things we {heart}: valentines from bitsy creations (+giveaway!)

Valentine's Day. Legit holiday or Hallmark-induced card and candy craze?

Graphic designer Joan Orchard thinks a little bit of both.

"Honestly, I definitely think Valentine's Day is a huge way for people to make money, but I've still always loved it," says Orchard, proprietor of graphic design firm BitsyCreations. "You certainly don't need an excuse to tell your family & special ones you love them, but I like the extra push!"

Come to find out, it just so happens that Valentine's Day is the anniversary of her engagement. {So how could she not love it?} A 3 AM pounding on her dorm room door Valentine's Day during her senior year of college turned out to be a tuxedo-clad future husband asking her to marry him.

Joan asked him if she could go brush her teeth.

Romantic whimsy-meets-realism permeates all of Joan's designs - - which is exactly why we love them! Her Valentine's Day collection spans toddler-friendly-print-and-color valentines, to custom printables, to traditional print-n-mail cards. Something for every budget and every stationery need.

Our favorite? The Kidlet Valentine pictured in this post. Tres adorable. Customized to look just like your adorable cutie. Joan can print and ship the cards to you, or can email you a high resolution PDF for you to print at will.

Joan is giving away a free custom printable Kidlet Valentine to a (cool) progeny reader. Yeah - we're taking the frantic drug store run for fold 'n tear 'n add a lollipop cards out your life. Your kids will have the most chic cards in class -- because instead of Mickey Mouse, the card will feature well - - your (cool) kid!

Joan will work with the winner to design the card, which will then be emailed as a high resolution file and you can print it as many times as you need.

Want to win the free custom design? All you have to do is fill out this quick form. Want another chance to win? "Like" us on facebook and leave a comment right here on this post. A third chance? Leave a comment letting us know how you're celebrating Heart Day this year.

You have until 5:00 PM on Tuesday, February 1st to enter!

(cool) tip: Love Joan's work? Our friends at Certifikid have a fabulous deal going on today through Sunday. Purchase a customized Kidlet Printable for $7, or have 15 custom Kidlet Valentines printed and shipped for $14! That's up to 50% off the regular price.