How To Organize Craft Supplies
In our house, my almost-4-year-old Allie has a wildly creative imagination. It leads to all sorts of wonderful crafts, games, songs, and more. I love that I never know what to expect from her, or what turns she will take us on as we head through an activity. I find the best way to let her express her creativity is to let her see what’s available to her. That is why I just reworked how to store all our craft supplies.
Make It Visible
Our craft supplies were stored in all sorts of bins, bags, and boxes. There was no rhyme or reason to where they were kept. This is so not like me at all. I knew I wanted to organize it better so I gave it a fair bit of thought before tackling the project.
Allie is the type of child who needs to see her options. Whether she is deciding on what to eat, what colour cup to have, or what movie to watch – Allie needs to see the choices in front of her. This is why I chose to put the majority of our craft supplies into Bernardin Mason Jars. The clear glass jars allow Allie (and me) to see what is inside easily. We can open the jars she wants to use, and leave the others aside or up on the shelf. I love these wide mouth jars since Allie can reach right in and grab what she’s got her eye on. The 750mL size is tall enough for pipe-cleaners (cut or bent in half) as well as pencil crayons once they have been sharpened a couple times.
Having everything in the jars has made things much better. We can easily see the supplies, and Allie is always dreaming up the next craft we will make. I can also see when things are getting low, and take note so I can restock.
Keep It Together
We do still use some plastic containers for things that don’t easily fit into glass jars, or that the kids can use without me around. For us this includes crayons & markers, scissors & stamps.
For construction paper, colouring books, and sticker sheets, I love using magazine holders. They keep everything upright and together in one place. It easy to find what you are looking for, and for a cleaner look you can turn them around so the exposed side faces into the shelf or against the wall.
I try to keep all our craft supplies in one spot. This is easier said than done of course. My own personal craft supplies are all in the basement. While the kids stuff is upstairs on the shelf between the kitchen & living room. Typically the kids do crafts at the kitchen table. So my goal is gradually move any of my supplies that they may use upstairs with theirs. (Just add that to the never ending to do list, right?)
Be Ready To Change It Up
One thing that having kids has taught me, is that any form of organization works until it doesn’t. As my kids grow & learn & develop & change, so must the way I organize. As the kids are able, I want to include them in the organization process. To let them help decide how things will be done, so that it makes sense for them & to them. That will be a fun challenge for me, since I always like to have the final say when it comes to organization in our house.
Take a moment to check out more of our Organization ideas.
Do you love Bernardin mason jars as much as we do? Be sure to have a look at more of our mason jar crafts & recipes.
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