Here is a heritage project you can do at any family gathering, be it a special holiday or event or just because: create a representation of your family tree using hand prints. Here’s how we did it.

Handprint family tree

I chose my son’s fifth birthday as the event to commemorate (mostly because that was the next gathering after I came up with the idea). First I bought stretched and primed canvases of appropriate size (I used two 16″ x 12″ and one 16″ x 24″ – the larger for my husband, son and I and each small one for a set of parents). At the time I had to go to an art supply store, but now these are inexpensive and easy to find at Michael’s craft stores.

Then I chose the colours of acrylic paint I wanted to use for the hand prints. I confess I knew exactly where I was going to hang these and chose hues that would not clash with my wall colour. In this case, the personalized service I got at the specialty store came in handy, as the clerk helped me choose colours and showed me how to mix them to achieve my vision. Perhaps you are more experienced than I was and will have no problem with the vast array of paints available at the craft store. I decided to do my parents’ hands in blue with my print a slightly lighter blue (simply by mixing in some white). My in-laws’ prints were brown and my husband’s a lighter shade of brown. This represented how each family had distinctive eye-colours. I wanted to show that our son was a mixture of family traits from both sides, so mixed the paint used for my hand and my husband’s hand and used that for my son’s hands.

Then I waylaid my parents and in-laws and all the adults made one hand print each on the canvasses. Of course, you can arrange these in whatever pattern works for you. I had all the women use their left hand and all the men use their right. My only child used both his hands and these prints were centred in the layout. If your victims (I mean family) are nervous about walking around with unnaturally tinted appendages, you can reassure them that the paint washes off with soap and water. Be warned, though, that it will stain fabrics and have everyone in smocks / aprons and have your work surface covered in newsprint in case of spills.

Once dry, I had the canvases framed. I was told the acrylic paint would stand up to UV exposure, so did not go to the extra expense of having them covered in glass. On the back I stapled labels that indicate the identity of each print and the date. Now these hand prints hang in the entrance to our home and are a daily reminder of loved ones.

Bring your family tree to life with a fun project that involves the whole family and creates a priceless work of art for you to proudly display in your home.

This article was originally printed in the Bergen News and the Chinook and is being reprinted with permission.