DIY Valentine's Day Countdown

Create a sweet Valentine’s Day Countdown using decorative scrapbook paper! Finish the sentence “I love you because…” under all 14 flaps, one for each day of February leading up to Valentine’s Day.

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Today I have a sweet Valentine’s Day paper craft to share with you, a DIY Valentine’s Day Countdown! February 1st is coming up soon but this countdown comes together quickly. Using decorative paper, create a cute heart with 14 flaps – one for each day of February leading up to Valentine’s Day. Title the countdown “I love you because…” and finish that sentence under each flap. This makes a great handmade Valentine’s Day card and gift.

I created my countdown using paper from the Doodlebug Designs collection, “Love Note”. The yellows and greens in each pattern are such a nice compliment to the traditional red and pink colors of Valentine’s Day. You can use coordinating scrapbook paper as I did, or use fun, colorful construction paper OR use up some of your paper scraps!

Each flap is just 1.5″ by 3″ so this is a great project for scraps. Number the flaps 1 through 14 using markers, cut-out numbers or number stickers. This craft can be as fancy or as simple as you’d like – it’s what’s under the flaps that make this gift truly special :)

Below you’ll find the tutorial for creating this cute countdown.

Supplies Needed:

Decorative scrapbook paper or construction paper
- One 12″ x 12″ sheet plus lots of scraps for the flaps
- I used paper from “Love Notes” by Doodlebug Design. You can get the entire Love Note collection which includes the Doodle pops I used at the bottom of the countdown.
Adhesive – Glue Stick or Double-Sided Tape
Numbers – stickers, numbers cut out from paper or a marker to handwrite the numbers
Letters for title – stickers, letters cut out from paper or a marker to write the title of the countdown
Washi Tape
Paper trimmer and scissors
Ruler

Step by Step Tutorial

Step One: Cut paper to create flaps for the heart countdown. You will need 14 flaps, one for each day of February leading up to Valentine’s Day. Cut these flaps 1.5″ x 3″.

Step Two: Fold the flaps in half so they measure 1.5″ x 1.5″.

Step Three: Arrange the flaps on the 12″ x 12″ sheet of paper following the heart diagram below.

Cut out triangles to fill in the rest of the heart design. To make the triangles, cut squares that are 1.5″ x 1.5″ and then cut those in half diagonally.

*Tip: Arrange your flaps and triangles first on the sheet of paper before adhering. This is especially helpful if you are using multiple patterns and colors, you can make sure they are spread out and not clustered together.

Step Four: Add numbers 1 through 14 to the front of all fourteen flaps. I cut my numbers out on my Cricut Explore, but you could also use number stickers or write them on with marker. I used the image “Advent Numbers #M102C13E6” from Cricut Design Space.

Under each flap you can add a small 1.25″ x 1.25″ piece of paper. This will make writing each day’s special message easier! I used adhesive cardstock which was really fun to use! I cut my small squares out in pink and red and then peeled off the back of each piece and stuck them under the flaps. You could also cut Post-its to fit under each flap and this way the gift is reusable!

Step Five: Add a header to the top of the Valentine countdown using stickers, cut-out letters, or writing it with a marker. I used my Cricut to cut “i love you because…” from pink patterned cardstock. I used the font Cricut Sans and a basic heart shape.

Finish the title sentence “I love you because…” under each flap and gift to someone special on the first day of February :)

I’ll be back later this week with another cute Valentine’s Day DIY. You can also check out my Valentine’s Day project gallery for more fun ideas!