Mother’s Day is just around the corner! Many of you are mothers and as a mom myself, I know how hard you all work! I really hope you feel how valuable you are to your family. So let me be the first to wish you a Happy Mother’s Day and thank you for all your hard work!!
Today I’m sharing a simple, inexpensive Mother’s Day project. Â I call it a Little Hands Project.
I’ve always loved little handprint projects, and this one is easy and adorable! You actually make it with play dough. So the first step is to make some homemade play dough. You can follow this recipe to make the play dough and it takes about 5 minutes. After the dough is made, roll it out into a circle. Make sure it’s large enough for your child’s hand.
Then help your child press their hand in the dough. You may to press down on their hand to make sure it makes a print. Then you can decorate it or leave it plain. We added some hearts.
Next bake the dough in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Â You’ll want to line the baking sheet with parchment paper so it doesn’t stick. Bake for 30 minutes and then flip them over.
Bake for another 20-30 minutes, or until it looks baked. If it is still not hard, you can let it air dry. Â After it cools down, paint the hand print with a color of choice. We chose a redish-pink color to match the heart jewels. I also added a little glitter to liven the color up.
If you’re having trouble painting the small areas, use a q-tip…it works wonders! It also is great to use a wet q-tip to wipe away paint if you messed up…not that I ever did that! 🙂
Another baked playdough craft we made are these heart magnets. These would also make a good gift!
You can also print off this coupon book to give to a hard-working mother!
Do they need to be baked or can they be air dried? I have no oven at my school. Thank you
We just let them air dry.
Can I use store bought playdough
And can I just let them air dry and skip baking?
I have 48 students and just trying to save time.
I would think so! I haven’t tried it with store bought playdough, but I would guess that it would work the same way. That’s a lot of students!! 🙂
We made these last night according to the directions and they are definitely not hard. Looks like we will be leaving them to air dry for a few days before painting. No hig deal, but give yourself a few days just in case you have to do the same!
I’m sorry they didn’t harden the right way! I’m glad it wasn’t a problem to let them air dry. Thanks for sharing!
Hi there
These looks great. When they have finished baking, are they completely hard? Or is the dough still a bit soft and pliable?
Thanks
Gem
Mine were not completely hard. I let them air-dry for a few days before they got hard. Hope that helps!
We made these to give to grandma for Mother’s Day. All going well initially, flipped over as directed, but when I took out of oven, the base had all puffed up and when I turned over, the hand print had almost vanished and it’s only hard round the edges. I cooked at 200 Fahrenheit (although here in Aust I’m used to Celsius, but I converted it for my oven. Any ideas what’s gone wrong?
Will have to try again and want to get if right next time.
Cheers
Oh no! I am so sorry to hear this!! I am wondering if it is the playdough you are using? Or perhaps you could cook it for 20 minutes, then let it air dry instead of baking on the other side. I hope it turns out for you!! Once again, I am sorry it did not turn out for you.
I love this idea! I was wondering if I can use this play dough recipie for the heart magnets and if I could paint the hearts like you painted the hands?
I am going to have my almost 3 year old make the heart magnets for his Nana.
Thanks!! Yes that would work great!
I absolutely love these! I’m going to make them for my daughter’s grandmothers 🙂 just a few questions, the heart jewels.. what are they made of? Are they ok in the oven? And what type of paint did you use?
Thanks so much! 🙂
Great!! The heart jewels were just flat gems or beads. I am not exactly sure what they are made of, since I no longer have them, but they were hard like a bead. So sorry! Yes, they are perfectly find in the oven. I used acrylic paint. I hope they turn out great for you!!
Love these! Bake at what temperature?
Thank you! I baked them at 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Hope that helps!
200°. At least, that’s what it says on the page about making magnets with play dough.