DIY: Confetti-filled paper hearts

It seems I'm perpetually behind on every holiday, so I decided to get a jumpstart on Valentine's Day with a simple project. This will be my year. I plan to keep telling myself that until I make it so. (Jean-Luc Picard reference!) As usual, I wandered my apartment looking for materials and inspiration, and I happened upon some thrifted confetti and thought: Hmm. This is festive, now if only I had a way to contain it... 

This project is ridiculously easy (despite the number of instructional photos I've included--love that overkill) and would be great for kids, provided there's some needle supervision. If you don't have confetti on hand, or if that substance is prohibited in your household, you could also fill these with any small candy. Maybe a certain pastel, chalky, chatty Valentine's staple going by the name Sweethearts?

1. You'll need paper, scissors, needle and embroidery floss, a thimble, and 2. CONFETTI! 3. The hearts will need to be identical, so I made a template. 4. Cut everything out. Two of each.

5. Line up the hearts one on top of the other. 6. Using your needle and thimble, punch holes through both hearts. Try to space the holes somewhat evenly, and remember to go all the way around. This step will make sewing much easier.

7. Tie a knot in the end of the embroidery floss and insert your needle into the top heart only. The plan is to hide your end knot between the two hearts. 8. Sew back and forth through the holes, but... 9. Leave the last side partially open. Two inches or so will do nicely. 10. Prepare the confetti!

11. Use your finger to open the heart. This will bow the paper a little and make it easier to fill. Add all the confetti and sew the heart closed. 12. For the last stitch, insert your needle into the hole where you started, from front to back. We're going to tie off the floss between the two hearts.

13. From the bottom, insert the needle through the closest hole, but only through the bottom heart. 14. Slide the needle between the two hearts and behind the stitch you made in step twelve. 15. Pull the floss almost all the way through, leaving a small loop. 16. Insert the needle through that loop and pull tight. This will tie off your floss. Cut and tuck any loose ends between the two hearts. All done!

For more St. Valentine's Day DIYs, you can check out Catherine's knitted heart cat toy, Monika's someone in California loves you valentines, or from past years, my paper heart garland and compass valentines, arctic diorama valentines by Catherine, and my John Wilkes Booth/Abraham Lincoln valentines to Catherine (they both love her for very different reasons and she them).