Valentine Hand Print Canvas

There is always something about my children's hand prints that captures my heart.  If they can't stay little forever at least I can preserve their cute little hands.  So...I came up with this canvas to remind my favorite little Valentines that they will always have my heart!

Sometimes it is the simplest of projects that ends up being our favorite, eh?  If you would like to make your own, here's what you'll need:

• a canvas {mine is 12x16 }
• paint and foam brush
• painter's tape
• scrapbook paper {mine is from Echo Park}
• vinyl letters.  I used black flocked vinyl and cut them out on the Silhouette {and the font is My Own Topher if anyone was wondering!}.  If you don't have access to a Cricut or Silhouette you can always use stencils and paint.
• ribbon
• any other embellishments you would like. I added the a felt heart key and the little pink letter stickers are from Echo Park as well.

HOW TO:

• Paint your canvas starting with the lighter color.  Once it is dry, mark off a border on the front of the canvas with painter's tape.  Paint the sides of the canvas and the border with a darker paint. 

• Stamp your kids' hand prints in the top right corner.  I painted the paint right onto their hands so I could be sure there was even coverage {well as much as possible anyways!}  I did Connor's left hand and Matthew's right hand.  Wash the kids' hands!!!
• Using the Silhouette, cut out the letters and a paper heart {I downloaded mine from the Silhouette site}.
• Using double sided tape, add a strip of ribbon along the bottom of the canvas.  Position the vinyl letters and heart over your canvas and adhere.  I thought mine looked a little plain so I added the felt key and the pink letters for hands and heart.  

And now I LOVE it!!! {I just need a few other little goodies to add to the shelf!}

I linked up with Craft Quickies, Sassy Sites, Shanty 2 Chic, Passionately Artisitc, The Girl Creative, Whipperberry, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Night Owl Crafting, My Delicious Ambiguity, Polly Want a Crafter, Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, Sew Chatty, Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Skip to my Lou, Support Blog for Moms of Boys, Craft-O-Maniac, Me Making Do, Paper Issues, CRAFT, I Heart Naptime, Under the Table and Dreaming, Scrappy Gifts, Be Different...Act Normal, A Little Lovely, Free For All, Funky Junk Interiors, Tatertots and Jello, The Shabby Nest, Chic on a Shoestring, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Tidy Mom, Christina's Adventures, The Speckled Dog, Childmade, Katie's Nesting Spot, House of Hepworths, Paisley Passions.