Masculine valentines

If you want a challenge, try making a valentine suitable for giving to a man. Why is it so difficult? Last year when I did a vendor fair for Valentine's Day, it was a specific comment that I needed more masculine cards. So I'm trying to fill that need this year, but it's not easy making a valentine with no pink, ribbon, flowers, or anything else girly! Here are my first two attempts. Tell me if I succeeded in my quest!

This card uses a stamp from the retired hostess set So Many Sayings. I stamped it in riding hood red on white cardstock, then cut and embossed with Nestabilities. I covered a white card with a panel from the riding hood red patterns pack, then cut a strip of red cardstock, added three jumbo pewter eyelets, and mounted with dimensionals. The inside says "Happy Valentine's Day."

For this card, I stamped the heart (Northwoods) on vanilla cardstock with real red ink in two generations, then added another first-generation heart over the top of the lighter heart. I layered this onto black cardstock. I cut a strip from real red designer paper (in the hostess patterns pack) and stamped the sentiment (My Sentiments Exactly) in black. To finish I added four black vintage brads, vanilla accent strips, a black background panel, and a vanilla card. I stamped "Happy Valentine's Day" on the inside of this one as well.

What do you think? I like the clean lines of both of these cards - although Todd likes frou-frou things sometimes, I know most men don't, so I hope these will suit someone. They are going right into my Etsy shop - I'm behind in stocking my inventory with valentines!