Be Mine Bonanza: Day 1-Sweetheart Ornaments

Welcome to the 2nd Annual Be Mine Bonanza!

 For the next 7 days, 7 fun Valentine Themed Tutorials will be featured here at At Home With K.!

I want to thank all the guest bloggers that are joining me for this event! I really appreciate you all sharing your time and talent with us!

I hope you all will be inspired to CREATE!

I have a confession to make, I'm totally copying this idea for the project I am sharing with you today. :) It's not from a blog or pinterest...but from my grandma.

When I was little she made several personalized ornaments of her kids and grandkids. As we all got older and more grandkids and even great-grandkids came, she stopped making them.

Here is one of mine from 1981 of my brother and I. The back is lined with felt and the edges are lined with Ric Rac Ribbon. It's simple and I add it to my tree each Christmas.

Today, I'm going to show you how to make your own Sweetheart Ornaments.

I am blessed with a house full of boys. It was fun to showcase my sweethearts with these keepsake ornaments.

Sweetheart Ornaments Tutorial

Supplies

Small Craft Mirrors 2x3inches

Paint Stripper

Paper Towels
Bug and Tar Remover

Razor Blade

Pictures

Pencil
Scissors

Burlap or Fabric

Ribbon

Hot Glue Gun

Other Options

Craft Mirrors come in many different shapes and sizes. I found mine at Hobby Lobby in a multi-pack for around $2.

Instead of Bug and Tar Remover, you could use Brake Fluid or Brake Cleaner.

Directions

Removing the Back of the Mirrors

1. There are 2 layers to the mirrors. For the first layer, you need to apply a small amount of paint stripper to the back of the mirror. Leave on for approx. 5 minutes.

2. You should be able to wipe off the backing with a paper towel. If not, use your razor blade. You will be left with a dull silver backing now.

3. I looked high and low on the Internet on how to remove the backing of mirrors. I couldn't find much without me buying some special solution...Ha! I'm a momma on a budget, so since I don't allow chemicals inside our house...I invaded the garage. With the help of my hubby, he gave me 3 car related chemicals. I tried all 3 and the Bug and Tar Remover did the best to remove the silver lining. But they all do work.

4. Put a small amount of the chemical of your choice on the back other mirror. Leave on for 5 minutes. The goal is to leave the mirror image around the perimeter of the mirror, so scrape the middle area only with your razor blade. I used a wide blade and scraped in the same direction so I didn't scratch the glass. As you scrape, you will see the silver lining start coming up and you will see through the mirror. Be patient with this part.

**I advise not to mix chemicals and use gloves**

5. After the centers of the mirrors are scraped off, I cleaned all the chemical residue off the mirrors with soap and water. And allow to dry.

6. Print photos or use photos you already have. Remember, you will be cutting up these photos. Don't use those special family photos! Make a copy instead. I made mine black and white and printed on tan cardstock to give the pictures a vintage feel.

7. Trace around the edge of the mirror where you want the photo to be placed and cut. Then glue the photo to the back of the mirror with small amounts of hot glue.

8. To make a more finished look, I added burlap to the back of the mirror. I glued ribbon first to act as a hanger before I glued the burlap on top.

9. I then took the same ribbon and glued it around the perimeter of the mirror. This hides the edge of the photo and burlap and gives it a more finished look. I used hot glue to do this, the hint is to glue small sections at a time.

Sweetheart Ornaments are a fun project to showcase your Valentines.

You can add them to your winter tree, hang on a cupboard knob, a pegboard, add to a gift...and so much more. It's a great way to personalize a space or gift.

This idea is also great to do to bigger mirrors and add photos. A fun twist to the traditional photo displays.

Linking up to HERE
Valentine's Day Link Party at Momnivore's Dilemma

Here is the lineup for the 2nd Annual Be Mine Bonanza this week! Be sure to come back to check out these awesome tutorials!

January 23 Christina-Christina's Adventures

January 24 Heather-Summerstead

January 25 Tiffany-Ladycrafter14

January 26 Sarah-All Roads Lead Home

January 27 Michelle-Emerald Cove

January 28 Gwen-Gwenny Penny

I also want to feature you as well. Instead of my Terrific Under Ten Tuesday this week, I will have a Be Mine Bonanza linky party open up all week.

Link up your Valentine projects.

You can link up as many posts as you like.

Please leave a link back to At Home With K in your post or on your blog.

The Linky party will be up until January 28th.

Thanks!