Holiday Handprint Crafts to Make with Kids

The holiday season inspires the Martha Stewart that lives inside all of us. Whether you like to watch Hallmark movies and try to emulate the gorgeous decorations or enjoy trying to master every Christmas cookie recipe you can find on Pinterest, the holidays are the time to forget the calorie count and simply enjoy the wonder of the season.

If you’re making your list this year and checking it twice, you may wish you had your own elves to help streamline your holiday to-do list. We’ve rounded up fun holiday crafts that make great, personalized gifts for grandma and grandpa, fun holiday gift card holders for teachers or festive decorations to hang around your home. Whatever you use them for, you'll have a blast creating this crafts with your kiddos. 

Reindeer Craft

This craft actually involves your child’s hands and feet, making it extra fun for them. You will need white paper, brown paint and markers or glue and embellishments for this craft.

1. Paint the sole of your child’s foot with brown paint and have them step on the center of your paper. This is the reindeer’s head.
2. Then, paint both of your child’s hands brown. Your child’s hands will be the reindeer’s antlers. Have them place their handprints on either side of their foot near their toes.
3. Draw the reindeer’s eyes (or glue on googly eyes), nose (feel free to use a red pom pom!), mouth and maybe some tinsel or lights around the antlers. Get creative!
4. Write your child’s name and the year somewhere on the paper and proudly display the craft for everyone to see.

Snowman Family

For this craft, your little one's fingers are the snowmen. You will need colored paper, white paint and markers for this craft—glitter is optional. 

1. Paint your child’s hand white and have them center their handprint in the middle of their colored paper. Light blue is a great choice for a background but any color will do!
2. Once the handprint dries, have them turn each finger into a snowman. You might have Mom, Dad, Cat, Dog or each finger might be a sibling. You could include grandparents or cousins, whatever is personal to you. Give each finger a scarf, eyes, a hat and a name.
3. Decorate the background of the print as you want. You might include snow drifts or houses or simply leave it blank.
4. This craft is great to make on an ornament! Have your child wrap their hand around the bottom of a solid ornament- blue or clear work the best- and repeat the process above. Voila! 

Santa Claus or Mrs. Claus Craft

Your child’s handprint, turned upside down, becomes Santa for this festive craft. You will need colored paper, white paint, red paint and markers for this craft—cotton balls and glitter optional.

1. Paint your child’s hand white and have them stamp it in the middle of the colored paper (avoid red or white paper for this). Then, turn the paper so your child’s fingers face toward the bottom.
2. Your child’s fingers are now Santa’s beard! Feel free to add glitter or cotton balls for embellishment.
3. Give Santa a hat with red paint and eyes and a nose using markers or paint. Feel free to use a cotton ball for the pom pom on Santa’s hat!
4. Have your child sign and date the craft and hang it on the fridge. 
   

Family Handprint Tree

Even Mom and Dad have to get dirty for this one! You will need a long canvas, green paint, brown paint, white paint and markers.

1. Orient the canvas so that it is in portrait mode and paint everyone’s hands green.
2. Starting at the bottom of the canvas, and with the person whose hands are the biggest, place palms together and fan out hands like wings and place them on the canvas.
3. Repeat this process with each person, from biggest hands to smallest hands.
4. Voila! You have a handprint tree. Now add a trunk underneath the largest hands and a gold star (glitter optional) atop the smallest hands. Feel free to let kids add stickers to act like ornaments or draw in lights on the tree. Even adding real tinsel looks neat!

These crafts are bound to get messy, so make sure you are prepared with everything you need to get creative so your crafting session doesn’t get stressful. Aprons are great to keep on hand to protect those cute holiday outfits. Learning towers are a safe, easy way for kids to help in the kitchen or craft at the counter. And it never hurts to have extra arts and crafts on hand for your little ones to distract them while you put the finishing touch on the project you are perfecting.

Happy Holidays!