Keepsake Hand Print Sign

Looking for the perfect DIY gift?  Here is a great one for grandparents, parents, babysitters, godparents, and the list goes on! 

Every year for Mother’s Day the boys and I make a gift for my mother and MIL. I figure Mother’s Day is THE perfect day for a handmade gift from a child. This year we made a sign with each boy’s hand print and name. The kids had a blast making them; they watch me make at least 4 signs a day, so they were excited to get to help finally. Here’s the one negative to making this craft (and any craft really), I always make them for others and then as soon as it’s all cleaned up and gone, I think…why didn’t I make one for myself?!?!?! So ONCE AGAIN, I’ve forgotten to make myself one…

It’s a pretty simple project that you can totally tweak to your needs, for instance, I cut the wood since I make wood signs on a daily basis, but if you don’t have a saw, you can just buy a pre-cut/sanded piece of wood from a craft store such as Joann’s or Michaels.

—– WHAT YOU NEED —-

1. Piece of wood/Sign Background (I cut a piece to 8X8 for ours, but anything big enough to have an inch or so around the biggest hand would work fine.)
2. Paint, Rollers/Brushes (You need one color per kid and a background color)
3. Little Hands (I had 3 ranging in age from 0-4)
4. PAPER TOWELS – PAPER TOWELS – PAPER TOWELS
   (Little Hands + Lots of Permanent Paint = BIG MESS POTENTIAL)

—– HOW TO DO IT —-

Buy or Cut your piece of wood to the size you want.  I did 8X8, but my oldest is 4, so we have little hands around here.  You’ll want to sand the edges to make it nice a smooth.  Be sure to wipe away any dust from sanding before you paint.

Roll on at least two coats of the base color and let dry.  Then I took a ‘tester’ board to use to make the first print.  I did this just so that it took off any extra paint that would just smear on the actual sign.  You don’t have to do this by any means, I just did it as practice mostly.

Now you’ll want to start with the kid with the largest hand.  Have them pick a color and then roll it on (or use a sponge or whatever works).  I then did my ‘test’ print, and then onto the actual board.  I did the whole process over for each sign I did (roll, test, final).   Once that print was dry (about an hour) I found the next kid in size and did the same in his color.

The third kid is just tiny, so I couldn’t hold him and get a photo at the same time.  Poor third kid, left out as always.    Here are the signs with all three prints.

Next I used a stencil I created with my Silhouette Cameo machine.  You can buy stencils or hand paint yours.  I’m happy to sell a custom made stencil for you as well, just shoot me a note about what you’d like and I can create a listing on ETSY for your custom stencil.

Once the stencil is laid, then you paint over it.  I did gray text and then the kid’s name in the color his had was done in.  Put on a few coats, then remove the stencil.  (of course you can skip the stencil and hand paint it right on there.)

Peel off the stencil.  Use a tool to help get the tiny pieces.  My stencil is one time use vinyl, but you may be using on from a craft store that will be re-useable and peel off differently than mine.

We wrapped ours up and gave them to Nana and Grammy for Mother’s Day this year.  They both have them hanging   Now, if only I had one too! 

Don’t forget the fun part of cleaning up those messy kids!    Happy Crafting!

Lisa