Quick and Easy Toddler Love Bug Handprint Craft
While it is nice to have the prompts of “baby’s favorite food this month” or “how is baby sleeping” they won’t be needed with a daily journal because YOU get to decide what’s important from that day. You’re not confined to limited memories.
You can find these One Line A Day Journals on Amazon by clicking the links below or by searching “That Girl (or Boy) is Wild” on Amazon.
I’ll start by saying I’m no master crafter.
I’m just a regular (and artistically challenged) mom who likes to make memories and mementos with my little one.
I’m also a bit of a procrastinator. It’s gotten better in motherhood but definitely not perfected.
I wanted to send my parents, and also my grandmother, Valentine’s Day cards since they are snow birds out of state.
A Card Just Wasn't Enough
I also wanted to include a little something from my 18 month old daughter but did not want the hassle of deciding how many stamps for a large envelope or going into the post off to mail it.
I had already picked up cards and had high hopes of Valentine’s Day inspired stamps…those were a bust. They did not hold my little one’s interest.
Next we tried markers for the first time…we’re so not ready for those.
Her final touches were some heart stickers, but it just still wasn’t enough.
Then the lightbulb! I have paint, and I have construction paper.
I do have a Cricut Maker but it’s not easily accessible due to a move…so I improvised.
Supplies!
There are no fancy supplies here. You probably have most (if not all!) on hand.
- Baby Hand
- Paint (I had Acrylic handy and it wasn’t on her long at all)
- Paint brush (not totally necessary)
- Scissors
- Glue
- Pencil
- Pen, Marker, Sharpie, etc.
- Construction paper
Easy Crafting Time!
First I painted Eleanor’s hand…and then she would squeeze her fingers into a fist and cause streaks in the paint. I did this about 3 or 4 times until I was quick enough to firmly press her hand onto the paper.
I did this two times and both times her thumb smeared which is why I decided to cover it up and make a “Love Bug”.
I then quickly wiped her hand with a baby wipe. We washed her hands with soap once I was able to pick up all of our crafting supplies.
Once her handprint dried I placed my hand printed construction paper into the Valentine’s Day cards and then cut around it to make the page small enough to fit snugly into the card.
More Articles That May Interest You:
Make The Cut
Next I got to work cutting out a circle for the bug’s head out of black construction paper.
I drew the bug antenna’s out on folded black construction paper. I wanted to have two exactly the same. You might be able to freehand this but I’m not that coordinated.
I cut out the eyes with white printer paper. I started with circles and put dots in the center with a sharpie. It looked odd to me so I experimented a bit and decided on some Looney Tune-esque (am I showing my age here?) eyes and cut out circles from the black construction paper for pupils.
I was having a hard time having getting my pupils even with the sharpie.
The last piece to this masterpiece (HA!) was a smile. I thought she needed to look a bit happier, it’s Valentine’s Day after all! Just a few snips with red construction paper and I was content.
Get Out The Glue
I glued these directly onto the construction paper. I did tuck the antennas under the face but other than that my only pointer would be maybe to have some tweezers handy. I think that might have helped me since I have short stubby little fingers, working with these tiny pieces was a little difficult.
Masterpiece Created By
Next I added my daughter’s name and the year to the top and the “Love Bug” title to the bottom. This is where I really wish I had dug out the Cricut. My handwriting has always been terrible!
To offset my poor handwriting I added a sparkly sticker in the hopes it would distract from it (if we can’t laugh at ourselves right?!).
The finished product!
All that was left was to sign her name on the card, pop in her “Love Bug”, address the envelope and put it in the mailbox. You definitely could have added some polka dots or maybe even some feet to the bug but I thought it was cute as is and didn’t want to cover more of her handprint than I had to.
Tah-Dah!
I hope you enjoyed this easy craft idea and that it will inspire those non-crafty mom’s like me to give it a shot. It’s not about having the most intricate beautiful piece of art. It’s about the memories you’ll have, the sensory play for your child, a thoughtful gift for a family member or a little piece of your peanut you will treasure (hoard if you’re like me!) forever!
I included the inside of one of the cards for your viewing pleasure. 🙂
