The Artful Parent

Shaped Crayons = Creative Drawing for Little Kids

As much as I tell parents that all you really need are the most basic of art supplies for kids' art, I have to admit that we are big fans of fun and innovative art materials. We have long loved crayon rocks and have more recently started a love affair with shaped crayons.

Besides being great for free drawing, these special crayons often inspire more imagination in my daughters' drawing and art. They even incorporate creative play aspects, lifting the entire art experience beyond the 2-dimensional drawing on paper.

Colored Foam Paint -- Better Than Shaving Cream for Kids' Art and Sensory Play!

Have you tried foam paint? It's like shaving cream, but better. And you know how much we like shaving cream around here. (Refreshers here, here, and here. Just for starters.) Shaving cream may not be the neatest art material around, but when it comes to sensory art and sensory play, it's tops. Just ask any kid.

Well, the colored foam paint we've been exploring is like shaving cream, except it's colored (duh), has no scent (awesome!), and, according to the product description is non-toxic and environmentally friendly (no CFCs). It has also inspired some pretty unique art in our house.

Would you like to see the foam paint in action?

GIVEAWAY! Fun Crayon Shapes by Earth Grown Crayons

Today's giveaway is for FOUR fun sets of shaped crayons by Earth Grown Crayons.

• Bug crayons, set of 8
• Heart crayons, set of 8
• Fish crayons, set of 8
• Peace doves crayons, set of 8

Melissa, owner and chief crayon maker at Earth Grown Crayons, is also a teacher and mother of three. She makes her crayons out of kid- and earth-friendly soy for a variety of reasons. She says...

1 Artterro Bookmaking Kit + 3 Kids = An Inspired Afternoon (Plus a GIVEAWAY!)

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When the folks at Artterro Eco Art Kits, one of my longtime blog sponsors, asked me to review their bookmaking kit, I said "Heck yeah!" After our previous experience with their art kits, and all the creativity it inspired (not to mention a beautiful finished product), I had a good feeling that we would love this one as well.

Why I Give My Daughters Separate Paints (& an Announcement)

I give my daughters separate paints. Not always. But when I can, I do.

Daphne and Maia are at such different stages on the paint mixing spectrum, that if I don't it just leads to frustration for both of them.

Maia, at seven, is meticulous with her paints. If her paints start out looking like the photo above, they will end looking like the photo above.* She washes her brush between paint colors or uses a different brush.

Getting Over My Clay Hang Up (& a Pottery Wheel for Kids)

It's confession time.

I have a bit of a hang-up about clay. Maybe even a big one.

It's the texture. And the mess. Which is kinda crazy when you consider that I have absolutely no hang up about any other art messes. Paint? Bring it on! Shaving cream? Let's squirt it all over!

But clay? Ugh. I don't even want to think about it.

Maia, on the other hand, LOVES clay. Loves the texture and the mess. So I'm trying hard to get over my clay thing. Trying to at least make it available more and to not worry about the mud in my house.

Finger Painting Fun with Sensory Sand Finger Paint (+ a Giveaway!)

Finger painting is always fun!* Kids have permission to cover their hands with paint and slip, slide their fingers through gooey color. Finger paint is the epitome of sensory art and, for young children especially, sensory art is important for development and even helps them learn.

We recently tried a newly-developed kind of finger paint from Discount School Supply called Sensory Sand Finger Paint. It added a whole new layer of sensory fun to the activity!

***Note: Readers will have a chance to win a set of six Sensory Sand Finger Paints at the end of this post.***

Playdough :: Our Favorite for Everyday Creativity

Playdough is one of our go-to activities for everyday creative play. We keep a kitchen drawer stocked with playdough, playdough tools, and playdough "decorations" (toothpicks, beads, googly eyes, feathers). It's easily accessible and frequently brought out, either by the kids when they want to make playdough cakes to sell in their living room store or by me when I see that they might need a diversion or easy activity.

In fact, I'd say playdough is one of the top three regular creative outlets in our home (the other two being the big chalkboard and simple paper and markers/crayons/scissors). Sure, we paint quite a bit and we're always trying some new art or craft idea. But for everyday, endlessly enjoyable and changeable creative fun, playdough is hard to beat.

Frugal Art :: Painting Stickers from the Stationery Store

I haven't had a whole lot of time for creative projects with my kiddos in the last couple of days because of Jury Duty. But we did manage to squeeze in this easy and frugal activity—painting stickers from the stationery store (and then creating art with them).

35 Homemade Art Materials Kids Can Make

We love mixing up homemade art materials in our house. By making the materials first, we add another whole dimension to our arts and crafts activities. I've noticed that kids have just as much fun making them as using them. And, of course, homemade is a frugal and often environmentally friendly alternative to many commercial art materials.