I am in looove with my new Sanuk Yoga Sling flip-flops - They are super comfy around the feet, and soft on the footpads. I'd say the run a touch big (at least for me, as you can see, I have rather short toes). I am normally between an 8 and an 8.5 and the 8s fit me perfectly. I'm looking forward to grabbing a few more pairs and wearing them all summer long.

There are a LOT of colors/patterns on sale at Amazon in the style I'm wearing above, but you'll have to go through one by one to find the best deals in your size. You can check them all out here. 

There are also a lot of other Sanuk styles (sandals, flip flops and flats), although I have not tried the others yet, you can find them here.

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Post contains affiliate and referral links. If you buy through my links, I will receive a merchandise credit or a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!!

How to Save with Amazon's Subscribe & Save program

Our Pharaoh Hound Felix with some Amazon deliveries, including dog food and treats. 
This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through one of our links, Sample Sale Mom 
will receive a percentage of commission.

On my Facebook page and group, I write often about how to save money with Amazon's subscribe and save. It's kind of like Costco... but you don't have to buy in bulk (unless you want to) and you can have items shipped right to your door. Much easier than spending an hour of your time shopping and dragging home a 50 lb bag of dog food. And on the coupon-discounted items, prices tend to be around the same or better than Costco's.

Subscribe and save (S&S) is not the same thing as Amazon Pantry. Subscribe and save covers all sorts of stuff you use in your home - beauty items, art supplies, laundry stuff, snacks, pet supplies, and lots more. It doesn't cost anything extra if you already have Prime, and *saves you 15%* off every monthly-delivery product you order when you have at least 5 S&S items in the same monthly shipment. On top of that, you can apply lots of instant discounts to specific items, just by clicking on a "coupon" on the item listing. If you have Amazon Family, which is free with your Prime membership, and very quick to add to your account here, you get an extra 20% off subscribe and save diapers provided you have 5+ total items in your monthly shipment.

At first, I signed up for only dog food on S&S since it was much cheaper that way, (a giant bag of dog food on Amazon isn't much more than a little bag at the overpriced pet store.) I did not bother to do other items. I thought it was too big a pain, or there would be nothing I wanted/needed, or it would be hard to cancel something if I did not want it any more. But then I found out that it's really, really easy to switch items each month, and by buying whatever happens to be discounted, you end up saving a lot. "Discounted" items are not just weird, random stuff either - toilet paper, tissues, cereal, diapers, toothpaste, snack bars, drinks... lots of things you'd be buying anyway. 

Here are some of the questions people often have about Subscribe and Save....

Where do I find subscribe and save items that have an additional coupon discount on them? 
First, join our Facebook group, Sample Sale Mom as I post a few of the best deals there every day, so you don't have to go hunting. You can search the word "subscribe" in the group search bar to bring up lots more deals. You can also search on Amazon itself for items you might normally buy at Costco or the grocery store. 

Click here for the main coupon page, where Amazon lists discounted items. Typically, if an item has a 30% discount on it, and you also have 5 monthly subscribe and save items for the additional 15% off, you will save 45% off the original price - because both discounts come off the top (off the original price.)  
Here are all the current baby-stuff coupons.
Here are all the current beauty coupons.
Here are all the office and school supply coupons.
Here are all the grocery coupons.
Here are the health & personal care coupons.
Here are the toy coupons.
Here are the pet supply coupons.
Here are the clothing coupons.
You can filter for more categories with the left hand side menu on a computer. 

Where can I see my discounts? 
Once you have five monthly subscribe and save items, the 15% off will show up automatically on monthly subscribe and saves before you card them, right on the listing page. The coupon discounts won't show up until your "order summary", which is the last checkout screen before you click to order, right after you select payment method. Here is a picture of what your order summary should look like if you have a coupon item AND at least five total monthly subscribe and saves.

In this case, I used a 20% off coupon (I needed to click the coupon to apply it - it's normally in a green or grey box right under the item price) and got another 15% off for having 5 monthly subscribe and saves. So a total savings of 35% (since both discounts come off the top.)

When I use a coupon, do I get the discounted price every month?

No. Coupon discounts are only good on the first delivery of an order. However - often the same manufacturers run coupons over and over again. To take advantage of that, you can just cancel your subscription on that item and re-add it each time a coupon is re-issued (most coupons are one use only, once you use them they won't appear for you any more - so if you see the coupon show up on the item again, that usually means it has been re-issued.) 

What if the coupon deal ends before my monthly subscribe and save ships out? 

That doesn't matter - the price you pay in your "order summary" (shown in the pic above) is the price you'll pay at delivery time (unless you go above or drop below the 5-monthly-item threshold - in that case your price will be effected, as the 15% S&S discount will be added or taken away.) 

What if I don't need the item right away? Can I "skip" my first delivery? 

Although Amazon gives you the easy ability to "skip" deliveries, this is probably not a good idea when using a coupon discount. Group members have told me that the system gets confused when you skip the first delivery of a coupon item, and you don't end up getting your discount. You can straighten it out with an email to Amazon (or contacting them by "chat") - but this seems like an unnecessary hassle to me. If I don't need an item, I either wait to buy it, or buy it and store it. 

Where can I see my monthly subscribe and saves? 

Go to "Hello (your name) Your Account" on the upper right side of any Amazon page. Choose the option for "Your Subscribe and Save Items" (it brings you  here as shown in the screen shot below.) NOTE: Prices you'll see on the subscribe and save page do *not* reflect your coupon discounts!! They show whatever the current item price is (including the 15% discount if you meet the 5-items-monthly threshold.) I paid substantially less than what is shown for 6 of the 9 products here since they had coupons on them. To see what you actually paid for each item, you'll need to go into your "orders" and then to "order details". You can also see what you paid for each item on the confirmation email you got when you purchased. 

I only wanted to order this item once - how do I cancel it? 

To cancel a subscribe and save item, go to  your subscribe and save page as shown above. Hover over any item. You'll see a choice of "edit" or "skip" - Choose edit. Then you'll see a page like the one shown below - click "cancel item." You will be asked to choose a reason you are canceling, but you don't have to if you don't want to. Click "confirm cancellation." That's it! You have canceled your item. 

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Post contains affiliate links. If you buy through my links, I will receive a merchandise credit or a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!!

Boden and Mini Boden Clearance Sale Review (Boston, February 7, 2015)

Post contains affiliate links. If you buy through one of my links, Sample Sale Mom will be compensated a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!

If you want to read a few of my other reviews of past  Boden sales, you can find them  here,  here and  here. Today I arrived at the Hynes around 7. At the last sale (September 2014) I had been pleasantly surprised to see a shorter-than-usual line when I arrived - but that wasn't the case today. By 7 am there were already about 50 women lined up. I happened to arrive at the same time as several women from one of my facebook shopping-groups, so we all chatted for the 3 hours until the sale opened up. This made the time seem to pass by so quickly! I was somewhat nervous about whether or not we would get in on the first intake, but we did! Just after 10 the doors opened and I went running for the boys table as usual (I have two boys, ages 5 and 7). I was immediately disappointed when I arrived at the boys table and saw... spots of bare table. Normally the tables are covered with enormous piles of clothing. Over the past three sales, the amount of boys clothing seems to have been decreasing, but this is the first time I've been really disappointed in the selection of clothes in the sizes I want. I was able to grab a few nice things, but only because I was one of the first people to arrive at the table. At all the past sales, there has been an abundance of large size (9+) boys clothing - but at this one, everything was gone from the table within the first 3 minutes of the sale, and the concentration seemed to be smaller sizes. I heard from several people that the girl's selection was good this time, and that table had MUCH higher piles when I came in.

Best dress I found today, the Dartmouth Tunic for $40. Score!

But there was good news. Since I spent so little time at the boys table, I quickly moved on to women's, and there the selection was wonderful! In total I bought 4 dresses, a cashmere-blend cardigan, and a top for me. For my boys I bought one sweater, one hoody, one pair of pjs, two long sleeved tops, one pair of lined cotton pants, and one pair of lined jeans. My best find of the day was the Dartmouth Tunic Dress I found in my size for $40 - which is currently featured on Boden's site for $148. Almost all the dresses I tried on (even a few that I rejected for one reason or another) fit really nicely - I find that the brand in general is wonderful in terms of being flattering on a range of different body types. I saw lots of other ladies getting some gorgeous things that looked great on them!

This time I didn't have as much luck with the discard piles as I've had in the past. I found all but one of my items myself, on the tables. Yet again I got distracted and forgot to take photos inside the hall of all the craziness - but here is a photo taken by Amy Wu of some of the shoppers (with their giant shopping bags! Don't forget those.)

Below are the current prices - some things (hats, pjs, backpacks, socks, underwear...) do not seem to have an assigned price, so there is some variation in what people have been charged. If anyone from Boden is reading this, I would really encourage them to fix this issue by assigning a price to every category of item!! I was told that an item was $15, and my friend bought it and was charged $5. It's very frustrating as a buyer to hear that different people are paying different prices for things. Another example - last time I bought a sweatshirt and was charged $25 (I was told it "counted as a jacket") - at this sale, all kids' hoodies were $15 and apparently counted as tops.

All in all I am excited about my great buys today - but I hope that the decreasing amount of children's items is not a trend that continues. Please Boden, go back to the old method and send more kid's items to Boston!

I will definitely be going to the next sale in September (for a schedule of upcoming Boden sales, including the September 2015 date, check my webpage listing). I have a bunch of tips listed on that page about what to wear, what to bring, and where to park (scroll down on the page). If you are interested in seeing discussions of each Boston Boden sale, get $5 off coupons for each sale, or find out who to contact about working at a sale, join my facebook group (and message me.)

Last but not least, if you want MORE discounted Boden and Mini Boden and you don't feel like leaving your house, here are a few ways to save money on Boden right at home.

1. To get regular updates on Boden coupon codes (I never personally order without at least a 20% off code) - join Sample Sale Mom Deals on Facebook, as I regularly post the current coupon codes.   
2. Online discounter Zulily sometimes has Boden sales at up to 50% off catalog prices. You can also search in their search bar any time and they often have a few Boden items on sale. To be alerted about upcoming Boden sales on Zulily, you can click the white heart next to "Boden" on the site so that it turns red. They also have sales on plenty of other awesome brands - some of my favorites include Hanna Andersson, Tea Collection, Kate Quinn Organics, Keen & Sophie Catalou.
3. Several other sites now occasionally sell Boden "vouchers" - For $35 you can buy a $50 Boden voucher good on anything on the site. There is usually a one or two per household restriction, per voucher sale. Sites that sell Boden vouchers include Zulily, and Rue La La, and I post all of these sales by the day they start on my facebook group
4. If you love Mini Boden, check out Hatley, which is high-quality, (read the reviews) to-die-for cute, and can be much less expensive. 

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Post contains affiliate and referral links. If you buy through my links, I will receive a merchandise credit or a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!!

10 Best Toys

Over the past 8 years we’ve gone through a lot of toys. Some get played with for a day and then sit in their storage bins gathering dust. Others are beautifully-designed but don’t hold my kids’ interest. Then there are the loud, plastic noise-maker toys that my children love and I cannot stand! (light-up shrieking toy jackhammer anyone?) There are a few toys, though, that have been heavily played with for years. I recommend any of these as great holiday or birthday gifts. Although I have sons, these are not just toys for boys, and all of them would be great fun for girls as well. These are listed in no particular order. (This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something via one of my links I may receive a small percentage of your purchase price.)

1. Legos – My boys are currently ages 5 and 7, and legos have taken over our house. Sometimes the classic toys really ARE the best! Whether they're putting together complex sets or free-building an architectural design, my sons are completely absorbed by their legos. Until now I've almost entirely avoided toys with teeny tiny pieces that can get lost or lodged in my foot, but Legos are the exception. Best place to buy - Amazon or the Lego store (they have a loyalty program). Occasionally sets pop up on discounter Zulily - search for the term "brickmaster".

2. Anything from Plan Toys – I cannot say enough great things about this company and the cool toys they make! Eco-friendly, award-winning, beautiful and clever, Plan Toys are made from Rubberwood. And they are VERY hard to break. When he was a baby my younger son loved this cone stacker. Then as toddlers my kids adored the large wood construction vehicles shown in the photo (unfortunately a lot of these have been discontinued - Hope Plan Toys will bring them back!) Currently we're obsessed with the large, PlanEducation kits. These are primarily sold to schools and they hold about 130 pieces, like tool kits or building sets. They're occasionally featured on Gilt  at about half price, and they come in a big, gorgeous rubberwood box. Other cool wood toy brands include Hape, Wonderworld, Kidkraft, and, if you have a big budget - Grimm's - WOW are the Grimm's toys gorgeous. Unfortunately I was never able to afford them when my kids were little!!

3. A Wood Play Kitchen – My sons spent many hours pretending to prep and cook food for me. I think they were especially interested in their kitchen because my husband is the cook in our family. I prefer wood to plastic since it looks and holds up better. The one we had (pictured) is from Hape, and included a lot of really cute food. The Ikea version is darling too. And the Kidkraft versions are cute and come in many different color themes.

4. Trains and Tracks – These are readily available used, and you can save a lot of money buying them via craigslist, ebay, yard sales, or your local mom-listserve. And since they hold up well, you can sell them once you are done with them! Before we bought our train table (found at a yard sale for $30), my older son and I would build tracks on the hardwood floor in endless permutations. I found that the Brio trains were better-looking and better constructed than the comparable Thomas or Ikea ones. But many of the trains (and tracks) are compatible and can be used together.

5. Plasmacar – Of the many ride-ons we’ve tried, this one is the best. It can be driven without using one’s feet. It requires no batteries — it’s propelled by mechanical operation, by moving the steering wheel back and forth kids can ride in either direction. The best thing about this toy is something most parents don’t know — it has a 220 pound weight limit. This means an adult can drive it around the house with a small child seated in front. I really enjoy cruising around with my younger son! And now both of our children have started riding around together. Note: don’t opt for one of the knockoff brands, reviews say they’re inferior to the original. If it does not say Plasmacar, it is not a Plasmacar, it is a knockoff.

6. Magnatiles – My kids love many building toys, but these win the most-played-with award. Magnetic blocks are lighter, less apt to get lost and much easier to clean up than standard blocks. And children love the way the magnets snap together to create boxes and shapes. Magnatiles can be used to build huge structures, and this clear type (which we prefer) allows kids to create transparent boxes to hold other toys. You can often Magnatiles sets from Zulily on sale, but Amazon doesn't discount them. Honorable mention for other good building toys includes Tegu blocks and SmartMax. I've heard good things about Magformers as well, but we do not have them. Update: check out the NEW black and clear magnatiles sets - I ordered these for my kids for Christmas this year. (Update: check Zulily for those sets, if you can find them there they'll be lower priced than on Amazon.)

7. A Butterfly Net – This turned out to be the best birthday presents my son has ever received (yes, it's from a third party seller so you'll have to pay for shipping - but totally worth it). He has hunted and captured bugs, toads, frogs, fish, crabs, eels, and yes, even snakes with his net. In the process he has become fascinated with the natural world and different animal species.

8. Art Supplies  – (And yep, I linked to Sharpies. My kids have done some wonderful work with Sharpies. May not be appropriate for younger or unsupervised kids.) I think one way to get kids more interested in art is give them a good variety of tools to work with. Let’s face it, the basic 8-pack of crayola crayons or markers kids use at school are pretty lame. I don’t feel any desire to color when I look at them, do you? For younger kids, a set of these nice markers from Pro Art are a great value at a low price. Just make sure kids put the caps back on. Or spring for a nice art set from Xonex. Check Zulily for availability also. Art kits make great, gender-neutral birthday gifts.

9. A Maxi Kick Scooter – We've tried many scooters and this is the best one on the market. The third wheel and simple rear breaking system make it easy for a young child to ride. And the steering column is totally intuitive – twisting the handle is not necessary. If you pull it horizontally to the right, the scooter glides right. After being intimidated by a basic razor, my kids happily scoot around everywhere on their Maxi Kicks all summer long. Don't bother with the Mini Kick - your child will grow out of it in no time. The Maxi Kick adjusts to an extremely low handlebar height, making it suitable even for a 3 year old to ride (suggested starting age is 5, but I think that must be a liability thing.) The only downside of the Maxi Kick it is high price tag. Find them on Amazon, or occasionally on sale on Gilt, so definitely watch their kids section if you're in the market.

10. Papo and Schleich figures – These two brands in particular make highly detailed miniature figures (about 4 inches high) that have given my kids endless hours of pretend play inspiration. First they loved their animals, then they moved on to their knights and mythical beasts and now they have "battles" and play games with their collection. If your kids are into dinosaurs, check out the amazing Schleich ones with open and closable mouths - so realistic! We love these. Get them on Amazon, at local toy stores or at a discount when they're featured on Zulily.

Post contains affiliate links. If you buy through my links, I will receive a merchandise credit or a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!!

Giveaway!!! (Completed as of May 1, 2014

UPDATE: This giveaway and discount promotion is over as of May 2nd. We will likely be having another Tuff Kookooshka giveaway in the fall. 

Two lucky winners will each receive a $50 gift certificates to Tuff Kookooshka, a maker of adorable kids clothing based locally in Fall River, MA. Tuff Kookooshka is a true family business; the owner started in a Cape Cod basement using remnants and salvaged fabric from Malden Mills in Lawrence, MA. They use the highest quality PolarTec Polar Fleece still produced locally at Malden Mills, with accents and trims made from Luxury Wools out of Prato, Italy.

I fell in love with this brand a few years ago when I found them on Zulily and ordered my son this monster-themed pullover:

They used to be called "Tuff Cookie". Such beautiful quality and attention to detail, as you can see in the photos of my sons and their friends. Right now (through Friday) you can save an extra 15% on anything on www.kookooshka.com with code: samplesalemom15 Their clearance section is already marked down 50% off so this is a killer deal, at much lower than Zulily prices. The red robot pullover my son is wearing in the first photo, for instance, would only be $23.80 with this deal, regular price is $56.

To enter the giveaway to win one of the $50 gift certificates:

1. Go to my facebook page and "like" it

2. go to www.kookooshka.com and find your favorite item. Comment on my giveaway post (on facebook, not this blog) with the name of that item. If you've ordered Tuff KooKooshka before, tell us about your experience too! One comment per person only please. The contest will end Thursday at noon. The promo code samplesalemom15 is good for 15% off everything on the site through Friday at 5:00 pm.

For ANOTHER chance to win some Tuff Kookoosh, check out my friend Lisa's Married to Medicine blog page  - between her giveaway and mine there are four prizes, so your odds of winning are pretty good!

Boden and Mini Boden Clearance Sale Review (Boston, February 1, 2014)

Post contains affiliate links. If you buy through one of my links, Sample Sale Mom will receive a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!

If you want to read a couple of my other reviews of past Boden sales, you can find them here and here. This time I arrived at the sale earlier than I have in the past. I parked at 7:20 and got in line at about 7:25. This turned out to be a good move - I got in with the first intake (the first group of 75 people in line get let in at 10 for the first few minutes while the others have to wait. After that, 50 to 75 more people get let in every few minutes). The line to get into the sale is inside the building (so no, you don't have to wait out in the cold) and everyone sits down to wait. Most people bring snacks, a water bottle, an iphone and/or a book. Most people sit and talk to the women in line next to them to pass the time. 

Being in the first group in the hall meant that there were only a few of us at the boys table for those first few minutes. I used that time to grab as many boys lined pants as I could in the sizes I was looking for (6 through 10). I also grabbed a swimsuit for my son and a t-shirt for my younger son. I saw a few hoodies and wanted one, but I didn't find one in the right size right away and I primarily was looking for pants so I concentrated on those. The hoodies went very quickly. Last time there was an INCREDIBLE selection of boy's stuff - there were many nice winter parkas and many summer shorts. I saw neither of those this time. Mostly just lots and lots of pants and t-shirts and some long-sleeved shirts. 

This is the updated price list for 2015 (the old 2014 one has changed so I've removed it.)

After filling one of my large bags with stuff for my boys, I decided I had enough for them and wanted to concentrate on items for myself. At this point the hall had filled with women and things were insanely crowded and crazy. A friend of mine who was there grabbed me the EXACT coat I had been looking for, so that was one great steal. I filled a bag with dresses and a few other things, shuttling between the 2/4 table and the 6/8 table since I wear some 4s and some 6s. There was just an enormous amount of stuff - dresses, sweaters, tops, bathing suits. And a vast array of shoes (I didn't go for those this time) I headed to the "try on area". I'm putting that in quotes because really, women try things on everywhere, all over the hall. The few men there must feel a bit uncomfortable when faced with so many half-dressed, frantically-changing women. 

Most of the items I grabbed weren't quite right. However, I got two dresses that fit me beautifully - one summer, patterned maxi dress, and one fall, black, retro style dress. I can't wait to wear them! There are only a few full length mirrors scattered around, so we all had to share. As soon as I discarded items, they were scooped up by other women waiting to try them on. 

There was a special $5 table with select women's items this time. I noticed a lot of women buying those items (there were just a few of several styles). I didn't see exactly what was available there and I sort of forgot about it, so I can't report on that.

In hindsight I probably should have stayed longer and spent more time looking through people's discard piles, but I noticed that a line was beginning to form and I wanted to get out and get home to my family, so I got in line to pay. I only had to wait about one minute... this was at 11:05 so most of the women there were still in crazy-shopping-mode. For a good sense of just HOW crazy, check out this photo by one of my facebook fans, Maribel Carvajal:

The sale was both overwhelming and REALLY fun and I will definitely be going to the next one (for a schedule of upcoming Boden sales check my webpage listing). I have a bunch of tips listed on that page about what to wear, what to bring, and where to park. If you are interested in seeing discussions of each Boston Boden sale, get $5 off coupons for each sale, or find out who to contact about working at a sale, like my facebook page (and message me.)

Last but not least, if you want MORE discounted Boden and Mini Boden and you don't feel like leaving your house, here are a few ways to save money on Boden right at home. 

1. To get regular updates on Boden coupon codes (I never personally order without at least a 20% off code) - join Sample Sale Mom Deals on Facebook, as I regularly post the current coupon codes.   
2. Online discounter Zulily sometimes has Boden sales at up to 50% off catalog prices. You can also search in their search bar any time and they often have a few Boden items on sale. To be alerted about upcoming Boden sales on Zulily,you can click the white heart next to "Boden" on the site so that it turns red. They also have sales on plenty of other awesome brands - some of my favorites include Hanna Andersson, Tea Collection, Kate Quinn Organics, Keen & Sophie Catalou.
3. Several other sites now occasionally sell Boden "vouchers" - For $35 you can buy a $50 Boden voucher good on anything on the site. There is usually a one or two per household restriction, per voucher sale. Sites that sell Boden vouchers include Zulily, and Rue La La, and I post all of these sales by the day they start on my facebook group
4. If you love Mini Boden, check out Hatley, which is high-quality, (read the reviews) to-die-for cute, and can be much less expensive. 

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Post contains affiliate and referral links. If you buy through my links, I will receive a merchandise credit or a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!!

Love Bug Classmate Valentines (Using a Silhouette die-cut machine)

Post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through my links, Sample Sale Mom will be compensated a small percentage of commission. Thanks for supporting Sample Sale Mom!

If you have a die-cutting machine like a Cricut or Silhouette, these Valentines are easy to make! I was inspired by the love bug valentines I saw on pinterest but wanted to take it up a notch and make them a little more artistic. (This post contains affiliate links, I may be compensated a small percentage of your purchase price.)

For this project you will need:

Colored card stock (the kind you would use for scrapbooking)
White card stock
Fuzzy pipe cleaners
Double sided tape or glue
A Die-cut machine - The one I use is the Silhouette, but the Cricut has many fans as well.
Bugs like these
Silver or black marker for your child to write his/her name

The template should include two small slits or holes into which you can insert your pipe cleaner piece to hold the bugs. First, use the colored jar template to make the colored jars and punch out the letters. Next, have your child sign the colored jars. Then attach your bug using the pipe cleaner, twisting at the back. Cut off excess pipe cleaner. Then, after the front is finished, use a second, larger jar template to create a slightly larger white outline/backing layer. Just scaling-up the original jar won't work because it will be uneven - if you are working in adobe illustrator, make a "stroke" around the colored jar template, remove the lettering, and use that to cut the white jars.

The last step is to attach the back and front layers - I like scotch double-sided tape, but you can also use elmers, rubber cement or another adhesive. If your Valentines are put together correctly then the back of them should be solid white and the pipe cleaner shouldn't be sticking out the back.

You can make them all the same color, but for me the fun part was choosing different colors to highlight all the different bugs! More photos below...