30 Last Minute DIY Gifts for Your Valentine
We’ve all been there. You’re reading your favorite book in bed, cool as a cucumber, when suddenly you remember something that catapults you out of Pemberley and into vivid reality. It has dawned on you that tomorrow is not just tomorrow. Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day! (Dun dun dun….) And you have nothing to show for it.
Well, panic no more my fellow procrastinators! I’ve scoured the interwebs high and low for the best of the best, and I have for you a round-up of 30 Last Minute DIY Gifts for Your Valentine! (But most of these apply to all celebrations: birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, you name it! So, save this one for future reference.)
I’ve divided the list up into three categories:
- Printables
- Get Crafty!
- Yummy in my Tummy
And I venture to guess most of these can be completed in 20 minutes or less. Thinking Closet regulars may even spy a few familiar ones in this mix, too!
Let the inspiration commence!
Printables
First up and perrrrrfect for procrastinators is my free printable for 12 Months of Pre-Planned Date Nights! In a pinch, you can even use a ribbon in lieu of a binder ring to tie it all together!
I even created a follow-up post for this project with 101 Creative Date Nights on a Dime to help you out as you create your mini book! You’ll have your 12 date nights brainstormed in no time flat.
Next up is the Valentine’s Day gift I gave Mark one year: 6 different love notes with specific traits I admire about him written on heart notes scattered throughout the house. He loved it! (And the printable is made by one of my friends from college…also named Lauren! Good times, good times.)
Here’s a similar concept, but instead of notes around the house, pop this “I Love You Because” printable into a frame and fill in the blank with a dry erase marker all year round. Guaranteed to give your man the warm fuzzies!
How fun is this one?! I’m a sucker for root beer floats, so this would a gift for myself, as well!
This Printable Love Coupon Book pretty much does all the work for you and is full of fun and creative gifts to give your sweetheart!
Here’s another one from The Thinking Closet collection: the gift of a cup of comfort through “This Drink is On Me” coupon. This is great for a loved one who lives afar and whom you can’t treat in person. Or you could make the date part of the gift! And write them a loving note on the back of the printable card.
How ’bout this sweet jar of goodies labeled, “We love you to pieces!” Kara is sending ’em to her hubby who is deployed.
Or if Swedish Fish are more his thang, then here’s a fantastic printable by Lil Luna:
Here’s an uber creative use of a Monday through Sunday pill box: give him Seven Days of Love with some sweet treats and love notes from this Dating Divas printable!
This one just involves minimal photo editing, your home printer, and voila: you’ve got a gift-worthy picture strip, photo booth style!
Get Crafty!
Carving initials in a tree is so 2013. Carving your initials in a wax candle is where it’s at, folks! (And if you don’t have a linoleum carver, I betcha a small flathead or cuticle remover tool would work just fine n’ dandy!)
Wordsmiths in the group will be keen on this one! The question is, do you raid your own game or go thrifting for a new one?
I love the look of these crochet wrap bracelets with a button…and you could easily turn this into a gift for your man with some hemp.
Here’s a fun way to deliver a love note. In a heart pocket on a pillow! And while Melanie says this only took her 30 minutes or so to create the entire thing, pillow cover and all, you could always hijack one of those random throw pillows you have lying around, and give it a facelift with the heart pocket!
You may have seen this idea floating around on Pinterest, but this is the only one I think could be pulled off last minute. The key? She prints out her 52 things on Avery address labels. Genius!
In anticipation of movie nights and nights at the theatre to come, create a Ticket Stub memory box for you and your sweetie!
I’m really diggin’ the look of this rustic photo block. Perfect for your rugged guy!
I absolutely heart the idea of creating your own pocket-sized flip-book of you blowing him a kiss!
A Kiss In Your Pocket Flip Book by Katie Sokoler | Video on Vimeo
Along the same theme, slap on some of your favorite lipstick and smack away to create some personalized lipstick art!
And as long as you have thumbs and a mug, you can knock this project out of the park. The more thumbs, the merrier, so get the kids in on this action, too!
In the same vein, if you have some glass etching cream on hand, you can personalize some glassware with your initials in a heart! {KariAnne’s tutorial shows how to do it without a Silhouette machine. Here’s my etching tutorial if you do have a Silhouette.}
Sticks and stones won’t break your bones…they’ll warm the heart of your outdoorsy man with this punny gift!
Pull out the acrylic paint and create some chalkboard-style DIY art!
For those of you with a Silhouette or Cricut, you can add a meaningful phrase in vinyl to a framed photograph of the two of you, like I did for my parents’ anniversary gift.
This mason jar matchbox has stolen my heart! DIYer Grace even has the perfect pun to go on your gift tag…click through to see it!
Yummy in my Tummy
They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach; well, I dare say the same may be true for my heart with this yummy recipe for 2 minute French Toast!
Or for something a little more savory, how ’bout this heart-tastic play on the “egg in the basket” breakfast treat?
Nothing quite beats dinner and a movie! Start the night off with this delicious recipe for Teriyaki Steak Salad (because most men appreciate some red meat on their salads)…
…followed by some cozy couch cuddling with one of the 10 Ten Most Romantic Movies {Of All Time}. And these picks were made by Thinking Closet readers so you know they’re on point!
For the pun-lovers out there, this is a really creative play on the classic “chocolate” for Valentine’s Day gift!
And I hope Mark is not reading this now because I am SO doing this one day. 50 Reasons Why I Love You (all written out on Reese’s PB cups!). He’ll feel loved every time he reaches for a treat.
Or if you want to gift him with a scrumptious hot drink that is on theme, how about some Cupid Cocoa?
Or if you prefer a cold beverage, you make them extra special for your Valentine with some Berrylicious Heart-Shaped Ice Cubes like I did!
And there you have it! More DIY gift ideas than you know what to do with now.
Extra, extra! I’ve got 2 exciting UPDATES for ya!
Want to Check out 30 More?
This round-up has become so popular, I decided to go on a quest to find 30 MORE ideas for you. You can check out the new edition HERE for blogland’s latest and greatest on the DIY gift front! They’re all great for last-minute gifting.
Hungry for More Meaningful Gift Ideas?
If you have an insatiable appetite for the kind of gifts that aren’t complicated, time-consuming, or expensive, be sure to check out my book, Thinking Outside the Gift Box. I wrote it to help my comrades come up with meaningful and one-of-a-kind gift ideas quickly, some in as short as 5 minutes.
The book includes:
- 178 pages of storytelling and inspiration
- 21 story-filled chapters
- 75 actionable gift ideas
- BONUS: 11 printables to help bring the gift ideas to life
Oh, and most of the gift ideas will cost you $10 or less. Truth. So, what are you waiting for, friend? Click HERE so you can read the sample chapters before nabbing your copy of Thinking Outside the Gift Box.
Join the revolution as we rediscover the joy of giving.
So many ideas r here. Luv the cute candy cup ..Thanks for putting all in together
Sure thing, Mike! Thanks for stopping by.
What about gifts FOR MEN?! These ideas are pretty meh…
I’m sorry you feel that way, Stephanie! I did select these gifts with the idea that they would work for real men…and many I have and would give to the men in my life. They may not fit the mold of a typical guy gift (ties, socks, shaver kit), but to be honest, I’m an out of the box kinda gal. And so are the men in my life. I find it’s the simple, heart-made gifts that can make the biggest impact. In fact, I even wrote a book about it! 😉 Best of luck in your gift-giving journey, Stephanie.
Sometimes I bake a cake for my girlfriend to her I love you! (not only at valentine!!)
Oooo! I love the egg-heart-toast! Looks super tasty and cute.
Happy Valentine’s everyone!
Awesome! Your inspirations are great! I love rustic photo block, candy bar card and egg in the heart for a lovely breakfast! Can’t wait for Valentine’s Day!
A special meal is a great last minute idea! It never fails to amaze me how many people stick with the same old boring presents when there are so many personal and creative alternatives.
Valentine’s gifts are not just for a honey or hubby but, as you said, to spread the love and give to neighbors and friends!! Carol S. always leaves a homemade heart cookie in a baggie by our back door with a sweet note and another friend sends a vintage card each year.
Your dad and I try to bring back maple syrup from Vt. to give our neighbors around V. Day.
I need to be more intentional about making some of these ideas you shared! Pinned many as it was a great round-up!!
help i need something yet!!! its almost two now, and hes coming at five!!!
Did you figure something out, Laura? Fingers are crossed you did!
Thank you, thank you for these fabulous ideas. I’d been mulling over a few things, but when I saw your idea (and pre-printables) for 12 Date Nights, I knew that was “the one!” I used your template and created a series of dates that I know my husband will love. Thank you priming the pump. I’m grateful.
Wishing you a very Happy Valentine’s Day!
Such a cute collection Lauren! The hubs and I don’t usually do V-Day gifts but with so many great ideas… who knows?!?
Wooooooooooooooooe! So much goodness right here!!! You need to spread this even further… we should create a QR code for this post and print it out then hand it to every single person out there. In the world. Like, everyone. Because these ideas are great and who doesn’t want to spread LOVE? Also, the “you float my boat” is like totally amazing. But that’s my biased i-love-ice-cream-more-than-anything opinion…
What great ideas!!! I can’t believe Valentine’s Day is THIS FRIDAY!!!
These are great ideas, I just pinned a bunch of them 🙂
These look totally do-able! Our oldest boy has a birthday on Valentine’s Day, so we go low-key for couple celebrations. Some of these would be perfect!
I love so many of these…I may have to celebrate Valentine’s Day all year!! Thanks for sharing!!
Awesome compilation! I love the idea of love notes around the house. That’s so cute. I think Valentine’s Day should be filled with simple ways to show your love, not huge expensive gifts.
An excellent round-up Lauren! Thanks so much for including my little diy art 🙂
It was an honor to include yours in the mix, Emily! Made me want to bust out my acrylic paints!
What a wonderful round up of ideas!! Thanks so much for including mine as well. 🙂 xo
Of course! Thanks for allowing me to feature you; can’t wait to tackle that project myself.
Great round-up!! I’ve been wanting to do that “I love you because…” frame project for a while now but have never made the time for it. I think I’ll include it in my Valentines Day gift. Thanks for the reminder!
You’re so welcome, Kayli! Glad it was a nice memory-jog for ya. And I’m sure your bf will LOVE it!
So many great ideas! Thanks for including mine!
Of course! It was too cute not to!
Such fun ideas! Thank you, Lauren!
You’re welcome, Katherine! Glad they were inspiring for you! (Though I’m sure you have no shortage of gift ideas in that creative mind of yours.)
cool as a cucumber? yep, adding that to my vernacular! haha! but, seriously.
loving this round-up! i particularly liked seeing DIY gifts that you have done in the past and thinking to myself, “I remember when she posted this!”
And! I really like the candle one. Wedding decorations maybe? I think yes.
Ha ha. Glad to know you’ll be incorporating some of my quirky diddies into your vernacular! Lol. And I was so touched by your shout-out to this post earlier today. You rock! (Oh and yes, the candle idea would be perrrrfect for wedding decor. Either up at the altar or as table centerpieces. Simply divine!)
Oh man, some of these ideas are really sweet! You must have spent quite some time collecting these Lauren, wow! Personally, this post just reminds me that I really have no one to give any of them to *sad face*, but hey, some day! For now, I’m sending my family each a card (because really, who doesn’t love DIY-ing cards?!), and then giving myself a present.. it’s a surprise, so you’ll have to check back on the weekend after Valentine’s 😉
Hope you and Mark have a wonderful, loved-up day! <3
Yeah, I’m always amazed at how long round-ups take me. You’d think they be easy-breezy because there’s no tutorial, but they always take me just as long! Lol. And I’m sad that this post provoked a *sad face* for you; I hope you realize what a catch you are. When the right guy comes along, I’ll be sure to send this post his way so he has plenty of ideas for making EVERY day like Valentine’s Day. You deserve nothing less! (Also, I love that you’re DIYing some cards for your fam…AND giving yourself a present. You go, girl! Can’t wait to read up on that. I’m very intrigued….) Sending a hug your way, friend.