How to Create an Art Station for Kids

Art can be so messy!

Sometimes the last thing a mama needs is another mess in her life. But I’ve found that with an established free-for-all art station, I get less “I’m bored”s, my kids ask for less screen time, and I have more free time! With minimal mess!

Here’s how:

Make a space that wipes up easily.

It’s basically as simple as that. I repurposed an old black entertainment center without cabinet doors. I absolutely didn’t want my freshly painted walls having any new features so I got masonite painted with chalkboard paint to serve as a backsplash to our art station. A couple finishing nails holds it in place. Chalkboard paint comes in all sorts of colors these days so you can also try a fun accent color instead of the tradition black!

If you’re working in a carpeted situation, try a carpet protector you can cut down to the perfect size and shape for your space.

Make Art Supplies Accessible

The more kids can help themselves and work independently, the more time that parents get to spend doing things other than fetching supplies and opening containers. The ideal container depends on the youngest child trying to open them (and whether or not you want to youngest child to be able to open them! No teething on pastels!!) but I prefer the snapping side lids. The flaps that snap down are big enough for toddler fingers to get a grip on and open themselves.

For paper, I have a three level paper organizer. One level is for blank paper, one level is for painted paper to be used in other art projects, and one level is for completed art masterpieces. (Occasionally, I move most of the masterpieces into the painted paper section.)

Concerning supplies, each family is going to have different things that they can allow to be accessible based off the age and maturity of their children. Here are some supplies my station has:

Hold Boundaries

We have some rules or boundaries of the art station. Rules like, “we need to clean up when we’re done”. And also rules like, “you can’t use scissors without permission”. My kids always ask for permission but if I had a forgetful child, I would keep the scissors inaccessible until I was asked for them. Scissors come with additional boundaries like, “we only cut art supplies” and “everything you cut off needs to go into the trash”. By limiting the scissors to only when asked, I can remind my kids every time they ask that the clippings need to go in the trash.

Avoid Messes

The easiest way to not have to clean up a mess is to not have a mess in the first place. To this end, I make sure my art station is equipped with:

• a trash can. This should not be a mesh trash can because art can get so teeny tiny that a mesh trash can cannot contain it.
• shot glasses. I like to use tall bottom heavy shot glasses like these for paint water because they’re less likely to spill since they’re bottom heavy and, if they do, you’re only spilling 2 oz!
• smocks. Some smocks are more like aprons but my kids are perhaps just excessively messy? We need more than that. I have a couple men’s button down shirts that my kids can put on. We roll up the sleeves and I hide a rubber band under the cuff to keep the sleeves up and out of the way. I like the button up because if they get a lot of paint on it, it doesn’t have to go over their head (and all over their hair) to come off.
• shop towels. While the men’s button downs do make it a little less tragic when they wipe their hands on their clothes, I like to have a few shop towels around so they can choose more conventional means to wipe their hands, paintbrushes, or wipe up spills.

At the end of the day, is there a mess? Of course there is! But it is minimal. And because everything is out all the time anyway, it doesn’t have to get “put away” so it’s easier to clean up. I find myself snapping a few lids shut and tucking them in the entertainment center, collecting artwork left to dry and putting them in the masterpiece section of our paper organizer, wiping down the tabletop, and that’s really it. Given the increase in freetime without the mom guilt of screentime, it’s well worth it.

Extras

As you can see, my art station has a computer monitor. There’s a narrow top shelf in the entertainment center that has the netbook that’s connected to this display and that netbook is connected to a wireless keyboard. We use this set-up to let YouTube inspire my kids. We really like Cassie Stephens and Art for Kids Hub. Tell me in the comments who else I should be subscribing to!