Valentine’s Day looks different depending on where you are in life. For some, it’s a day sparkled with lots of romantic love from a long-term partner. For others, it’s exciting because they’ll be with their newly-found lover.
But it’s not always about romance. It’s also about friendships and family. Some people make new friends, others get matching best friend tattoos, and others spend it with their loved ones. No matter where you plan to spend the day, spark your love this Valentine’s with these nine stunning DIY gifts you can make at home.
1. Valentine’s Sunflower
Are you tired of giving red roses to your long-time other half? Stand out this Valentine, and take your partner by surprise by giving them a sunflower. And it’s not just an ordinary sunflower. It can rotate based on the sun’s position, just like the real sunflower! Except it’s even better than real sunflowers—it won’t wither because it runs on a servo motor.
You will need to 3D print a couple of parts, but the smile on your lover when you give them this on Valentine’s will have made all the work worth the while.
Check out this Hackster.io guide to build this DIY gift.
2. Wireless Blinking LED Hearts
When you have a romantic partner, Valentine’s is about seizing every opportunity possible to show them how much you love them. So, be extra with your Valentine’s setup this Valentine’s by building this pair of blinking LED lights, as shown in this Hackster.io project.
The lights blink simultaneously and mimic two beating hearts, making them incredibly romantic and distinct from regular blinking LEDs. Moreover, just like you and your lover, these blinking LEDs are connected such that if one heart goes off or out of range, the other stops blinking. Fascinating, right?
3. Arduino-Based PCB Beating Heart
Want another take on a beating heart to gift your loved one this Valentine’s? Build this Arduino-based PCB beating heart. As a DIY heart made of PCB, it’s more durable and wireless, meaning it can easily sit on a bedside table.
The genius behind this DIY project included everything you need to build it in this Instructables guide, including a file for the heart-shaped drawing.
4. Voice-Controlled LED Heart
If Valentine’s heart above didn’t strike you as something your significant other will fancy, this voice-controlled LED heart made on this Hackster.io guide probably will. It’s built from the heart-shaped Ferrero Rocher chocolate box, but you can always make it from any other heart-shaped item you may have at home.
This DIY heart uses a VR module for voice control because it supports speech recognition and can respond to anyone’s voice. It’s based on Arduino-nano and is one of many Arduino-based projects great for beginners.
5. Infinity Mirror Heart With Arduino and RGB LEDs
An infinity mirror, also known as an infinite mirror, features two or more nearly parallel mirrors creating reflections that seem to get smaller and smaller as they fade into infinity. This forms an illusion of an endless space lined with LEDs, making an infinity mirror feel more like a work of art than just a mirror.
This project utilizes Arduino-nano and Adafruit Neopixel LED strips. Its heart shape makes it stand out from other similar mirrors, and the RGB lighting adds to the infinity effect. Check out this Instructables guide to build this awesome mirror. And there are other art in motion projects to try if this one doesn’t quite fit the vibe you want to gift your loved one on this special day.
6. Valentine’s Day Magical Bouquet
If your partner loves a bouquet with their Valentine’s gifts, this magical bouquet will tickle their fancy. It features a bunch of 3D-printed flowers that are Arduino Uno controlled. All flowers are yellow, but thanks to all the interconnected parts, one flower randomly sparkles bright white due to the infinite loop effect incorporated into the project. There’s also a yellow firefly effect, and occasionally, two flowers light up in yellow and fade out.
This is one pretty interesting bouquet. Whoever the recipient is, they’ll love it! This Hackster.io guide does an excellent job of explaining the build process.
7. Thinking of You Bracelet
The beauty of love, be it romantic or platonic, is that we are always in each other’s minds. Remind that special person how much they rock your thoughts by building and gifting them this ‘thinking of you bracelet.’ It’s a unique bracelet because it features LEDs paired with Tile Mate, a Bluetooth tracker allowing remote connections. That means you can activate the LEDs remotely to remind that special person wearing it you’re thinking of them whenever they pop up in your thoughts.
Check out this Hackster.io project to build this bracelet. To match this awesome bracelet, you can try any of these ways to customize an ordinary watch into a statement piece and gift your loved one an awesome bracelet and a special watch.
8. Valentine’s Vase Dazzler
If you spoil the love of your life with flowers whenever you can, and add a special touch this Valentine’s Day by building a 3D-printed vase as shown in this Hackaday project.
The vase is fitted with individually addressable RGB strips with up to ten colors and comes with a pushbutton that one can use to control the brightness. Plus it glows and fades out between these colors, creating a magical ambiance perfect for a dark area in the living room or the bedroom.
For some people, the perfect Valentine’s setup entails walking into a house dotted with rose petals on the floor. The petals also often lead the way to a candle-lit room with a bathtub full of rose petals, milk, and a bottle of champagne on the side. If your Valentine appreciates these kinds of shows on the day of love, add this scrolling LED display.
It’s based on the LED-light signs typically found by the bus stop, except instead of bus messages, it displays heart-shaped LEDs and “I love you” initials. You can tweak it to include any other messages you’d like to share with your love on this special day.
Check out this Hackster.io guide for detailed instructions on how to build this amazing valentine’s gift.
Surprise Your Valentine With a DIY Gift
Valentine’s is a big deal, so why not show out for your loved ones by building them any of the stunning DIY gifts above? They’ll make a strong case for you, especially if you’re a gift-giver who struggles with selecting something meaningful.