Family Heirloom Fingerprint Art Projects

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Do you want to make fingerprint art? This is a great way to capture a piece of a moment with family and friends forever. 

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Do you want to make fingerprint art?  This is a great way to capture a piece of a moment with family and friends forever. 

I have made a couple of different art pieces that will preserve my family’s fingerprints and hand prints and wanted to share them with you.  This is a fun craft project that gets everyone involved and gives kids an excuse to make a mess and end up with a treasure. It’s a great gift idea for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Christmas, Birthdays, etc.

What do you use for fingerprint art?

For the projects below you’ll need the following items:

  • washable paint or stamp pads
  • colored poster board
  • white paper
  • picture frame
  • scissors, glue
  • Optional “family” mirror sticker (mine came from the Dollar Tree)

Other optional ideas depending on what you’re making:

  • fingerprint stamp pad
  • construction paper
  • fingerprint art book
  • black marker or dot markers
  • watercolors

What paint to use for fingerprint art?

Choose some Acrylic Paint in colors of your choice (I’m using Apple Barrel Paint)

You could also use washable paint, just make sure it sticks to the surface you’re working on.

Other options for fingerprint art include using different color inks from an ink pad or using markers.

How to do fingerprint Art

First I drew a heart shape on a sheet of paper – this is the shape I wanted in my picture frame.

Have your family members take turns dipping their fingers in paint and pressing it into the heart shape. We did some practice runs so they could see how much paint to use. Let dry completely.

You can also use your thumbprints if that works easier for family members.

Cut your poster board to the size of the frame you bought. Cut your heart out and Mod Podge it into your poster board. You can leave it simple with the heart only or put your optional mirror sticker on underneath.

Put your art into your frame.   We love our custom fingerprint art, and now I have fingerprints and hand prints forever.

How to do handprints with paint?

Here is another option for heirloom art. For this one, we decided to try fun handprint art.  We each picked our favorite colors, dipped our hands in the paint, and placed them on the paper. Let the paint of each person’s hand dry completely before adding the next person. For those of you who are interested, here is a Fall Family Fingerprint Tree we made.

More Fun Fingerprint Art Ideas

I hope this gives you inspiration to try some fun fingerprint crafts of your own.  Here are a few more fun ideas for fingerprint creations:

Creating fingerprint art can be a fun and creative way to make unique and personalized pieces. Here’s a list of fingerprint art ideas to get you started:

  1. Fingerprint Animals:
    • Create animals using fingerprint shapes. For example, use your fingerprints to make a cute panda, a colorful butterfly, a friendly turtle, fingerprint sheep, snails, or frogs,
  2. Fingerprint Trees:
    • Design fingerprint trees where each fingerprint represents a leaf. You can create a whole forest or focus on a single tree with changing seasons.
  3. Fingerprint People:
    • Craft fingerprint characters or caricatures. Try making a family portrait, fingerprint superheroes, or even historical figures using your fingerprints.
  4. Fingerprint Flower Art:
    • Make vibrant fingerprint flowers by using your fingerprints as petals. Experiment with different flower varieties and color combinations. An example is fingerprint bluebonnets.
  5. Fingerprint Balloons:
    • Create a bunch of fingerprint balloons floating in the sky. You can use a variety of colors to make it visually appealing.
  6. Fingerprint Insects:
    • Craft fingerprint insects like ladybugs, butterflies, fireflies, or bees with a hive, and fingerprint bugs. Add details with a pen or marker.
  7. Fingerprint Landscapes:
    • Design landscapes or scenes using fingerprints for various elements, such as mountains, clouds, and water bodies.
  8. Fingerprint Food:
    • Depict your favorite foods using fingerprints. Make fingerprint fruits, pizzas, or ice cream cones.
  9. Fingerprint Constellations:
    • Recreate constellations in the night sky using your fingerprints as stars. Connect the dots to form the constellation shapes.
  10. Fingerprint Abstract Art:
    • Let your creativity run wild by creating abstract fingerprint art. Use different colors and patterns to express your emotions.
  11. Fingerprint Patterns:
    • Experiment with various fingerprint patterns and textures. Try creating fingerprint mosaics, patterns, and mandalas.
  12. Fingerprint Messages:
    • Write messages or quotes using your fingerprints as the letters. This can make for a unique and personalized gift.
  13. Fingerprint Holidays:
    • Celebrate different holidays and seasons by creating fingerprint-themed art. For example, make fingerprint pumpkins for Halloween or fingerprint snowflakes for winter.
    • Make a Christmas tree to create fingerprint holiday cards
  14. Fingerprint Storytelling:
    • Use fingerprints to create a story or a comic strip. Each fingerprint can represent a character or an element in the story.
  15. Fingerprint Abstract Animals:
    • Combine abstract art with animal motifs. Create fingerprint patterns that resemble animals like zebras, giraffes, or cheetahs.
  16. Fingerprint Mandalas:
    • Design intricate mandalas using your fingerprints as the central design element. Add details with a pen or marker.
  17. Fingerprint Music:
    • Depict musical instruments or musical notes using fingerprints. Create a composition of your favorite song in a creative way.
  18. Fingerprint Vehicles:
    • Craft fingerprints into different vehicles such as cars, boats, or airplanes. Experiment with various modes of transportation.
  19. Fingerprint Portraits:
    • Challenge yourself to create detailed fingerprint portraits of yourself, family members, or famous personalities, and fingerprint friends.
  20. Fingerprint Galaxy:
    • Create a fingerprint galaxy or space-themed artwork. Use your fingerprints to represent stars, planets, and cosmic elements.
  21. Make a fingerprint fish aquarium
  22. Make a fingerprint alphabet
  23. Fingerprint comics
  24. Fingerprint art glass magnets
    • Make a fingerprint on the flat side of a dollar store rock, let that dry, paint another layer for a solid background, and once that is dry glue on a magnet.

Remember, fingerprint art is all about creativity, so feel free to mix and match these ideas, and don’t hesitate to come up with your own unique concepts.

Fingerprint Art Video

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Fingerprint and Thumbprint Art Ideas Further Reading:

Do you want to make fingerprint art? This is a great way to capture a piece of a moment with family and friends forever. 

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16 Comments

  1. Oh Chas, these are adorable! I love the one with the hands because it’s so different! I’ve done hand prints with my grandkiddo’s before, but never like this. Placing them on top of each other is so special! Now all I have to figure out is how to “sneak” a hand print of their mom & dad so I can put the whole family together. 🙂

    1. Thank you so much Linda! I love that you want to make one for your family too. I’m sure they’ll treasure it as much as I do. Maybe you can do it at a family gathering like Christmas Day – then it can be somewhat of a surprise and they’ll get to build it on a special day together.

  2. Mary Ann Rajczewski says:

    What a brilliant idea! After Thanksgiving dinner, we usually play board games with the kids. This year, while we have everyone together, would be a great time to do this. Thanks for the idea!

    1. Thank you so much Mary Ann and I love that you want to do this too! Oh please send me pictures – what memories you’ll be building while you’re all together 🙂 Love the board games tradition!

  3. Karolyn Love says:

    Chas, I recently went to a wedding that had a “Guest Tree” picture frame for all of us to “leaf” a fingerprint with our name beside it instead of a guest book! I think these ideas are just so clever…thank you for sharing!

    1. Thanks Karolyn, I have seen that idea at weddings too. Just simply love it as it’s something to have up and cherish rather than folded up and put away.

  4. Naomie Moore says:

    How fun! Great activity for kids over holiday breaks. My favorite is the family hand print! Would be fun to do each year as the kids grow. Thanks for sharing! ?

    1. Thank you so much Naomie, and I love that families could make this while they’re together and the each year concept – great idea! Hugs to you my friend!

  5. Stephanie says:

    Oh Chas, what a fun and sweet idea! You are always so full of inspiration and creative ideas, my friend.

    Hugs! Stephanie-The Enchanting Rose

    1. Thanks so much Stephanie, I’m flattered as you inspire me with all of your beautiful creations and delicious recipes. Hugs back to you my friend

  6. Suzie Olsen says:

    You have such great idea; this one will be such a great present for us to give to grandparents!

    1. You are so sweet, thank you Suzie 🙂 I’m thrilled you want to make some.

  7. Mother of 3 says:

    These are such great ideas! Pinned.

  8. Now this is one darling idea. What a keepsake for generations to come! Thank you for sharing.

    1. Thank you so much Amy, it’s hanging in my room and I just love it so much.

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