One of the quintessential Fathers' Day gifts is a handprint of a child. In my own family, I remember one year when we made a t-shirt for my dad that had six sets of handprints on it, one from each child. I remember him wearing it proudly. My youngest sister must have been about four or five when we made it, so she (and everyone else) was old enough to understand the concept of keeping a steady hand. But anyone with a very young child knows how difficult it can be to get a satisfactory handprint. When I made the fabric memory book for my son's first birthday, I discovered the perfect solution to this problem. The answer was photography. Okay, stay with me here. I've got a short tutorial that will explain everything.
Toddler Handprint Tutorial
Materials:
- Digital camera
- Computer
- Tracing paper or equivalent
- Pencil
- Ruler
Instructions:
First, find a low, flat surface that your child can easily reach, such as the floor, a bed, or coffee table. Get your child to place their hand flat on this surface. It might take some time, coercion, and modeling. Take lots of pictures. Try to get a shot from above to get the best perspective with the least distortion. Then, measure your child's hand from the crease in the wrist to the tip of the middle finger. Write this measurement down.
Toddler Handprint Tutorial
Materials:
- Digital camera
- Computer
- Tracing paper or equivalent
- Pencil
- Ruler
Instructions:
First, find a low, flat surface that your child can easily reach, such as the floor, a bed, or coffee table. Get your child to place their hand flat on this surface. It might take some time, coercion, and modeling. Take lots of pictures. Try to get a shot from above to get the best perspective with the least distortion. Then, measure your child's hand from the crease in the wrist to the tip of the middle finger. Write this measurement down.
Download the best picture onto your computer. Resize the image until the measurements are life-size.
Lay a sheet of thin paper, tracing paper is best, over the computer screen. A bit of tape can be helpful to keep the paper in place.
Using light pressure, trace the hand image with a pencil. Cut out the resulting handprint shape.
I used my handprint shape to make an embroidery pattern, but you could also use the shape to make a stamp, trace it onto pretty paper to make a card, or get creative with an idea of your own. There are only a few short hours until Fathers' Day. Use this quick and easy tutorial to make something special for the special man in your child's life. Happy crafting!
