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I love Valentine’s Day. I’m not a big “get all dressed up” and celebrate type of person but I love using the day as an excuse to tell my family that I love them with fun little gifts or a card. Ever since my boys were little I made up a small little goodie bag with treats. It’s the only holiday that’s really stayed small and simple and everyone loves it that way! Since the DIY Valentine Photo Puzzle is one of the most popular posts on my blog I thought I’d make it even easier for you to create one for your family by including a printable label. DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

I always like to include handmade items into gift baskets but sometimes I’m short on time (ok a lot of the time) so an easy, cute DIY project is usually my “go to”. After making this little photo puzzle, I keep it easy on the rest of the gifts and just go with store bought. When I was picking up my most favorite cup at Walmart (in this amazing blue color) I spotted these Hallmark Signature Valentine’s Day cards. They are supercute and look homemade! I really loved this travel themed one that has REAL stitching in it and the building block one is perfect for my boys. (Right now you can pick up an in-aisle coupon offer – $2 off a 2 card purchase (min $2 purchase required), expires 2/15)

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

My husband is going to be out of town for Valentine’s Day for work so as I was coming up with a fun little gift idea to mail to his hotel I thought I’d put together some inspiration for you. A gift basket doesn’t have to be complicated or include many items to be meaningful, try to include items you know your recipient will use instead of lots of little things they can’t do much with. For this gift idea I included a gorgeous metal wall hanging, my favorite mug (seriously, the water stays cold even in my car in the summer…in PHOENIX) that I personalized with a little vinyl, tennis balls for my friend’s dog, 2 cute little paper mailboxes with cookies in one and chocolate covered strawberries in another (here’s the simplest way to make those), the DIY photo puzzle with a message on the back and the super cute stitched Hallmark card that can totally be used to add to a scrapbook page later on!

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

For the treats in the boxes, I just lined them with some parchment paper first to keep the boxes from getting ruined before it got there.DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

Tip: if you’re mailing a gift package, buy a little bit bigger of a box and wrap everything in a fun fleece blanket!

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

HOW TO MAKE THE PHOTO PUZZLE:

To make this size photo puzzle you’ll need large craft sticks, decoupage glue or clear drying sealer, a foam brush, washi or masking tape and a 5″x7″ photo.https://allforthememories.com/blog/2014/01/20/diy-valentine-photo-puzzle/
Lay 10 craft sticks next to each other tightly and as evenly as you can.

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

Apply the tape across the sticks to hold them in place.

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

Next, add a thin layer of adhesive decoupage medium to the back of the photo making sure to cover all of it.

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

Turn the craft sticks over and place the photo on the center of the sticks pressing down all along the way (you could also use a stronger adhesive for this step).

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

Now, layer the top of the photo and the entire surface of the sticks (taking care to get all the edges) with the decoupage medium.

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

Allow to dry completely. Once dry, turn over, remove the tape, add a message to the back if you wish (or you could do another photo) and cut the sticks/photo apart with a craft knife.

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

The puzzle is done!

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

For the cute wrapping, just pick up a pack of pretzel rod bags and print out (then cut) this free printable. Place the sticks in the bag, fold the printable in half and staple to the bag.

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag! DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

So simple, but super cute! You don’t have to do a photo either, you could always have the kids draw a cute photo or just a color pattern for fun.

Look here for more digital coupon offers and Valentine’s inspiration. Do you do any little gifts like this for Valentine’s Day?DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

DIY Photo puzzle with printable tag!

 

 

Author

Allison Waken is the founder, writer, photographer, and content creator of All for the Memories and All for the Boys.

1 Comment

  1. Allison, this is the cutest thing I have ever seen! How creative! Love the photo idea! 🙂 {client}