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Craft Ideas for Kids
Storage Solutions for Craft
Paints: Invest wisely in small plastic "shoe-boxes" or old nappy wipes boxes. Use plastic just in case the paint leaks and store in the most temperate place in the house as extreme heat and cold will ruin your paints.
Small pieces such as wiggly eyes, beads, buttons, stones, and safety pins are best stored in fishing/tackle boxes or sewing boxes. You can quickly open to see what you have, and they stay securely put and sorted. You can also use small self-seal plastic bags for these to keep in your "craft box".
Craft Instructions - Cut out the projects worth keeping from magazines and put all the pages for a single project in a clear plastic sheet protector in your arch lever folder. Dividers are great when you have a large amount because you can separate them by type. The plastic sheet protector will protect your instructions from tears and spills.
Small balls/amounts of leftover yarn still should be stored in a plastic bag to keep it clean, and then in a carboard box to stop fading.
Chalk: We store our chalks in an old nappy wipes box. It's easy enough for our toddler to open himself, and no chalk residue anywhere. Large enough to keep the duster too when we want to pack the whole thing away.
General: You can buy or make a storage box on wheels to fit under beds in which you can easily store craft ingredients or finished crafts such as painting. Shelves, including the cheaper do-it-yourself kinds are also good for storage, as well as any spare spot in the laundry and/or linen cupboards.
Ingredients of a great starter Craft
Box:
coloured and plain paper
crayons and textas
scissors (childsafe)
glue
leaves, pinecones & other garden material (leaves during
autumn have some beautiful colours)
string & ribbons
pictures from magazines
old cards from Christmas & Birthdays
leftover wrapping paper & scraps
shells, interesting rocks from your outings
things from the kitchen such as seeds, rice and beans
beads (buy in bulk and swap your excess within a group of
friends)
paddlepop sticks & matches (with the heads cut off), satay
sticks are good too.