15 Minute Project ... Valentine's Day Pretties in Less Than 1/4 of an Hour

Aren't these cute? You can make one of these treat sleeves with a half sheet of double-sided 12 x 12 paper and some double-sided adhesive ... in less than 15 Minutes!

The 6" x 6" treat sleeve, shown laying down, was created with one 6" x 6" square of double-sided cardstock. The format, shown below, can be easily adapted to the larger treat sleeves:

I think this image ^ is fairly clear, (click on the image for a better look), but you'll score your square straight down the middle. Next, using a cutting tool, cut down along the fold to the 1 1/2" mark. Now, before you commit to adhesive, flip the square over, lightly fold down the paper from the top down to 1 1/2" mark and check how your patterned paper looks. You may decide to flip it around to achieve the most pleasing pattern.

Once you've decided which side of your paper you'll be using for the front flap, score the paper starting from the center fold, at the 1 1/2" mark, to the outside edge of your paper. You've now created your front flap.

Simply apply your double-sided adhesive along the bottom and up the side, stoping at the scored horizontal fold; but don't adhere the sleeve just yet. At this point, your treat sleeve should look like this:

Before pulling the protective strip of the double-sided adhesive, you can round the top corners and, if you'd like, apply brads, eyelets, ribbons, rub-on's, or whatever to the flap.

Once you've embellished your front flap, remove the protective sleeve from your adhesive and fold the sleeve together. If you'd like, you can round your bottom corners now too. And that's it; you're done! Fast, easy, and cute!

The larger sleeves I've made measure 7" x 7" and 8" x 8" but follow the same basic layout. Simply cut your initial squares to the desired size and follow the rest of the pattern; this 15 Minute Project is practically fool-proof! And super-easy to customize if you need to create a specific size for your treat.

Have fun embellishing: try using silk flowers, die-cuts, dimensional objects, stickers, ribbons, bows, dew drops, faux gemstones, rub-on's, a rubber stamped image, whatever!

My 6" x 6" treat sleeve contains a wrapped packie of Valentine's Day stickers, as does the 7" x 7" sleeve. The 8" x 8" sleeve holds four full-size No. 2 pencils. Experiment with different treats to tuck inside your sleeves. Try candy bars, little notebooks, crayons, lottery tickets, or gift cards.

And, since you've used a double-sided card stock or patterned paper to create your sleeve, you'll find the finished treat sleeve to be very sturdy ... and you can fit a surprising amount of goodies in 'em!

Are you wondering why I've put a silk flower on the sticker book in the 7" x 7" sleeve? That's to hide the price that's printed on the cover of the book.

Once you get the basic pattern down, you can create a bunch of these in no time!

I hope you have fun with this project and if you make one, please post here with a link back so that we can see your treat sleeves.

Thanks so much for sharing part of your day with me!

~Hugs, Deb