Every time our youngest puts her coat on she immediately sticks her hands in her pockets and asks, “Love Rocks?” She knows our routine; wherever we go, we leave a trail of love and joy. Love Rocks are river rocks with fabric hearts mod podged to them, and are a gesture of sharing love and joy in honor of her older sisters, Anna and Abby, who went to Heaven four years ago. Love Rocks have traveled all over the world, and have brought together a community of over 30,000 people on Facebook and Instagram. This community makes a choice each day to spread love and joy to those around them, and has shared hundreds of amazing stories of how these little rocks can change hearts when unexpectedly found.
Love Rocks are very easy to make, and even easier to share. Our youngest is two and can sit for over twenty minutes putting mod podge and hearts on rocks. She loves leaving them on doorsteps and on the playground for other children to find. My favorite, and I think it’s hers too, is watching how excited people get when she walks up to them and hands them a token of love, just because. We need more love in the world and I think that should come every day of the year and not just on Valentine’s Day.
SUPPLIES NEEDED
ROCKS – Dollar Tree sells small bags of black polished river rocks, or you can purchase a large bucket of river rocks from a local landscaping company (these rocks will need to be washed).
FABRIC – Most fabric stores sell fat quarters or remnants of fabric which allows you to buy a variety of colors and patterns.
SHARP SCISSORS – Having sharp scissors makes it easier to cut the hearts.
MOD PODGE – Most craft stores sell mod podge and you don’t need gallons – a little bit goes a long way. Check out this DIY mod pdge trick.
PAINT BRUSH – A regular paint brush works fine. Pro Tip: It will get ruined if you allow the mod podge to dry, so I usually keep mine in a glass of water in between making.
HOW TO MAKE A LOVE ROCK
1. CUT OUT HEARTS. Double your fabric and cut into two-inch long strips. Fold the strips in half longways; start at the top and cut 1/2 a heart on the fold. Doubling your fabric makes it easier to keep the fabric in place while your cutting. Make sure that the hearts that you cut will fit on the rocks you have.
2. APPLY MOD PODGE ON TOP OF ROCK. Pro Tip: A little mod podge goes a long way.
3. PLACE FABRIC HEART ON TOP OF MOD PODGE. Place the heart wherever you feel it should go and make sure that the edges are secured by the base layer of mod podge.
4. MOD PODGE OVER TOP OF FABRIC TO SECURE HEART ONTO ROCK. Make sure you cover the entire heart. Let dry for 10-15 minutes.
5. PLACE LOVE ROCK TAG ON BACK OF ROCK AND MOD PODGE OVER TOP TO SECURE TO ROCK. You can make your own tags or you can find them here.
6. SHARE YOUR LOVE ROCKS. This is our favorite part.