Celery Stamped "Rose" Valentines

Spoiler Alert for family, these are the Valentines we'll be sending out this year (with a cute picture of the kiddos inside of course!)

 Okay, so this isn't a recipe, but it is food related, and too cute not to share!  When I saw this craft in Family Fun Magazine I knew it would be perfect for my kiddos to do to make their valentines this year.  I started making some sort of cute crafty Valentine that the kids could help with (even if it was just me tracing their hand as a baby) Kyla's first Valentine's Day, so this is our 7th year I suppose!  We mail these out to family members; the kids each hand out their own store bought ones at the annual Homeschool Valentine's Day party & Valentine Exchange we attend, since we need nearly 100 total for that!

'Ingredients'

Celery (whole, I used celery hearts)

Red & Green Paint (inexpensive acrylic is great, I used washable poster paint)

Cheap kitchen sponge (you'll want to throw it away when you're finished, mine were 10/$1 from the Dollar Tree)

2 Paper Plates

Scrap Paper for practicing on

Blank Cards for Stamping

While the celery stalks are still attached to the root, slice the end off.  Your cut will form the edge of your stamp, so cut it as neatly & straightly as possible.  (see top photo of the celery ends lined up on the table).

Place a sponge onto a paper plate & add a few squeezes of paint.  This will be your homemade stamping pad.  Place the cut end of the celery onto the sponge and start pressing the paint into the sponge until it's mostly soaked in.  Then use your celery 'stamp' to practice making roses on a scrap piece of paper.

We pressed our celery into the stamp pad before making each rose.  When you've finished, remove and rinse one piece of celery from your rose stamp.  Try to remove most of the red paint from this piece, as this is what you will use to make green leaves.

Make another stamping pad, this time with green ink.  Repeat the process of practicing on scrap paper, using the half circle shape of the celery stamped twice to make a leaf shape, until the kids are confident and the paint has soaked into the sponge so it will stamp evenly.  Stamp a leaf or two near your roses, and then enjoy your beautiful roses!