Fingerprint Trees

Illustrated fingerprint trees are an engaging alternative to a traditional wedding guestbook.

A little more interactive and a lot more fun – a fingerprint tree will create a real talking point amongst your guests.

What’s more, afterwards you’ll have a truly personal piece of art to hang in your home.

Drawing of a tree with fireman, dog and lady in firefighter helmet
Photo of woman with a man with a dog on his shoulders

The design usually takes the form of a tree where only bare branches are drawn with leaf shapes left “empty”.

Guests are invited to print their thumb or finger in ink and onto the white spaces to become the coloured leaves. Balloons or heart-shaped spaces work well too.

How to plan for a fingerprint tree

  • For a really personal touch, think about including an illustration of yourselves (and your pets) in your design. I can also draw your wedding venue, or any other place.

  • Think about what colour ink you want the fingerprints to be. Choose a single colour to give a smart, uniform look to tie in with your wedding colour scheme, or go for a range of colours to create a really vibrant, cheerful piece. Alternatively, invite your guests to sign each space and avoid inky mistakes!

  • Your guests will love the playful interactive nature of a fingerprint tree and it’ll be a great icebreaker on the day.

  • Better still, when your wedding is over, you’ll own a hand-drawn, digital illustration adorned with fingerprints. What could be more unique?

Photo of wedding guests printing a fingerprint illustrations

How to order a fingerprint tree

  1. Initially, tell me what you’d like your fingerprint illustration to look like.

  2. Following this, I will send you a quote, and invoice you for your deposit if you’d like to go ahead.

  3. Email me photos and links to content online to use as references for my drawing.

  4. Once I have finished, I will send you a preview. Upon approval, I will progress to printing and framing as required.

Fingerprint artwork inspiration

Generally, I refer to this type of artwork as a “fingerprint tree” but, of course, you don’t have to have a tree. As mentioned above, a bunch of balloons or heart shapes work well too. Here are some ideas for your fingerprint piece, whether you’re going for a traditional tree or not.

  • A generic tree (I will use my judgement)

  • A tree from your garden

  • The tree you used to climb as a child

  • Your favourite tree species. Silver birch and Oaks work well

  • Bunch of balloons

  • Hearts in place of leave shapes on a tree

  • Clouds in the sky

  • Flying birds for wildlife lovers

  • Fish in a harbour for seaside weddings

  • Stars in the sky

  • Your pets and their paw-prints

  • Bouquet of flowers

Wedding fingerprint tree checklist

Artwork to print onto

  • Speak to me about this bit!

Ink pads or pens – choose colours to match your wedding or home.

  • Look for fast-drying, archival inks.

  • Acid-free, pigment ink or pens are best. If in doubt, test for bleeding.

Other

  • A frame to display your artwork in on the day. I can take care of framing your illustration for you.

  • A notepad to dab off excess ink and practice fingerprinting onto.

  • Baby wipes for speedy inky-finger cleanup.

  • Helpers – enlist a member of your wedding party to supervise the printing.

Top tip – Invite your guests to print their fingerprint early on in the day. This will help to prevent tipsy mistakes later on!

Photo of bride smiling and groom adding fingerprint tree drawing
Photo of bride and groom looking at framed fingerprint tree drawing