Who in your life deserves an award? Learn how to make a heart medallion with the help of artist and blogger Abbey Hendrickson. This project is one of twenty-one featured in her fresh new book, You Are Awesome: 21 Crafts to Make You Happy.
What I love most about making art is getting lost in it: those moments when you don’t realize how much time has passed. It feels a lot like going to a movie theater during the day; you know, when you emerge from the dark theater and the sun’s still bright and shining…it’s fabulous. That’s my hope for you, that you get lost in making something for someone, that you get in trouble and make some disasters, that you meet friends who make you incandescently happy, and that you enjoy it all because you are awesome!
In this project, there’s a pinback on each medal, but I think they’d make cute gift toppers – you know, if sporting a medallion isn’t really your thing.
Materials
1″ wood disc
Small wood heart
Small heart sticker
Black acrylic paint
7⁄8″ wide ribbon, 12″ long
2 figure-eight jewelry link components
Thread
2 pin backs
Paintbrush
Sewing needle
Iron
Sandpaper
Tacky glue
Directions
1. Cut the ribbon in half so you have two 6″ lengths. Fold each length in half and iron in a crease.
2. Secure the folded ribbon by stitching along each edge.
3. At the creased edge, bring the two sides in to make a triangle. Make a small stitch to secure.
4. Fold down the other end and stitch, making sure any frayed ribbon edges are hidden. Flatten with the iron if necessary.
5. Secure the pin back on top with a stitch or glue, making sure the stitch doesn’t show on the front. For the wood heart medal, skip straight to step 9, or for the painted disc medal follow steps 6-8.
6. Place the heart sticker on the center of the wood disc.
7. Paint directly over the sticker (it will act as a resist), and then remove the sticker and discard.
8. Once the disc is dry, lightly sand the edges to remove any stray paint.
9. Stitch the figure-eight jewelry link component to the triangular end of the ribbon.
10. Use tacky glue to attach the figure-eight jewelry link component to the back of the wood and allow to dry.
If you make your own valentine medal, share a photo with us in the Etsy Labs Flickr group. Thank you to Abbey Hendrickson and Cicada Books for sharing this project. For more projects like this one, check out You Are Awesome, available from Amazon or an independent bookstore near you.
