Okay, okay, I’ll admit it.

I don’t love doing crafts with my kids.

Truth be told, they don’t love it either. (I’m raising boys who love them some gross motor activity!) But, I do see the value and benefits of painting, cutting, coloring, gluing, and other creative based fine motor activities. Perhaps you’re like me and don’t enjoy crafting at your house for one reason or another. These 5 low-mess, easy clean-up, indoor and outdoor craft must-haves are bound to help in your crafting aversions.

1. Cookie Sheets

Buy yourself some cookie sheets at the dollar store and keep them separate from your good ones. The possibilities are endless and make clean-up so, so easy! Naturally you’ll want the magnetic ones so you can use magnetic letters on them, too.

• Use them as a painting palette
• Tape paper to them while painting
• Keep messes/spills contained:
  • Paint
  • Shaving cream
  • Water colors (specifically the cup of water)
  • Beads
  • Crayons/markers
  • Glue
  • Glitter (The literal worst of all crafting supplies, amiright?)

2. Paint Shirts

This seems like a no brainer. Keep large (but not too large) paint shirts for each child in a handy spot so anytime something messy comes along you can just throw the shirt over your kids’ clothes. Throw them in the washer once or twice a year and you’re good-to-go (and probably a lot less grumpy when your kids get paint on their clothes).

3. Painters Tape

This little gem goes with most of our crafting adventures. We tape paper down before painting/coloring, especially for the littles. It holds papers down outside in the wind. Then it gets used to hang the masterpieces when we are finished without destroying our wall.

4. Vinyl Tablecloth

This is the best of the best. This picnic-turned-crafting tablecloth covers my kitchen table during all of our messy escapades. Even though the cookie sheet contains most of the mess, the tablecloth prevents play dough, paint, and other nonsense from getting stuck in the cracks and grooves of the table. I truly desire to be relaxed amongst chaos, and this gem helps out when we’ve got shaving cream in our hair or a handful of paint. It just helps. Trust me.

5. Contact Paper

Contact paper can be used for so many art projects with kids and spares you the gloppy paint mess. Check out all these ideas for easy and low mess crafting even young toddlers can enjoy. 

Happy crafting, mommas, even those of you who despise it. I hope these must-have items will help it not be too painful!

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