How We Set Up Art Stations In Our House
My daughter loves to make art, but it became a problem when she started making it all over the house. I decided to make two different art stations in her dedicated spaces so she could create art and then hang it up in those spaces without it being all over the house.
How We Set Up Art Stations In Our House | Organizing the Art
I decided to make one art station in her room and one at the kitchen table right next to where she sits. The first thing I did was put plastic file holders on the wall in both locations. These are on the wall for when she is done with something. Her creations can either be hung on the fridge, hung on the wall in one of her spaces or if she's created something she wants to keep that can't be hung, it can go in the bin. This really helps contain the sprawl of art.
After a while, I will clean these bins out because she often forgets about stuff that's in there. I do try to keep the things I know she's going to think about and remember because they will come up consistently in the future. Those things I can continue to keep in the bins and we'll cross that bridge when we get there. When I sort through the art, I just do two piles: things that go back in the bin and things that get thrown away. I try and do this when she's not home so she doesn't see me doing it and become a big deal.
How We Set Up Art Stations In Our House | Stocking the Carts
Next up, I make sure she has crayons, colored pencils and markers in each location. I also make sure she has a pair of scissors, at least one glue stick, and some tape so she is not going all over the house looking for anything she needs every time she wants to do a project. Instead, she already knows where they are and can find them easily.
The art station in the kitchen is more robust. She has a craft cart where I keep a lazy susan filled with all of her markers, crayons, and colored pencils. It also has white paper, construction paper, new notebooks, as well as paint and paintbrushes on the bottom. For the art station in her room, she just has a little file organizer that keeps her construction paper, white paper, and a few notebooks in it. I also have a little pencil case with the stuff she would use up there to keep everything organized.
This system works so well for us. She knows where everything is and where to find everything, meaning less questions for me. When she does ask me to find something, I can ask her if she's checked her art stations. I often have to go and reorganize these so they are not a cluttered mess because that's how they end up a lot of the time. This gives me a chance to not only look through her art, but also restock anything that has run out. I just recently re-organized them and I've noticed that she's using them a lot more again because she can find all the things she needs. I love being able to watch her create and use her imagination while also having a system that keeps my brain happy.
You can shop any of the supplies I used below.
How We Set Up Art Stations In Our House | Shop
