Starting an Arts and Crafts Box
- You can usually tell whether a child has an interest in art or not. For those lucky artistic children, the sky is the limit when it comes to arts and crafts. Basically anything that an artist uses will be of use to an arts-oriented kid so let your imagination run wild! See the arts and crafts supplies page for ideas.
- Give them a box that can eventually be filled with all of their art supplies. Include a few trinkets to get them started or possibly some supplies to decorate the box. The best boxes for painting and decorating are made of wood because it is the most porous. The best for storage are lightweight Rubbermaid style containers. Fabric sewing boxes can easily be decorated by the child with a knack for a needle and thread, but the wooden ones are good too.
Setting Up an Arts and Crafts Box
- Crayons
, washable markers
, and pens - White, colored, and construction paper
, maybe even coloring books. - Kid-safe scissors
. - Washable Elmer's glue
, a glue stick, and maybe glitter glued or puffy paints for decorating fabric. - Stickers.
- Washable stamp pads.
- Scrapbooking supplies, like vibrant card stock.
Household Items to Save For Arts and Crafts Projects
- Egg cartons and milk cartons (washed and dried).
- Shells, rocks, leaves, pine cones.
- Broken crayons can be melted to make wax stamps or scratch art (with parental supervision, of course).
- Pasta noodles for necklaces and bracelets, potatoes and sponges for stamps.
- Old magazines can be cut up for making collages.
- Save holiday bows and ribbons, old buttons, socks, and clothes.
- Popsicle sticks build houses, paper plates turn into masks, brown paper bags double as puppets.
Purchase a box that comes completely equipped with all of the major art supplies, including paints, pencils, markers, and more. Just be sure to stay in the proper age range. Here are a few suggestions for different ages.
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