Heart and "Sole"

I mentioned in my last post that I made footprint crafts with the kids to give to my mom as a gift for her 60th birthday. Here are the step by step instructions for each one. Sorry there are not more pictures, but I was not planning on blogging about them while we were making them. It wasn't until I saw my mom's reaction that I realized what a great any-occasion gift these make for a kid to give to their grandparents...or anyone.


The first one was from DS (who's 6) to his Nana:

What you'll need:

• Colored Card Stock Paper ( I didn't have any, so I actually cut an old folder in half!)
• White Printer Paper 
• Photo Frame (this one is from the 99 cent store)
• Finger Paint (Again, I had none so I made my own with flour, water, and food coloring...my son got a kick out of making his own paint)
• Scissors
• Glue
• Black marker

What to do:

1. The first thing you want to do is the footprints as it may take a couple of tries to get them just how you want them. Make sure your little one's feet are clean and free of any lint or dirt. Next have them sit down on the floor with both legs bent and feet on the floor. Take one leg, and dip it in the finger paint and then place the foot on the paper at a slight angle (I found that it is easier to angle the paper than the foot). Wipe that foot off with a wet paper towel and return it to the starting position (knee bent, foot on floor). Then, do the same thing with the other foot, this time placing the heel on top of the heel of the other foot, angling the paper the other direction to form a heart shape. Clean the foot, and set the paper aside to dry.
2. Once the paint is completely dry, use the marker to draw a heart around the feet. The heart can be as thick or thin as you like, I made mine thick because I think it created a nice contrast as well as allowing more room for error when you cut.
3. Use the scissors to cut out the heart you drew and glue heart to center of colored card stock.
4. Here is where you can be creative. Come up with a caption to write around your heart. On ours I wrote: "I love my Nana, from the bottom of my heart to the tips of my toes." And then have your little one sign their name at the bottom. Frame it, wrap it, and you have the perfect gift!

This is the one that DD (7 months at the time) gave to her Nana:

What You'll Need:

• Plaster
• Clay
• Disposable Plastic Tray (about 3 inches deep)

What To Do:

1. Take the clay and press it into the plastic tray until about 1 1/2inches thick. Take baby's foot and make a clean, deep imprint right in the center of the clay. This will be your mold.
2.  Follow the instructions on the package for mixing your plaster. Once plaster is mixed, pour it in to the mold, filling the plastic tray to just below the rim and let dry completely (over night is usually best, just to be sure).
3.  Once dry, carefully remove the plaster from the plastic tray.You may need to cut the plastic a little (this is why you want the tray to be disposable). Decorate the footprint however you like. I went with just a simple border around the edge because I really wanted to highlight the footprint itself. Be sure to write baby's age somewhere on there too! That way when the recipient looks back at it, they can remember how old their little one was when they had those tiny toes.