Art is one of my passions and I try to pass that on to my kids. We love doing projects together and displaying them around the house. In fact, I will not hang any art that was not painted by our family (or someone else we know personally.)
Since our walls are still pretty white and bare, I decided to do a project that will give them a pop of color for Spring while producing a gorgeous keepsake. We made canvas paintings of flowers using the kids’ handprints and boy did my boys have a blast! Especially my baby (I did not realize how badly he had been wanting to paint!) See also Toddler Outdoor Canvas Painting Project
What You Need
- Canvas(es) of your choice (I usually purchase these on sale or in the “as is” section at the craft store. I don’t care if they are marked up a bit or even have a pin hole, because it will be covered up with paint.)
- Paint (I used green, yellow, brown, white, red, and a little blue acrylic paint.)
- Paint brushes, various sizes (I used a larger, flat brush for the background, a medium to paint onto hands, and a small one for adding details.)
- Damp washcloth (for messes!)
- Dry washcloth/towel
- Cup of water (to rinse brushes)
- A sink nearby
- A hairdryer (or time–this is to get the paint to dry between layers)
Directions
Handprint Sunflowers Canvas
1. Paint the background of the canvas. You can do this any way you wish. I decided to use two different shades of green and leave in the brush strokes to give the look of grass. Let dry (or briefly blow with a hairdryer on low heat, low power.)
2. Paint the flower stem(s.) Keep in mind where the actual flower will be on the canvas and how big your child’s hands are. Let dry.
3. Paint the palm of your child’s hand with a thick layer of paint. I used yellow with a tiny drop of red. This will be for the sunflower petals.
4. Quickly have your child place his/her hand, palm down, on the canvas near the stem, fingertips pointing outwards. Press down gently so the full handprint shows.
5. Repeat step 4 multiple times, going around in a circle, until you have completed the outside of a sunflower. Be sure to leave a little space in the center as you go. Since I have two children, my baby made the long sunflower and my oldest made the shorter sunflower. Let dry.
6. Paint a brown center to the flower(s.) I used yellow and brown paint mixed and brushed from the center outward, allowing brush strokes to show. Be sure not to cover too much of the handprints (this is why I recommend leaving an opening in the middle when you create the handprints.)
7. Let your child dip his/her pointer finger into more brown paint (I used a slightly darker brown for this.)
8. Add fingerprint dots to the brown center of the sunflower to create the sunflower anther/disk florets.Dip. Dot. Dip. Dot. Repeat this until your child is satisfied that enough dots are in the center of the sunflower head. Little brown drops dripped on the canvas as they went back and forth. It looked pretty neat, so I decided to leave it as it was. Let dry.
Handprint Spring Blooms Canvas
1. Paint the background of the canvas. Again, you can do this any way you wish. I decided to use green and yellow (together on the brush at the same time, but not specifically mixed) and leave some brush strokes to give the look of grass. Let dry (or briefly blow with a hairdryer on low heat, low power.)
2. Paint the flower stem(s.) Know what types of flowers you are painting and how many. Tulip flowers, for instance (the pink) have long leaves coming from the base of the stem while those like the daisy (the white and yellow) come from the stem closer to the top or can be left off completely. Keep in mind where the actual flower will be on the canvas and how big your child’s hands are. Let dry.
3. Paint the palm of your child’s hand with a thick layer of paint. I used white to start as we did the large daisy first. For this, I used my older son’s larger hands.
4. Quickly have your child place his/her hand, palm down, on the canvas near the stem, fingertips pointing outwards. Press down gently so the full handprint shows.
5. Repeat step 4 multiple times, going around in a circle, until you have completed the outside of a daisy. Be sure to leave a small dot open in the center (fill this in with a circle when you are finished with the petals; I used yellow.) Let dry.
6. Let’s add another type of flower: tulips. Paint the palm of your child’s hand with a thick layer of paint. I used two different shades of pink for these and added three flowers. For this, I used my baby’s smaller hands.
7. Quickly have your child place his/her hand, palm down, on the canvas near the stem, fingertips pointing outwards. Press down gently so the full handprint shows.
8. Add a little detail to the tulips if desired; I added some pink slightly darker and slightly lighter than the colors for the petals to better show where the petals are.
Bonus tip: Do not forget to sign and date your artwork! This is an important step in any keepsake craft. You do not want to forget those memories with your children, or how old those handprints are. Take lots of pictures too!
You May Also Like
- Toddler Outdoor Canvas Painting Project
- Custom Key Holder Project
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- Top 5 Halloween/Fall Handprint Crafts
- Handprint Christmas Tree Framed Wall Art
- Thankful Turkey Journal Project with Popup Handprint Turkey
-Which flowers will you start with? If you decide to do this project, I would love for you to share on my Facebook page or email me at [email protected]!
Such a fun and creative idea – I love the colors!
Thank you, Sarah!
We love handprint crafts at our preschool. It’s always fun and the parents love getting the finished product. I’m going to do these with my kiddos.
Awesome! I hope they love it!
Very cute! Great piece to show off and hold on to when there older.
Yes! It is proudly displayed in my living room for Spring!
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