Turkey Handprint Potholder

We’re feeling in the Thanksgiving spirit now that we’ve made some Thanksgiving handprint turkeys! It’s one of my favorite traditions with young children. Each year parents can pull out this turkey handprint potholder and remember that 2020 wasn’t all bad.

Turkey Handprint Potholder

Since we make turkey handprints every Thanksgiving, I like to switch it up and make something unique each time. Here are some we’ve made in the past:

Tips For Making Turkey Handprints

This can be tricky with younger ones because they want to close their hand. I demonstrate how to hold their hand open with fingers spread. You might need to remind.
Keep paper towels nearby in case you need to start over. Even with older children, I help them because you really don’t want to have to remake your canvas…
As I paint their hands, I say, “here is the turkey’s body, this is the turkey’s head…let’s paint this feather blue, this feather yellow…”
Guide the child’s hand to make the print and lift it off quickly so they don’t smear it.
Keep paper towel or hand wipes near by to wipe the excess paint off the hand or for a quick clean up if paint gets spilled.

Types of Paint to Use

I used acrylic paints because that’s what I had on hand. Fabric paints would also be a good choice and would create more vibrant colors.

The potholders we used are from the Dollar Tree. They are silicone (or similar) on the back, very nice for $1.00!

After the hand prints dried, I added the legs, beak, waddle, and eye with a Sharpie marker. It was faster than using paint, but not as colorful as paint would have been.

I used my Cricut Maker to cut iron on wording and my Easy Press Mini for the first time. Love it! It was perfect for these little projects. Then I tied on an orange burlap ribbon just for fun. The parents loved them! Happy Thanksgiving!

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