Friday, February 10, 2012

How To: Lickety-Split Valentine's Day Napkins

When Valentine's Day falls on a school day, I like to tuck a surprise in my boys' lunches. Last year I wove a little heart out of paper and slipped a note inside. I was wondering what to do this year--and let's face it, I'm running out of time!--when I saw Maya's doily-printed coaster and I thought, Of course! Freezer paper! I love that stuff. I have a stack of white cloth napkins that I bought with embroidery in mind, but the fabric is all wrong for stitching. My kids take a cloth napkin in their lunch every day. Of course!

Materials: Freezer paper, heart hole punches or scissors, cloth napkin, textile paint (I like Speedball Screen Printing Inks), brush to apply

I began by cutting a square of freezer paper to fit in the corner of the napkin. Then I punched hearts into it, more or less dictated by how far the hole punch would reach. You can see that the cut-outs aren't perfect; it's not a very good hole punch, I don't think. (This is what I get for not waiting until I was at the store that carries Fiskars.) I neatened up best I could with an x-acto knife. If you don't have a heart hole punch, you could just cut some hearts the old-fashioned way with scissors.


Iron the freezer paper into the corner of the napkin, then dab on the paint.


I made five of them. Two will go to school with my boys, and the kids will each have one for Valentine's Day dinner. But also, there are five of us in the family, so we have a matching set for all of us, too.


When the paint is dry, heat set it (follow the instructions for your particular paint). And there you go--lickety-split Valentine's Day napkins. I made these after my kids were in bed Friday night.


This will be a sweet surprise in their lunch bag on Tuesday! And I was able to do it quickly and with supplies I already had on hand. Phew!

4 comments:

Emma (GirlAnachronismE) said...

Very sweet, I bet that will be a great surprise for them!

Jill said...

You realize, don't you, that you're making the rest of us look bad? Or lazy at least. These are great.

Bells said...

they're great. Very cute. I kind of don't get the idea of sending valentines to your kids or family though - I understand north americans do it a lot which is sweet - but I always think of valentines as romantic!

Jodi Wiley said...

Adorable! What a sweet idea.