One of my favorite Spring Crafts For Kids, these Thumbprint Art Painted Flower Pots inspired us to make Fingerprint Art Butterfly Painted Birdhouses. This inexpensive arts and crafts project idea would make a great gift idea for Moms and Grandmas. Let the kids add colorful fingerprint butterflies to decorative birdhouses for a sweet keepsake.

My kids love it when I pull out the craft paints! Painting is one of their favorite art activities. I knew they would be happy to help me add color to the cute little unfinished wooden birdhouses I found at the store. You can find similar birdhouses on Amazon.

I broke the project directions down into three easy-to-follow steps. Feel free to leave any questions you may have about the project in the comments below, and I will answer as quickly as I can.

PROJECT DIRECTIONS: Fingerprint Art Painted Butterfly Birdhouses

Materials Needed:

• Unfinished Wooden Birdhouse
• Craft Paints in a variety of colors
• Foam Brushes
• Black Permanent Marker or Black Paint Pen
• Paper plates (to use as paint palettes)

Step One: Paint the unfinished wooden birdhouses. Allow to dry completely.

Once the birdhouses were painted and dried, it was time to add the fingerprint art butterflies! You’ll need craft paint and a permanent black marker (I used a Sharpie) to draw the butterflies on the birdhouse.

Project Note: Although fingerprint art is an easy craft for kids, younger children will need adult assistance to help them place their painted fingers in the right spot on the birdhouse. If you are doing the craft with children under 5 years old, you may want to go ahead and paint the unfinished birdhouses for them and just let them do the fingerprint part. 

Project Note: We used two coats of acrylic craft paint on our birdhouses. The unfinished wood soaks up the paint and it dries quickly in between coats. I would allow about 30 minutes for this step in the process. Small foam brushes makes painting the birdhouses a lot easier than regular paint brushes. We used 1-inch Foam Brushes.

Step Two: Draw the butterfly head, body and antennae.

Use a black marker or paint pen to draw butterfly bodies on the birdhouse. Be sure to leave enough room on the side of the body for the Fingerprint Wings. If you are using a paint pen, you will need to let the paint dry before going to Step Three. An adult may need to help kids draw the butterfly (especially younger children.)

Project Note: How To Draw the Butterfly. Outline a small circle for the head and a long, skinny oval shape for the body. Fill in with black color. Add two antennae coming out of the top of the head by drawing a line that slightly curves outward at the end. See photo for reference.

Step Three: Add Fingerprint Art Butterfly Wings. 

We used two different colors for each butterfly. If you want to keep it a little bit simpler, use only one color for each butterfly. Either way, your butterflies are going to be so pretty!

Each butterfly will need 4 fingerprints to make the wings. Two fingerprints will go on each side of the butterfly body (upper wing, lower wing.) This means you will press your painted fingertip up and down four different times for each butterfly. If you need to, re-load your fingertip with more paint so you get a really nice color fingerprint.

FINGERPRINT ART BUTTERFLY WINGS: Squeeze out a dime-sized dollop of Paint Color #1 on your paper plate paint palette. Squeeze out a dime-sized dollop of Paint Color #2 on your paint palette. Dip your fingertip into Paint Color #1 so that your entire fingerprint is covered. Then, dip the pointy part at the end of the same finger into the Paint Color #2.

Project Note: You can use fingertips OR thumbprints to make the butterfly wings. 

Aim your finger where you want to paint your fingerprint on the side of the butterfly body. Gently press your fingertip down and lift it straight up. Repeat four times for each butterfly.

Allow the paint to dry and your project is ready to display.

I just have to say these fingerprint art birdhouses are one of my most favorite crafts I have ever made with my kids. I’m keeping these adorable birdhouses with their little fingerprints painted on them forever!

If you love little fingerprint art critters, see how to paint Thumbprint Art Bumblebees and Thumbprint Art Ladybugs. They would look cute next to the butterflies. Check out the directions for how to make those here.