The most festive thing you could ever do with your hands
This article was originally published Nov. 2, 2007.
These are not your parents’ hand turkeys!
Oh no, the art of hand turkeys has evolved; adapted for the 21st century. We are no longer limited to a hand-traced turkey with a beak and eyes drawn onto the thumb.
In this age of information and constantly improving technology, hand turkey art has expanded to foot-hand-turkey art or even feather-foot-hand-turkey art for those who are feeling really ambitious.
Each of these adds a new perspective to what a cartoon turkey would look like as an outline of a hand, but since they all convey the same feeling of thankfulness and more importantly accomplishment, I will reveal the secrets behind the top three hand-turkey designs.
To create any hand-turkey you must equip yourself with the necessary supplies. You’ll need scissors, glue and a pen accompanied by the paper medium of your choice – construction paper is the overwhelming favorite here. Beyond this, make sure you have some sort of adult supervision, preferably a mom – not necessarily your own – or a kindergarten teacher.
Once you have completed all of these steps, find a suitable place to work. I suggest a hard surface with at least enough room for fully extended elbows – you can measure this by holding your hands toward your chest and raising your arms until they are perpendicular to your body.
This is where the designs deviate. These are not your parents’ hand-turkeys!
Original Hand Turkey
1. Place desired paper medium on table. Once again, this may seem like an easy task, but the best hand-turkey artists place a great deal of significance into their paper. These are some questions you should ask yourself while choosing paper: “What personality do I want my hand-turkey to have? What color theme should I follow – Thanksgiving, Far Out, Yeah Bra, or even Christmas in some cases? What message am I trying to convey? If this answer is not to bring happiness to the world while creating a sense of thankfulness, then you should re-evaluate your motives for making hand-turkeys.
2. Place your hand on top of the paper, and trace it with a pen. These traces need not be exact – this is your chance to be creative. As long as you stick to the general outline of your hand, you will be okay.
3. Draw a beak, a wattle and eyes to the thumb – once again, here is your chance to shine. Also, color in any other parts of the turkey you like.
4. Cut out the turkey, being extremely careful – scissors are practically weapons.
5. Enjoy your masterpiece!
Hand and Foot Turkey
1. First follow steps one and two of the previous design. Along with this, trace an outline of your foot and several extra outlines of your hand.
2. Draw the beak, wattle and eyes near the top of the foot (where the head will be).
3. Cut out all outlines.
4. Glue the hand cutout to the backside of the foot cutout in such a way that the fingers (feathers) point away from the body.
5. After the glue dries, enjoy!
Feather-Foot-Hand-Turkey
1. For this design, actual feathers are required, so you need to purchase these or wait under a tree with a nest for a very long time until you can collect several feathers – if using this strategy, be very careful of bird dropping that will not only prolong your wait for hand-turkeys, but will also require you to make a wardrobe change – before you can begin.
2. Next, follow the steps of the Hand and Foot Turkey exactly, but after the glue has dried the pieces together, glue the feathers to the fingers of the hands. This will really get you that gold star you’ve always wanted.
As you can see, hand turkeys are the single greatest invention of mankind, and the fact that you are still reading this instead of creating your “Mona Turkey,” is shameful!
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Devon Taylor at taylordj@colorado.edu
