Blank

Thank you so much to all of you who chimed in about your art spaces! I LOVED reading your responses and we were inspired to stock up on a few more art supplies. After a completely crazy late afternoon trip to Michael's with 2 tired girls and a million other crabby shoppers (what was I thinking?!)...we were ready to go!

I've been wanting to get Bella a table easel for quite some time and I found one on clearance...yay! She adores it and spent pretty much the entire day yesterday painting and creating...and she's already back at it today.

Paint

So far, our favorites are:

Popsicle sticks. We have a box of 1000 for endless hours of fun!
Glitter. Oh....the glitter is everywhere.
Yarn. It's so versatile and fun. We've been making lots of God's Eyes with striped sock yarn.
Paint. The tempura paint we bought is a little watery, so I'm thinking of switching to acrylic or something more substantial. What do you use?
Oil Pastels. Such a nice texture!

Sticks

Snacktime-2

My Little Artists

We're just in the baby stages of getting our art space set up...although I have to admit it's rather difficult in the type of temporary rental we're in right now. It's furnished...and the owners are snow birds, so they come back and live here in the summer. I'm constantly having to be aware of crayons on the table, paint on the floor, etc, etc. I'm SO excited to move back into our own space in July so I can buy a huge OLD table for all kinds of crazy art projects :)

I WILL find a way to make it all work in this house though...it just takes time. I know we won't have a "dedicated space" for art, as our house is quite small...but my goal is to find a way to organize all of the pieces so that I'm not so overwhelmed by the mess that ensues. I'll be posting photos when it comes together.

Links to art space inspiration:

Art Cubby: This is an ideal space in my mind...I love that it doesn't take up too much room, but is still super organized and inviting.

Katie's Pencil Box: An amazing open studio space. So much light!!

Wildflowers and Marbles: This post has her entire homeschooling space (which is insanely organized!) but I love her art area with the jars.

Play at Home Mom: LOVE all the jars and visually pleasing stuff in this space. Super inspiring.

Decorating with Kids' Art: I love this arrangement of kids' art on the wall. We do clips on a string...but this is taking it to another level!

A Little Learning for Two: A re-purposed crib...love the blackboard paint!

Books & blogs to inspire:

Playful Learning: I recently ordered this book and I am LOVING it so far. I also discovered the author's blog...which is full of great ideas as well!

Five Minute Art Ideas: I found this at a used book store and it's great! I love that all the projects are super simple...using materials that you probably have at home already. And for 3 cents on Amazon plus shipping, you can't go wrong :)

An Unschooling Life: Love the quotes in this post. She also refers to Artist Trading Cards. Bella attended an ATC workshop at the unschooling conference and loved it!

If you have found an inspiring blog, book, or photo related to art + kids or creative spaces that you love...please share! :)

I've always loved yarn. There is something magical that happens when I touch it & look at it. But that's as far as it goes :) I am not a knitter, but I am certainly envious of those with great knitting skill (which at times seems like ALL of my friends). I bought these so that I can wrap my dreads with them and use them for art with the girls.

HOWEVER...we want to become a knitting family!!

We have tried half-heartedly a couple of times, but we're serious now. I would love some advice from some of you more experienced yarn women.

What needles and type of yarn should we buy?
What is your favorite online tutorial? Or is it better to seek out a class? Books?
How did you start knitting? I'd LOVE to hear your stories!!

*Edited to add: I just signed up for Ravelry under "livelightly". Add me as your friend so I can become a knitter!