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 —-
- 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.)
- Paint, Rollers/Brushes (You need one color per kid and a background color)
- Little Hands (I had 3 ranging in age from 0-4)
- 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 🙂
