I’ve always admired handprint ornaments on trees, and decided that this was the year to give it a go! I ordered the Child to Cherish Marshmallow Clay Handprint Ornament kit, which made the project super easy! You can also use model magic for this project.
How to Make a Gorgeous Baby Handprint Keepsake
We opened the box and got to work. I had a lot of help, as you can tell!
You need to knead the clay a little. This gets the air bubbles out, and eliminates any stickiness that it might have when it first comes out of the package. The clay is very lightweight.
We used the smaller of the two hoops that are provided in the package, since Anna’s three-month-old hand is still quite small. The package also has a rolling pin, a straw to punch a hanging hole in the ornament, and red ribbon to hang your finished ornament on your Christmas tree.
You have to press a baby’s hand quite firmly to get an imprint in the clay; thankfully Anna didn’t seem to mind.
Here’s a little video of the process – and the finished product. It is so neat to have a forever imprint of Anna’s tiny hand!
MaryAnne lives in Silicon Valley with her Stanford professor husband Mike and their four children. She writes about parenting through education, creativity, and play. Mama Smiles - Joyful Parenting is a space to share crafts, hands on learning activities, and family outings that enrich lives and bring families together.
When my little guy was little we used paint to put his handprint on an ornament. It was…challenging. This looks so much easier! Looks like it will be a beautiful keepsake!
So sweet! I miss those baby days! Love all the photos, too!
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What a wonderful process and perfect result! Look at that gorgeous detail!! What a wonderful keepsake.
Look at that chubby hand in clay! I love the pics!
What a beautiful ornament and so impressed with all your “helpers.” We are also planning to attempt handprint ornaments this year. I hope ours turn out as well!
What an adorable ornament … and your photos and video are priceless, MaryAnne! Anna is an amazing baby! I pinned your post to my Kids’ Christmas Activities Board at http://pinterest.com/debchitwood/kids-christmas-activities/
Thanks for pinning, Deb!
Anna is an amazing baby! We really enjoy having her in our family!!!
I never did that and I wish I did. Maybe I can make big ornaments this year to capture their hands!
I love handprint ornaments. I wonder if my kids would let me do this form of a handprint……
I love this, and esp. how you took us through all the step with photos. Pinned it!
Thanks!
I love the pictures – Anna is so adorable! It looks like the ornament was a great success!
Your off to a perfect start to the Christmas season!
What an excellent keepsake! We made both a handprint and a footprint ornament for our guy’s first Christmas. We also made handprints for his grandmas. Your helpers must have been great, because I remember it being VERY hard to press his hand down enough for the imprint. We ended up tracing the prints with a fine marker to help the print stand out.
Such a precious keepsake. I’ve never heard of marshmallow clay. It sounds light and fluffy!
It is – just like marshmallows :)
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