Monday, March 26, 2012

Handprint Tulips



Say hello to Spring with these sweet little handprint tulips. I did this craft project with my little nephew.


(Here he is with me at the flower show getting some inspiration.)

They are going to be Mother's Day gifts for his mom, grandma, and a few relatives (not to mention something for this auntie to keep too). This is a perfect project to celebrate spring's arrival. And if you don't want to wait for Mother's Day, they'd make fabulous Easter table decorations or favors too!

Here's what you need:
  • White Foam Board (I used some scraps I had from another project)
  • Paint (2-3 complimentary shades for the flower, green for the stem)
  • 2 Inch Terra Cotta Pot
  • Green Card Stock
  • Floral Foam (big enough to fit inside pot)
  • Bamboo Skewer (1 for each flower)
  • Green Paper Grass
  • White Glue
  • Clothes Pins (to use as glue Clamps)
  • Scissors
  • Paint Brushes
  • Craft Knife and Cutting Board
  • Fine Tip Black Permanent Marker
Start by painting the foam board with 2-3 complimentary colors for your flower. The painting was all done by my toddler nephew. The red/orange tulip used red, orange, and yellow. The pink used light pink and dark pink. The purple flower was pink, and purple. The peach was yellow, orange, and white.


Once the boards were dry I traced his hand on each board.


Then cutout the hand prints using a craft knife.


After they were all cut, to give them a finished look, I painted the edges and the back with a color that was similar to the painting on the front. I made the back and sides of each hand a solid color so my nephew's painting would still stand out.

While the hands were drying I painted some bamboo skewers green. They will be the stems for each of the flowers.


Tip: Figuring out how to let the painted skewers dry can be tricky. I painted everything except the last quarter of an inch (on the pointy end) where I was holding the skewer. Then stuck them into my foam so they could stand up until dry.

Next I cut out some leaves from green card stock (you could also use construction paper). One big leaf, and one small leaf. I folded the ends of the leaves in half then used my hands to partially fold the leaf the rest of the way up. While the large leaf was folded in half I also cut the base off at an angle, so later it would sit flat on the foam.


Now that all the pieces were done it was time to assemble the flower.

I cut a hunk of foam from my block and stuck it into the flower pot. Using a little bit of white glue on the corners of the foam just to be sure it would stay in place.


Next I added a little glue to the pointy tip of the skewer and inserted it into the base of the handprint.


Tip: Use a scrap piece of foam to practice inserting the skewer once or twice before using your handprints. You want to be sure to put the skewer in straight so that it doesn't pop out of one side.


I put a bit more glue onto the bottom of the skewer and inserted that into the foam. Making sure the stem was centered in the pot.


Both leaves are attached at the same time.

First I put glue onto the base of the small leaf, front and back. Then added glue to the base of the large leaf on the inside only. I placed the small leaf against the back of the stem at an angle. Then placed the large leaf on the other side of the flower and folded it in half so it was sandwiching both the stem and the smaller leaf.


I used a clothes pin to clamp it all together and set aside to try.

Once the leaves were dry I added a bit of paper grass around the base to cover the foam. I put glue all over the top of the foam before setting the grass on top to be sure it would stay in place.


Last but not least I used a permanent marker to write my nephew's name, age, and the date on the back of each flower. I'm sure these'll be keepsakes that we'll all look back on (marveling that his hands were ever that small) so I thought recording the his age and the date would be nice.


How much the kids do versus how much the adults do to make this project can be adjusted to make this project appropriate for a wide age range. Since my nephew is only two, he did the painting for the flowers, then I traced his hand and did the rest. But older children could also paint the stems, cut out the leaf shapes, and place the grass in the pot. Depending on the age of the child, if they are old enough the only part an adult might have to do it cut the handprints out of the foam board.

Since I'm making these as gifts, and my nephew is an only child, I decided to make a single flower in each pot. But if you wanted to make a keepsake for a mom with with more than one child I can envision an larger pot filled several handprint flowers, one from each child. How cute would that be!

16 comments:

  1. So sweet!!! I wish I still had little ones around....

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  2. I love these! I'm definitely going to do these with my little ones within the next week. Thank you so much for sharing!

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  3. This is so cute! I need to do this with my kiddos before their hands get too big! I found you through Toys in the Dryer. Thanks for sharing!
    Warm wishes, Brittany

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  4. Aww thanks so much! I'd love to see how they turn out if you make them.

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  5. Awww this is an adorable craft! Love this idea, very cute!!!

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  6. What a sweet project...especially with the kiddos!! Would love to have you share these at my link party going on!
    http://www.pincushioncreations.com/2012/04/homemade-by-you-6.html

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  7. Thanks so much for the comments! If anyone tries this I'd love, love, love to see the results.

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  8. These are absolutely adorable! What a great idea!

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  9. Love these super cute!! Momma's Fun World

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  10. Constance April 18, 2014 @ 9:06PMApril 18, 2014 at 9:09 PM

    Absolutely love this project! I was just thinking of a mothers day project to do with my 2 yr olds at the daycare center I work at...looks like I just found one. Thanks so much!!!!

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  11. Hi I love this idea I would like to publish it in my fuchsia club newsletter

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  14. They are going to be Mother's Day gifts for his mom, grandma, and a few relatives (not to mention something for this auntie to keep too). This is a perfect project to celebrate spring's arrival. And if you don't want to wait for Mother's Day, they'd make fabulous Easter table decorations or favors too!
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