Chinese New Year of the Dragon 2012 Hand Print!

 

Welcome to the Year of the Dragon!

I just had to celebrate this fun and robust year with a Hand Print Dragon.  He may look difficult to make, but if I can do it - so can you!  This is actually the Year of the Black Dragon containing the element of Water....but a black hand print is very hard to decorate....so we went with the traditional red.  I made a blue one for Posh to celebrate the element of water.

We did Princesses hand in red to symbolize the new year.  In the Chinese tradition the color red symbolizes good fortune.  I accented in yellow to boost success in school.

To celebrate this years Black Dragon containing the Water Element, I made Pixie's hand print blue with blue accents.  She has the water essence like her mommy so I tend to most of her prints with a little blue in there somewhere.

This is one hand print that you really want your child to have a fully spread out palm.  Keeping in mind when you place the hand that the thumb and pinkie fingers are going to have most of the details, make sure those are spread out the furthest.  I do this by painting my fingers the same color as their hand and direct their fingers by holding them.  Do it quick, the longer your hover working on placement the more time they have to get rigid, move fingers, try to pull away, or decide this isn't fun.  This HAS to be FUN!

I placed these on tiles.  Tiles are extremely forgiving.  Your print can be a mess and all you need is a damp cloth to clean up the "mistakes".  Same for any media with a slick surface.  I wanted to hang these and the tile keeps up better then paper unless your framing them.

Supplies for the Dragon Hand Print:
Paper or Tile or Plate - whatever your going to put it on!
Acrylic Paint
Wet Rag
*Ribbon
*E6000 Glue - or your favorite super stick glue that will adhere to tile
*High Clear Gloss sealant

*Use for the tiles or plates

Once you have all your supplies set out and ready, a ton of patience, and a good sense of humor (aprons are always a good idea!) then it's time to call your kiddo over!

Collect your print and allow to FULLY dry.

Hints and Tips:
I use acrylic verses the washable tempura paints because acyrlic is water based, meaning it wipes off tables easily.  *Always spot check 1st, Murphys Law says you'll have the table it wont so please plan ahead!  IF the paint gets on clothing make sure to let it soak in plain water, then wash.  Do Not us stain treatment.  Apparently it actually sets the stain.  This is why aprons, smocks, and painting clothes are a good idea for EVERYONE involved in the craft.

Once your print is dry it's your turn to get crafty.  I used a black sharpie to do the outlines.  I went back over it with black paint.  If you just use the sharpie, it will bleed a bit when you spray the gloss on, not cool.  Fill in with your accent colors.  The best advice I can give to get the face just right is to print out the picts, practice a few times the exact line you want to achieve, then apply it.

Let it all dry then spray with the gloss sealent.  This is pretty smelly so please do this either outside on a sheet (I have a designated cookie sheet I bought from the Dollar Tree....my family is WELL aware to never use it!) or in a well ventilated room. 

Once totally dry, glue the ribbon on the back and your DONE!

As far as costs go for this craft, here's my breakdown:

Tiles - .89 each at Home Depot
Paint - $1 I wait for the 3/$1 deal at Michaels.
Gloss Sealant - $12 at Michaels....I used a 40% off coupon
Ribbon - $1 at...where else?  Michaels dollar bins
E6000 - $4 at Michaels and I use this for EVERYTHING...it's my answer to Super Glue.

Remember to have fun with this and to find out more on the Chinese New Year check out this LINK!