Have you noticed any cardinals this winter? This cardinal handprint craft makes a charming keepsake to create for someone special during the colder months. It’s also simple to make with real branches if painting isn’t your strength.
RELATED: Paper and Felt Handprint Cardinal
Cardinal Handprint Craft
Children of every age can enjoy this activity – you could even create an entire bird family on one canvas!
If toddlers or babies don’t make a complete print, you can simply use a brush afterward to add any needed finishing touches.
If you prefer working with paper or felt, check out our paper and felt handprint cardinal tutorial.
For this craft, we chose real branches as perches for the handprint cardinals. Gather a few during your next nature outing or neighborhood stroll, searching for sticks that are fairly flat so they can be attached to your canvas later.
Another option is to paint the branches yourself or cut them from construction paper and glue them into place.
For these crafts, we used thin board canvases purchased at the dollar store, though sturdy cardstock or cardboard would work too.
Supplies Needed
- Canvas boards – or cardboard or cardstock
- Paint – red, orange, black, and blue. Non-toxic acrylic or tempera paint is suitable.
- Paintbrushes – medium and small
- Sticks – gather a few sticks or branches outdoors!
- Cotton balls – to create the snow
- White glue – for securing the snow to the branches
- Hot glue gun – use only with adult supervision
- Scissors – to cut the sticks
How to Make Handprint Cardinals
1. Get the branches and background ready.
If you’re working on canvas or cardboard, cover it with light- to medium-blue paint. Allow it to dry fully.
Examine the sticks you collected and experiment with positioning them on the canvas. Consider the canvas dimensions and the size of your child’s hands to decide how much room is available and how many branches and birds can be included.
Without sticks, you can paint the branches directly onto the surface or cut branch shapes from brown construction paper and glue them down.
Once you’re satisfied with the branch arrangement, have an adult hot-glue them in position, then trim any pieces extending beyond the canvas edge with scissors.
2. Create the handprints.
Brush red paint (we chose non-toxic washable tempera) over your child’s hand. To form the small feathered crest on the cardinal’s head, leave a little section of the thumb without paint.
Help your child press their hand directly over one of the branches to create the print.
Lift your child’s hand away to reveal the handprint! If needed, use a brush to cover bare areas or refine the edges.
Make as many prints as you wish, remembering to consider which way you want the birds to look.
In the example below, both handprints were created using the two hands.
3. Add the painted details.
Alternatively, attach a beak cut from orange cardstock or felt.
With a second small brush, paint a tiny black dot to create the eye.
4. Place the snow on the branches.
Gently pull apart a cotton ball until it becomes long, loose wisps of cotton.
Spread a narrow strip of white glue across the upper side of every branch.
Lay a long, slender piece of cotton over the glue, then press it down so it sticks. Allow it to dry.
Without cotton balls, you can paint snow above the branches as well as directly on them.
5. Attach the snowflakes.
Add foam snowflake stickers to decorate the blue background.
Be sure to put your child’s name and the date on the back!
These cardinal handprint crafts are wonderful decorations to display throughout winter!
They also make lovely gifts, and you can place them in frames.