Photo Credit: Home Depot
I don’t know about you, but I always have a little trouble finding a good Valentines day card for Mr. Sthole. A non-sappy man valentine is hard to come by. So when I saw this DIY hinged valentine tutorial from Home Depot, I fell in-love. It looks very simple (especially since the Home Depot will do your cuts for you) and I think it’s something not only would he love, but it would impress the pants off him as well. This tutorial shows you how to add a gift card with duct tape and glue, but I think a personal little note would work just as well, and would cut down on cost if $35 for a card is out of your budget.
Materials for the DIY Hinged Card:
- ¼ in. x 6 in. x 4 ft. Red Oak Board
- Set of 1 or 1½ in. hinges
- Circular saw
- Loctite Super Glue
- Duct tape
- Pencil
- Tape measure
- Ruler or square
- Paint pen
- Home Depot Gift Card as a gift
Total cost: About $35
Step 1
First, measure the height of your card. I chose to make my card a rectangle, so I measured 7 inches for the height of the card. Since I was using a 6-wide-plank, my card was 6 in. x 7 in.
Step 2
Next, decorate your card! Draw a heart shape or write a Happy Valentine’s Day message
Step 3
Now glue your hinges on with Loctite Super Glue. The glue stuck really fast to the oak plank, so set the hinge carefully where you want it. I placed mine about an inch from the edge.
Let the first side dry for a few minutes, and then apply glue to the other side of the hinge. There’s a little notch on the second side where you can line up the wood.
Tip: There should be enough space between the pieces of oak for the round part of the hinge. The hinge won’t close properly if you don’t give it enough space.
Allow the glue to dry and test out the hinges. They should open and close perfectly.
Step 4
Next, it’s time to make a pocket for your gift card to sit in.
I made a simple duct tape flap by folding a piece of duct tape onto itself, layering on a second piece, and gluing that strip to the oak piece. (Please excuse my creepy spray-painted fingers above!)
Cut your duct tape strip a little wider than the size of the gift card.
Step 5
Next, glue the duct tape strip to the wood. I placed a line of glue around the gift card so I could get the size exactly right. I wanted to make sure the pocket was just the right size for the gift card to fit
Step 6
Finish up your card with a Valentine message!
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