and should grow easily in New York.
For more detailed information, check out these instructions for making seeded paper.
3. Crayon Hearts
Photo courtesy of Heather Christo
Give a second life to old, broken crayons by transforming them into multi-colored, heart-shaped, novelty crayons. Remove the wrappers from any crayons that you would like to use for this project (tip: let the crayons soak in a dish of warm water for about five minutes so the paper is easier to peel) and mix and match your favorite color combinations. Chop up the crayons into ¼ inch pieces or smaller—whatever is necessary to fill your molds. Pick out a muffin tin or silicone mold with any fairly large shapes you would like and add your mixed-up crayon bits. Heat your oven to 200⁰F and bake your molds for fifteen to twenty minutes. Allow the crayons to cool and solidify, then pop them out of the molds. Your new swirly crayons may then be handed out to friends for use in many future art projects.
For more detailed steps, check out this melted crayon heart recipe.