14 Ingenious Mom Hacks to Make Arts and Crafts Less of a Headache
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With a small child, even if arts and crafts time keeps them busy for a measly three minutes, a mess is basically guaranteed. Between small beads and sticky glue residue, glitter bombs and paint puddles, you'll likely end up with a cleanup that takes longer than the amount of time your little crafted for. It's important to let kids express themselves and make a little mess from time to time, but with these arts and crafts hacks, you can keep the crafting going without sacrificing any of the fun!
Read through for 14 ingenious mom hacks to implement during your tot's next craft sesh.
Use a cupcake tin, ice tray, or kid plate to lay out small craft supplies.
Anything with compartments to avoid spilling and cross-contamination works!
Store paint in containers with pumps, or old ketchup bottles.
Being able to pump or squeeze the paint will give them a little independence and help to avoid wasting paint and having it all dry out.
Soak dried-out markers in cups of water to make your own watercolor paints.
You can mix and match markers of similar hues to make a more concentrated watercolor.
Glue pom-poms to the ends of whiteboard markers to use as erasers.
Having the eraser right there for them on each marker means a more seamless crafting session that will hopefully last more than a few minutes (the dream!).
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To unclog glue caps, soak them in vegetable oil.
No more struggling with dried-up glue or finding the dried-out peels everywhere.
To avoid glue puddles, pour glue over a wet sponge inside a container.
Kids can dab pieces of paper — or anything that needs gluing — directly onto the sponge and you can seal the container afterward to keep it from drying out before future uses.
Use a lint-roller to clean up small supplies.
Whether they were crafting with glitter, feathers, or beads, run a lint roller across the table and underneath it to collect the tiny mess (this also works for Lego pieces!).
Create stamps using a potato, apple, or any other smooth produce.
You can cut the shape they want into a potato, or let them explore texture by using oranges or lettuce as paint brushes.
Cover your child’s workspace with paper, a plastic tablecloth, or cling wrap for easy cleanup.
Pro-tip: press and seal wrap will stick to the table and ensure a clean surface when they're finished with their work of art.
For very little ones, put paint inside a Ziploc bag with a piece of white paper.
Let the mess-free fingerpainting commence (just be sure to take the paper out before it all dries)!
Use a Pringles container to store tall items like paintbrushes and pipe cleaners.
A happy, organized mama equals a happy, organized little artist.
Prevent tangling by storing ribbon and string in a basket with holes.
Friendship bracelets for days, rather than hours of untangling.
Organize stickers and coloring books in a dish rack.
This keeps everything organized and makes it easy for little fingers to thumb through their choices, rather than ask you for the one book on the bottom of the pile every time.
Take a photo of every piece of art your kid creates or brings home.
You can use these pictures to make a photo book that you'll both cherish long after the art was created, and you’ll actually be able to see the doors of your refrigerator for once. Frame the best ones that you can’t part with as kid room decor.
H/T What’s Up Moms