Handprint Flowering Cactus for Young Artists

Thank you to Crayola for sponsoring this post. 

For young children who are just starting to use art to explore, art is more about the process than the end result, but sometimes you want something fun to hang up too. This handprint art project for kids lets you create a fun flowering cactus that is perfect for putting on display.

My kids love seeing their artwork on display. I’ve displayed everything from those first messy finger paintings to the elaborate art projects my kids bring home from school as they get older.

I love it all.

Sometimes, my early artists want to create something very specific, that may be beyond their current skill levels. When that happens, we love turning their handprints into creative art pieces.

Because they need a bit of extra help with these art projects, it’s a fun activity to do together and a great way to spend some quality time with your kids.

Handprint art is always a favorite and this handprint flowering cactus is a fun way to change things up, especially if you live in a desert climate like we do.

My twins were so excited to get started on this. They love to paint any chance they get. It has been fun seeing how creative they are already.

For this project, we used My First Crayola products.

I love that this line makes it so easy to find art materials that perfectly fit your child’s developmental stage. For example, Stage 1 includes ergonomically designed palm crayons (egg shaped) that are perfect for beginning artists. Stage 2 moves into the use of a triangular crayon (which is what works perfectly for my twins right now). Each stage grows with your child and provides fantastic ways for your child to explore her creative side.

Materials Needed

• White paper
• Crayola crayons
• My First Art Smock
• My First Crayola Fingerpaint Kit

How to make a Handprint Flowering Cactus

This project requires a bit of adult assistance. I like making this project first then allowing kids to have an open-ended painting session after we are done so they are totally free to create.

Paint the palm of your child’s hand with green my first Crayola fingerpaint. You can have your child stamp her hand down on the paint (spread on a flat surface), but for this project, I find that you get better coverage for all those little nooks and crannies on chubby hands with a paintbrush.

Help your child stamp her hand down on a piece of white paper. Slowly lift her hand up to avoid smudging the handprint.

Dip your child’s index finger in the green paint again and make fingerprints up and down the “fingers” on her handprint to create the look of a cactus.

Wipe your child’s hand clean, and help her use her index finger to dip into another paint color. Using fingerprints, create tiny flowers on your cactus.

Keep creating flowers until you have a look that you like.

Use a brown Crayola crayon to draw a pot beneath your cactus. Older kids can do this on their own. Younger kids may require a parent to help.

Let the paint completely dry.

Let your kids experiment with fingerpaint a bit while you wait. The special paper that comes in the My First Crayola Fingerpaint Kit is perfect for this. It’s designed to hold up to little fingers mixing paint on it without tearing.

Once the paint is completely dry on your cactus, pull out a black crayon and draw the cactus spines on.

This is such a cute project to put on display and it is so fun to have those cute little handprints to look back on as your child grows.