Valentine Bannner

Now that Christmas has been packed away for another year, my mind is thinking Valentine's Day.  I heart Valentine's Day.  For me, the day is more than the romance and chocolates.  I think of Valentine's Day as another day to make sure all the special people in my life know how important they are to me.  I'm hoping to pass this on to my children as well.  That's why I make them pose for goofy Valentine's pictures each year to send out to our friends and family.

And speaking of important people...  My lovely husband gave me a Silhouette Digital Cutter for Christmas (with a little help from my good friend Tina.)  It took me all Christmas break to think of a special project to "christen" my new toy.  Late Sunday afternoon with hours left of my Christmas vacation, I decided to make a Valentine banner.  So off to JoAnn I went at 4:00 in the afternoon to get my supplies, and yes, in the middle of the most important Packer game of the season!

It took me until 11:00 Sunday night, but here is what I made.  I apologize for the flash issue, but there really wasn't much natural light at 11:00 at night.  If you can't tell, it says, "Be Mine."

Here are a few close-ups. 

 

So then I decided at 11:00 p.m. when I finally went to bed on the night before I had to go back to work that I didn't like it.  And you know when you start thinking about things and you can't stop thinking...  So at midnight, I figured out what was wrong with it - the banner needed some dimension.  So out of bed I got and tried my hand at making paper fans.  I didn't actually make them, but I wanted to see if I could do it.  And sure enough, I could.  So tonight, here is my new and improved banner.

If you look closely, my paper fans are not the same size.  This was my first try so I'm bound to improve!  I still think it needs something, maybe glitter.  I'm sure some of my glitter loving party gals would agree :)

 

I'd love to hear which version you prefer.  And, if you own a Silhouette, I'd love to hear any tips you may have.  I had purchased some glittery card stock for the letters, but I think it was too thick to cut with the machine.  I also had a tough time peeling out some of the cuts, including some of the letters.  But it was my first try.  I told my husband, there must be a learning curve :)  I look forward to hearing from you!