I made several valentines for this years holiday. Giving a valentine to someone that you created by yourself can be so much more meaningful to the person you are giving it to than a store gift. Not that a card is isn't great but you know what I mean. When someone takes the time and energy to craft a gift it carries with it the love and energy that went into its creation. And that is a real thing.
When you pick up a custom created piece of work you can just feel the difference between the heartfelt effort of creation and a factory produced item. The same thing holds true for the gifts you give. Of course you know this or you wouldn't like woodworking in the first place. The warmth, the energy and not to get too silly here but there is some essence of yourself that gets attached to the work you create and all of that is perceived on several levels by just holding the creation in your hands.
The joy and satisfaction of creating objects with wood is equal to the joy and appreciation from the recipient of those creations. Some people keep cards for a long time, most don't. Flowers last a week or so. Chocolate is chocolate and found everywhere all the time.
The effort, energy and love you put into creating a gift for someone is intuitively felt as a reflection of the effort, energy and love you put into and value from your relationship with them. A keepsake by definition is something kept because it was given as an expression of affection and love. I made several little valentines this year that I know will be kept for a lifetime. Sure, it took some time and energy but to see a face light up with joy because they realized the effort I took for them really makes your day.
Having said all that here is the valentine I made for each of my granddaughters.
This is a small, desktop piece, being only 3.5 inches high. I used a 1 by 3 for the body of the piece and sculpted it with my grinder. I dremeled out the heart shape and then created the heart with copper. Put on the hugs and kisses and mounted the piece on tumbled marble tile. They absolutely loved it. On the back of the piece (see next photo) I hammered in more hugs and kisses.
If you like woodworking and like to make do it yourself craft projects, this one is a huge hit. You might be thinking that you could figure out how to do the woodworking part but the painting and copper heart is not something you are used to. Well, I am working on a comprehensive, step by step tutorial on how I created this gift which is an expression of love from you to another. The tutorial has many small videos, still photos and an exhaustive written explanation of each and every step. You won't get lost at any point in the creative process.
This great project is not just for a valentine but also is given for an anniversary or a birthday gift. There are lots of appropriate occasions that come up during the year and the best one of all is 'Just Because'.
I will definitely be posting when the tutorial is complete.
