I'm not one to do up my house for every holiday and event (though I admire the people who have the creativity to come up with decorations for Groundhog Day), but a little colour in the middle of a grey February is always welcome. So here's a quick craft to warm up your kitchen: a hearty tea towel.

This project involves simple freezer paper stencilling made even simpler: Instead of drawing and cutting out my own design, I used two different sizes of heart-shaped paper punches to make a stencil. Just iron on, paint, let dry, iron again, and you're done! I reused the stencil in an attempt to make a matching pair, but the wax didn't stick as well the second time and the paint bled. (Lesson learned.) I did this project with a group of friends, who were all way more adventurous and made their own designs.

[caption id="attachment_7707" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Mary's lovely monogram"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_7708" align="aligncenter" width="359" caption="Jenna's crazy hearts"] [/caption] With just a bit of freezer paper, some paint and super cheap Ikea tea towels, you could easily make a whole year's worth of simple holiday decor. Guess I'd better start looking for four-leaf clover paper punches!