Some birthday gifts get played with the day they are opened. Others have to wait patiently for a few days. I would say that an art organizer brimming with art supplies would fit into the first group.

This is part 2 of a three-post series:
Part 1: a Space Where Kids Can Create and Display Art
Part 2: Organizing Kids’ Art Supplies (you are here)
Part 3: Stocking Your Kids’ Art Station

I am all about rotating art supplies (more on this soon). A great solution for us has been canvas tote bags, each holding its own art supply. They are super easy to rotate from my closet to the kids’ craft table. You can also use simple ziplock bags to organize art supplies, and just leave out a few at a time in a basket that your kids can reach. To decorate the canvas bags, draw a design in permanent marker, then let your kids color in the design with fabric pens or acrylic paint.

My kids love using ribbon, string, and yarn, but cannot seem to keep them from getting tangled. So we use jars as a ribbon organizers and yarn organizers.

More great inspiration for you. Left to right, top to bottom:

1. Buttons organized in IKEA spice jars. so so pretty. via fixerupper on flickr.
2. Art supplies in pails. via the always brilliant Design Mom. Used paint buckets work too.
3. Desk caddy by Serena & Lily.
4. Magnetic scissor strip. via the Making Memories blog.
5. Pencil roll #1, by Bloom Woosie. (I want to buy this for all my grown-up friends too!)
6. Arts and craft tray by Land of Nod. (Indispensable. The lid of a rubbermaid shoe box works too.)
7. Pencil roll #2, by Beacon Hill Goods.
8. Ribbon organizer towers.
9. Portable ribbon storage and organizer.
10. Displaying pretty pretty art supplies in jars. via Homecrafts.
11. The perfect shallow drawers at IKEA.
12. The shoe organizer turned craft organizer. via Family Fun.

And finally, I love this idea from the most awesome Make Magazine. A homemade pencil holder made from a phone book. An art supply holder that is a piece of art itself.

UPDATE 8.01.09: Feast your eyes on this beauty. Get the tutorial from Craftynest.

UPDATE 09.10.09: Here’s a great solution for making an art table in small spaces. It’s made from an apron. Get the tutorial here.

UPDATE 10.5.09: I love this idea for making a ribbon holder from a drawer. Get the tutorial here.

UPDATE: 6.3.10: Another brilliant idea, storing ribbon in a rain gutter.

UPDATE: 10.19.09 What a brilliant way to store thread.

UPDATE: 01.28.10 Love this idea with jars via here
UPDATE 5.25.10: We have started using milk jugs for organizing everything around here. Not a single milk jug makes it out of my house whole anymore. You can make a closed box (get the tutorial here) cut off just the bottom for a small open-lid box, or leave the handle on for a hanging organizer.

I am also in love with the idea of using pizza boxes for storing paper, or anything that needs to stay big and flat.

Tags: gifts for preschool boys, gifts for preschool girls, gifts for school age girls, gifts that encourage creativity, last minute gift ideas, organizing

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 at 10:08 am and is filed under Gift ideas. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.