Monday, June 13, 2011

Mommy and Me Activity - Handprint Ballet Tutu

Handprint Tutu with Bow on Waist (above)
Handprint Tutu without Bow on Waist (below)
I suppose the "endless" clouds of tulle draped about my daughter's waist just looked so akin to bunches of handprints that my brain made the necessary connection between the two and the idea for this fun craft began to take shape.  With all the hundreds of thousands of other mommies of petite prima ballerinas out there, I cannot imagine someone else has not thought of this same thing - but here is our version!  So "cheers" to all the mothers out there who have spent hours making tutus for their daughters, driving to dance class, and clapping at their little one's adorable first attempts which we all hope will one day be practiced, graceful movements!  :)

Materials:  canvas (find at arts and crafts store or see link below), paint, pink paper, regular white paper, glue, ribbon or rhinestones or other embellishments.

How To:
1.  Paint a hanger onto your canvas (you may want to draw this with a pencil first)
2.  Fold a white piece of paper in half (hot dog style) and draw half of leotard shape (length-wise).  Cut this out, open it up and you should have a symmetrical leotard shape.
3.  Trace that shape onto your pink paper and cut it out.  Glue to the hanger you painted and let it dry.
4.  Paint your daughter's hands and place them on the canvas around the leotard to create a full tutu effect.  On ours, we used four handprints in a light pink first, then after those had dried, we made two more handprints on top of the light pink handprints in a darker pink shade.  Allow these to dry. (BTW:  if you are using a pre-stretched canvas, you may want to place a book under the area of canvas where your child will be placing her handprints to avoid her denting or pushing through the canvas.)
5.  Glue a section of pink ribbon and a bow around the waist of your "tutu".  Make and glue a smaller bow to the top of your leotard or the hanger.  You might also want to add other embellishments of your own to the leotard and tutu (rhinestones, real tulle, etc.).
6.  Admire and display your cutie's handprints!  :)




Linking up to:


12 comments:

  1. Hi Michelle! I've told you this before, but I just love this and think it's the most creative thing ever. I just have to do one with my daughter and if it turns out anywhere near as cute as yours, I'll post it on my blog linking to you if that's ok? LOVE THIS! Love all the lunches you've been making too. You're one creative mama!

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  2. Oh my goodness! It's Jill Dubien - THE Jill Dubien!!! Yes, of course you may make one and post it on your blog. I am so flattered! :) Did you see that I now have a section called: Snacks "a la Dubien" style in honor of you and the creative mommies at the muffin tin mom website? I try to remember to post a link at the bottom of those posts to your blog and the muffin tin mommy blog but I think I have forgotten the last couple of times so maybe I will go do that now for the one I just posted this morning (while trying to keep someone's little fingers from hitting the keyboard). :)

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  3. This is utterly adorable! I am so glad Jill linked to this project. My little ballerina will love this project--she's seven but still loves handprint projects...and having this include ballet will be the icing on the cake for her.

    ~ Sarah

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  4. Awwww this is SO CUTE! My little girl just started dance and I was looking for a fun and cute dance project for her, and this is perfect! Wonderful job!

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  5. Just saw you on Bear Rabbit Bear! Love this! I have three boys and a baby girl, and can't wait to make this when she's older. Beautiful! Love it!

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  6. Just wanted to let you know I featured your lovely project on my Facebook page this morning!

    https://www.facebook.com/pages/Bear-Rabbit-Bear-Craft-DIY-and-Product-Review-blog/147483145329051

    Thanks for linking up last week- hope to see you tomorrow!

    Melanie
    bearrabbitbear.blogspot.com

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  7. Great tutorial, i like it very much, i will made it... thanks for sharing

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  8. Hello Michelle

    ich bin über das Bild von Jill auf Ihren Blog aufmerksam geworden und, dass es Ihre Idee war mit dem tollen Bild!
    Ich möchte mit meiner Tochter und ihren Freundinnen solche Bilder auf ihrer Geburtstagsparty malen. Wäre das für Sie in Ordnung, wenn ich Bilder davon in meinem Blog veröffentliche mit einem Link zu ihrem Post?
    Viele Grüße aus der Schweiz
    Martina

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  9. Can you tell me what type of paint you used? Do you recall the measurements you used for the leotard? This is precious. I am going to make this the craft at my daughters birthday party. I have only one boy attending...do you have any good ideas for his handprint?
    Thank you!
    Beth

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    1. Hi Beth,
      Thanks so much for the compliment! I used acrylic paint. Unfortunately, I don't remember the measurements and the craft is still packed away in a box somewhere. However, I think the canvas was 11x14. I have seen quite a few handprint ideas on Pinterest including some cute ones for boys so I would check there for fun ideas! :) Good luck - hope the birthday goes well! :)

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  10. So glad to have the canvas size. I am also doing this at my daughter's ballerina birthday party. So far I've planned her whole party using Pinterest. This will be a wonderful craft for the little ballerinas to take home and have forever. Thanks so much.

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  11. I'm the Editorial Assistant for Fun Family Crafts and I wanted to let you know that we have featured your handprint ballerina project! You can see it here:

    http://funfamilycrafts.com/handprint-ballerina/

    If you have other kid friendly crafts, we'd love it if you would submit them. If you would like to display a featured button on your site, you can grab one from the right side bar of your post above. Thanks for a wonderful project idea!

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