Generally speaking, I am not a morning person. I do not enjoy being woken up; not by an alarm clock, nor by my husband. My favorite way to wake up is slowly, and naturally. Nowadays, my children have become my alarm clock. My kids wake up early and are hungry and need to eat and need to get ready for school and want to play. Without adult supervision, bedlam ensues. A toddler decides he needs to bathe… in toilet water. My oldest daughter’s mothering instincts kick in and starts making oatmeal in the microwave… for 7 minutes, almost catching the house on fire. My middle child, however, is just happy to cuddle in bed with me. As much as I wish that I could get a few extra winks while they slept in, there are rare occasions where the youngest and oldest will follow my middle child into bed with me and cuddle. I LOVE when that happens, and I usually wake up to little hands playing sweetly with my hair, pretending to put makeup on my face, or simply holding my hand. These little hands melt my heart!

Out of all the crafts my kids do and bring home from school, I love to keep the handprint art. Sure it’s cheesy, but it’s also like a time capsule that helps me remember certain stages of their childhood. It allows me to reminisce about the darling raccoon akin dexterity that have the capability to simultaneously cause chaos and give love. And while I’m in the thick of it, it reminds me that the circus is in town only for a limited time- in other words, the pandemonium doesn’t last forever.

I wanted the first quilts I made as gifts to others (my mom and mother-in-law) to be special. I was hooked on quilting and knew that I would definitely be making more quilts for them in the future, so I decided to make the label reflect the year it was created, while also including the handprints of the assistants that “helped” to make it.

These handprint quilt labels are the perfect addition to any quilt you’re planning on gifting! It’s like a mini time capsule on a quilt; ideal for anybody with littles in their lives. It’s also a fun feature to add to a child’s quilt; they can compare their own hands to their smaller versions and see how far they’ve come and how big they’ve grown. What’s great about this label is that you can add it to a finished (bound or unbound) quilt!

This quilt label is not limited to human babies- but can also be used for fur babies! Check the end of this post to view the special requirements for your fuzzy fam.

Materials needed:

iron
scrap paper and pencil
embroidery needle
embroidery thread
erasable ink pen (specific for fabric)
washable glue stick

coordinating fabric scraps (to match your quilt top)
non-fabric scissors
fabric scissors
HeatnBond Lite interfacing
sewing machine
rotary cutter

Step 1: Trace the hands

Trace your little one’s hand on a piece of scrap paper with a pencil. Repeat for any other family member (big or little). Cut out the handprints. Figure out the best orientation for each hand; whether they’re stacked, made to be “left” or “right” hands (by turning the handprint upside down), or placed side to side. Take a photo to remember for future reference.

Step 2: Transfer paper handprint to interfacing

Trace each handprint onto the paper side of the HeatnBond Lite fusible interfacing with a pencil, being careful to note the orientation of each handprint (refer to your photo for a lil reminder if necessary). Cut out the hand print from the interfacing.

A note about the interfacing: there are two options for this label. You can choose to use fusible interfacing that requires sewing the “applique patch” (handprint) to the label, or permanent fusible interfacing that does NOT require additional sewing. This tutorial will walk you through the first option of using the fusible interfacing that requires sewing the applique handprint to the label. I prefer this option because this type of fusible interfacing is less stiff than the permanent stuff, and the additional stitching is so cute (use those fancy stitches on your sewing machine to max out it’s full potential, babe)!

Step 3: Iron interfacing onto scrap fabric

With the paper side up, iron on the fusible interfacing onto your scrap fabric. Make sure the entire handprint is on the scrap fabric, or you’ll end up with a sticky ironing board. If you are using fabric prints (where there is a “right” side and “wrong” side of your fabric), make sure to iron the fusible interfacing on the wrong side (back) of the printed fabric scrap. Follow the fusible interfacing instructions on the package to ensure success.

Once cooled, peel off the paper of the fusible interfacing. Repeat for each handprint. Refer to your orientation photo to determine placement of each handprint.

Step 4: Cut out label background

Create a fabric “base” or label background for your handprints. The size will depend on how you are planning on orienting each handprint. No need to factor in a seam allowance to the size of your label background, as this will be attached to your quilt using a blanket stitch. Dig through your scrap stash to find something that will fit. I ended up finding a spare 10” x 10” layer cake fabric square that worked great!

Step 5: Attach handprint to label background

Referring to your orientation photo, iron on the first handprint (shiny side down) to your label background. Follow the fusible interfacing instructions on the package to ensure success. Once cooled, slowly sew the perimeter of the handprint down to the label background with your sewing machine. Feel free to use those fancy stitches, friend!
Repeat with each handprint.

Step 6: Add the year

We can’t forget to add the year! If you have a sewing machine that has the option to embroider or alphanumeric stitching, feel free to use it! If you prefer the hand-embroidered look, take an erasable ink pen and write the year in a corner of your label background. Using an embroidery needle and thread, split stitch over the erasable ink. For those unfamiliar with embroidery, don’t feel overwhelmed or afraid! This tutorial from Cutesy Crafts is extremely helpful.
Press the entire label.

Step 7: Attach handprint label to the quilt

This quilt label can be attached to a finished (bound or unbound) quilt. Take a washable glue stick and baste the label to the back of your quilt. To attach the handprint label without going through all the layers of your quilt sandwich, use the blanket stitch around the border to secure the label. This tutorial, by Pay it Forward is a comprehensive guide to the blanket stitch, and even includes how to approach corners. When using the blanket stitch to attach the label, be sure to only go through the backing/batting of your quilt (to avoid the stitches being seen on the quilt top).
And, just like that, your handprint quilt label is complete!

Fuzzy fam quilt label requirements:

It is, without a doubt, tricky to trace a paw print. To help get your fur baby’s perfect paw print, use this inkless method to transfer a paw print to a piece of paper; the ink doesn’t transfer onto the skin (so cool!) which means less mess and more crafting! Follow the ink pad instructions in the item description/packaging to ensure success. Once the paw print has been transferred, follow steps 2 through 7 to get the paw print label for your quilt.