We're Going "Noodles" Over These Super Cute Valentine's!

As a Macaroni Kim mom and publisher, I could not get by this Valentine's Day without incorporating  little macaroni with a little love sharing. What better way to do that than by creating some easy Valentine's that are both fun for young kids to make and can also be share in their classrooms with their friends and teachers? Pinterest did not fail me on this one. Ha! I actually combined two crafts into one.

Supplies List

• Rubbing alcohol (Part 1)
• Food coloring (Part 1)
• Rigatoni pasta, you will need approx. nine noodles per necklace (Part 1)
• Plastic zipper sandwich bags, one per noodle color (Part 1)
• Paper towels (Part 1)
• Tray for drying noodles (Part 1)
• Colored baker's twine (Part 2)
• Glittery, heart-shaped foam stickers, four per necklace (Part 2)
• White card-stock paper (Part 2)
• Paper cutter/ scissors or both (Part 2)
• Tape (Part 2)

Part 1: Noodle Dying

1. Add one capful of rubbing alcohol in to a plastic, zipper sandwich bag.
2. Put six to eight drop of food coloring into the bag. You will use one bag per noodle color that you'd like to make to keep from mixing colors.
3. Add in ten noodles to start with. Zip up the bag and shuffle them around. Add additional noodles to soak up all of the dye in the bag as not to waste it. Shuffle those noodle around until they are completely coated in the color.
4. Let the bag sit for a minute or two to soak in the dye.
5. Pour the noodles out of the bag and onto a tray cover with paper towels. The paper towels with soak up the excess dye. 
6. Let the noodles dry on the tray until they are no longer damp. You can spread them out for quicker drying.

Part 2: Noodle Valentine's Craft

"I'm noodles for ya' Valentine!"

"You make me lose my noodle!"

The original Valentine's PDF file comes from thealisonshow.com where you can find an alternative version of creating beautiful, painted noodles with your kids. Either way you would like to color the noodles for these Valentine's is easy and just as beautiful.

Print our Macaroni Kid Noodle Valentine's Template!

1. Print off the card templates on white card-stock paper. Card-stock is more durable than copy paper and the necklaces are too weighty to attach to copy paper.
2. Cut them apart since there's two cards per sheet. I then cut two vertical half-inch slits to the left and right sides of the arrow designs so that I could slide the necklace string down in the slits so the necklace will stay in place better once the craft is complete. 
3. When starting to string on the noodles, it may be best to fold a piece of tape over one end of the string so that your child's noodles that they string on will not slide right off the other end. I used nine noodles per necklace. You may use more or less however I do suggest using an odd number so when the necklaces are worn, they don't appear to fold in half at the lower hanging point.
4. Once the noodles are on, tie both sting ends together in a knot. 
5. Let your child add some Valentine flair by pressing two glittery, heart-shaped foam stickers together (sticky-back to sticky-back) with the string in between on both the left and right sides of their necklaces. These really add some pizzazz AND hold the noodles in place so they don't slide all over.
6. You can then hold the necklace in place with a small piece of tape on the backside of the card.

Ta-da!!! They are finished and ready to be delivered to your sweet friends!