Valentine Mailbox Craft for a School Valentine's Day Party

I am excited to share the Valentine's Day craft we made at Jackson's third grade elementary school Valentine's Day party! This valentine mailbox turned out so sweet, was simple for the kids to make in a 10=15 minute station, cost less than $2.25 per person, and was put to use immediately for all the little valentines they received. They even got to be mailmen and actually DELIVER their valentines!

Let's take a look ...

This mailbox is made up of two main parts:

1. Mini tin mailbox (Target dollar spot $1)
2. Glass candlestick holder (Dollar store $1, although you can absolutely find cheaper ones at garage sales, resale shops, your basement, etc.)

 Other supplies you'll need include: Spray paint (read the cans to confirm but I've had good luck with Krylon on glass), embellishments for the tin (possibilities include glitter and foam adhesive hearts, adhesive gems, die-cuts, flowers, birds, butterflies), pre-cut lengths of ribbon, and hot glue.

Line up all the candlesticks in a well-vented area and spray them with the paint. Once they are dry, apply hot glue to the top of the candlestick and immediately press the bottom of the mailbox onto the glue. I did have a few mailboxes come off during the process, and I believe those were the ones I didn't press the mailbox into the hot glue right away.

I went a step further and adhered a patterned paper heart to the lid of the mailbox just so the kids had a head start in decorating at the party. I figured if they really weren't into crafting and decided not to do anything further, the mailbox would still look cute as-is. (side note: they were ALL VERY MUCH INTO the crafting, and came up with some fabulous designs, which was awesome to see.)

Here they all are, waiting to be carried to school for the party. I brought several extra patterned paper hearts for the kids in the last station who won't have as many mailboxes to choose from.

I also tried making an even amount of each color mailboxes and stands. Unlike adults, who may have selected the silver or gold tin to match their decor, or fixtures in their house, the kids all gravitated towards the pretty, blue colored tins. I definitely ran out of those fairly quickly.

We had one and a half adults helping at this station. I was the half, either taking photos or helping as needed. The kids picked out which mailbox they wanted to start with (after gasping with excitement once they saw them and realizing they would get to bring them home!) and then started picking out the stickers and gems they wanted to put on the tins.

Then they visited the mom in the corner to have their birds or butterflies (4 for $1 at the dollar store) hot glued to the tin. Their final step was to select a pre-cut length of ribbon to tie in a bow around the stand. If you're working with younger kids (these are all third-graders) you may want to pre-tie the bows on the stands or have another adult available to do this step.

So very fulfilling to see their proud looks when they complete their Valentine mailbox! Seeing what they come up with is always the best. Jackson took the spare wire pieces that came with the birds, stuck them through the back of the bird, and adhered glitter hearts to the tops so it looks like love is all around. Literally : )

At the end of the party, after they had all rotated through the stations and everyone had a completed mailbox, they got to set up their home base and start passing out the valentines.

Delivery!

I mean really, can you beat this?! They were so, so proud. And check out how well they all did!

This craft did take a bit of preparation, but I think it was well worth it. Not only do they get to actually put it to use during the party, but they have a pretty good quality Valentine's Day decoration to display at home for years to come. I've heard of some families actually using it at home during the whole month of February. Leave it out in the kitchen, or at the back door, and write a sweet note for your kid(s) to find when they come home from school. Don't forget to raise the flag!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Kelly