Making crafts with the kids is one of my favorite things to do, especially when the craft has a functional use around the house (or outdoors). We often make items to decorate the yard and spruce up the gardens, but had not tried our hand at personalized garden stepping stones yet, but now we are hooked! I wanted to use common children’s art (handprints) with a more permanent medium than paper – concrete is pretty permanent. We made a fun ocean scene using finger and hand prints.
How to Make Painted Hand Print Stepping Stones
Supplies needed:
- Concrete stepping stone (unsealed)
- Kilz primer spray paint
- Patio paint
- 3 blue flat, glass beads
- Clear sealer
- Black paint pen
- Paintbrush
Directions:
Dry brush your stepping stone well with a clean, dry paintbrush to remove any dust, and loose pieces.
Lay stone on newspaper to protect the area and keep block clean.
Spray 1-2 coats of primer on blocks and allow to dry.
Spray base color on your block, allowing 5 minutes between each coat for dry time.
To create our ocean scene I painted little Ms. fingers green with patio paint, and let her press them into the bottom of the stone, creating ocean grasses, then painted them orange for our fish.
We use a Q-tip to paint the coral.
Allow to dry for 2 hours.
Use your paint pen to add details to your fish.
Spray with 2-3 coats clear sealant and dry completely.
Glue on blue, flat beads to make bubbles.
Using primer and sealant will help your image stay intact longer, your stepping stone should last several seasons in the weather and elements, under cover it will last even longer.
Barb says
Wonderful project! What kind of sealer did you use? Thank you.