Christmas in October- Your Dog's Paw Print Ornament

I mention my kids all the time on my blog, but have not talked much about the fact we have a dog. Oscar, our little old man of a dog, is the best pet anyone could ever ask for. He loved us and the kids beyond belief and it truly a member of our family. Here is our little old man.
I have looked for years for a way to make an ornament with his paw print and have not found anything that I thought would work well. Oscar is getting old, he turned 10 this year, so I was determined this was the year I would get his paw print so we could have it forever.

Well, when I made the corn starch and baking soda ornaments ( see post with full instructions here ) I had really hoped I could use the same technique to create a paw ornament. I am absolutely overjoyed to share with you that it worked! It worked far better than I had expected.

For the full instructions on how to make the dough, check out the original post here.

There recipe I used for this was:
  • 2 cups baking soda
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 1 1/4 cups cool water
Once the dough cooled, I rolled out a large circle to be approximately 1/4 inch thick. With the help of my husband, we carefully placed Oscars paw on the dough. Be sure to put the paw down from the top (not coming in from an angle) and press down on all 'toes' gently. Then lift the paw straight back up again.
Oscar has longer hair and I found that this left no residue on his paws. My mistake was I did this paw print right after he came in from running around outside and it appears he had some dirt on his paw. It adds to it :) I then used a scalloped cookie cutter to make the ornament shape and a straw to make the hole to hang the ornament. I made 3 just in case.
I carefully transfer the ornament to a flat plat (be sure it is flat otherwise the ornament will have a curve). I let them dry for 24 hours, carefully flipping them every once and a while.
Once dry, I took the ornaments outside to my spray paint area and carefully sealed them with a clear flat spray finish. I am sure you can use Mod Podge to seal the ornament too, perhaps even glitter Mod Podge.
 
Do 3 or 4 really light coats to prevent the ornament from getting too wet. If you are a little heavy with the spray and it appears the ornament is damp, don't worry it will dry again over the next day or so.
You can write the name and date on the back before or after you seal the ornament. I just used a black Sharpie permanent marker.

Once sealed and dry, add some ribbon or raffia and call it a day!
Isn't it great?!
I am so excited about this. I just keep on thinking of all the uses for this recipe. Obviously a baby hand print ornament would work great but I will be making an amazing idea very soon for all you new parents out there that isn't an ornament!

Do any of you out there love their dog as much as we do?  Anyone else as excited as I am by this ornament idea?

P.S. This is a great gift idea too. I managed to get my mom's dog (Oscar's sibling) and make a couple for her too. If you have the dough ready, you can keep it in the fridge in a sealed bag. Once the pet visits, it only takes a few minutes to make the ornament!

Let me know what you think,
Stephanie

Comments

  1. I'm Soo making these for my 3 dogs!

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  2. I made some using Plaster of Paris (in craft section at Walmart) for my daughter's hand for xmas gifts. we also painted them white and sprinkle glitter on them to make it look like snow.

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  3. I found your site from something of yours someone pinned on Pinterest. I'd love to pin these ornaments on Pinterest, but I don't see a link. I'm going to make these with my twin boys' handprints before they are too old! (They're 3.5 yrs). Thanks!

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  4. Better idea than the one I came up with when we were breeding Malteses. Friends of ours had bought the last of a litter and after he picked it up I noticed the puppy had left a 'tootsie roll' on the rug under the dining table. I saved that puppy poop in a plastic bag for several months until Christmas when I spray painted it gold, filled a clear glass ornament with some cat litter and put the poop inside. Glued the top on and added embellishments and gave it to them for Christmas. They loved it and hang it on the tree every year. The next year for Christmas I received a bigger 'tootsie roll' on cat litter in a vacuum jar.

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    Replies
    1. this is the best thing I've ever read

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  5. This is a fantastic idea! Our German Shepherd, Hannah, is almost 12. She's a huge part of our family & this will be a great way to keep her with us always. (found you via Pinterest!)

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  6. Just got done making these for my 3 dogs, plus one for the neighbor as a Christmas present. They look GREAT and I am super excited about how CHEAP and EASY this was. Thank you so much!!

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  7. Is the finished product a hard ornament or is it a flexible material?

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  8. I found this recipe and made these Friday with my dog on his last night. I tried to keep them dry but they cracked. I would really like to keep them as a memory. Is there some way I can fill in the cracks and stabilize them? They can just lie flat and not be used as ornaments. Or could I use adhesive and put a backing on them to keep them together?

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  9. We hand flatten the 'dough' before pressing. It turned out awesome. Keep a little water on hand fix any spots!

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  10. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  11. I did hand and foot prints for my 8mo son and mine cracked while drying too. I am going to give it another try. I think my dough dried out too much before I did the impressions.

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  12. Wonderful! I was looking for ideas and most looked iffy and very much home made. This looks so much nicer than any other diy ones! The local pottery shop, no matter how much I love them, wants $30 for this to be done. And while I want to keep my pups in my memory when they're not around anymore, I could spend that money on something they could use and love while they're still around!

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  13. This is a very creative idea. One year I stamped our Chow Chow's paw print's and our Cat's as well onto Christmas Cards--ink pad. Can't wait to try this!!!

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  14. Since it has been a couple of years, I was wondering how they are holding up? I have been searching for a clay recipe that will withstand the test of time.

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  15. Mine cracked while air drying. They look ugly. I followed the directions, so there must be some unknown secret that keeps them from cracking. I will keep them for memories, but they certainly can't be used for decoration.

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