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Art activities are a great way to keep children busy and at the same time encourage their creativity. Art makes their imagination soar-and they will end up with a displayable souvenir. Young artists in your life have many ways to express themselves, whether through painting, textile art, paper art or other pursuits. Simplify the process by choosing ready-made art production or craft kits. These kits contain all the materials needed to make a large number of works at home, and can be used alone or shared during play. Browse our selection of the best options below, which are guaranteed to inspire children from toddlers to teenagers.
The DIY diary kit is a book making kit for teenagers that provides creative control over the physical aspects of the book, from the cover to the spine. This is a great way for children to record their memories in a highly visual and tactile way. One option is a kit from Talas, which includes archival-quality materials—everything you need to make a custom journal, including two binding boards, two dozen high-quality writing papers, and an amazing cover decoration paper. Children will also get a needle and two yards of linen thread to stitch their first binding. If you want to encourage your children to build a journal collection, this kit is particularly economical: the more you buy, the lower the cost. Purchase: Book Journal Kit on Talas starting at $17.50
The lovely felt wool partner needle felt is a carving method suitable for beginners, with many creative possibilities. The result is always super cute. Woolbuddy is a California-based company that sells all-inclusive kits for making one creature; choose from dozens of options, including turtles, black cats, chickens, elves, moose, octopuses, and frogs. You can also purchase a starter kit to make multiple Woolbuddies. These kits are beautifully packaged and organized, and you can get a lot of high-quality wool. The instructions are clearly illustrated with color photos, so young people (10 years and older) can easily complete them without adult supervision. Buy: Woolbuddy Needle Felt Set, starting at $15 on Etsy
A kit for fledgling chemists The chemistry kit is designed for children 10 years and older and can guide users through up to 125 experiments. The topics at hand include air pressure, surface tension, and electrochemical reactions; these processes are visually appealing and open to keep children interested while encouraging creative thinking. Including clear instructions and safety recommendations, so adults can reduce concerns about dangers at home. Note, however, that this kit requires some pre-planning, including reading the instructions in advance and assembling the required items not included in the kit (but can be found in your own home or grocery store). Purchase: Thames & Kosmos Chemistry Kit, $59.95 on Amazon
Making paper from scratch Although papermaking sounds challenging, in fact it can be a simple and fun activity suitable for teenagers to try at home. This is also a great way to recycle waste paper into custom paper-for more artistic creations! Arnold Grummer's kit is designed for professionals, but people 14 and older can quickly master the skills. Included materials include: a large wooden frame for forming and pressing letter size, a template for making matching envelopes, illustrations, and a guide containing six project exercise guides. Purchase: Arnold Grummer's Papermill Pro envelope and stationery kit, Blick $79
The process of psychedelic dyeing marbling, suspending and then transferring the paint to create a print, looks amazing. Using this kit recommended for children 8 years and older, young artists can create a swirling design to customize two blank pouches. In the supplied tray, you can prepare a liquid matrix by mixing the supplied carrageenan powder with boiling water, drop the four dyes of your choice on the liquid surface, rotate it, and then dip a small bag into the tray to Transfer the pattern. The user gets enough dyes to decorate one or two additional small objects provided by them. The only disadvantage of this kit is that it takes 2 hours to wait for the carrageenan powder to completely dissolve. For more streamlined options, please consider the Aitoh Boku-Undo Suminagashi Marbling Kit, which dispenses with additives and replaces them with dyes that can be placed on ordinary water. Note that the dyes used in the latter option are more difficult to control, and the transfer process requires some practice. Purchase: Fashion Angels Marble Dye Pouch Kit, Blick USD 16.99; Aitoh Boku-Undo Suminagashi Marbling Kit, Blick USD 11.02
DIY candles This kind of candle making activity does not involve hot wax, it uses all natural beeswax. Children 6 years and older can safely roll the included wax, which exhibits interesting textures and honeycomb patterns, and can make seven scented candles. Each is 4 inches tall and burns brightly. Purchase: Beeswax candle making kit, Eco-Kids $8.99
Embossing flowers in a mini herbarium is a rewarding activity that encourages children of all ages to arrange plants and flowers in a creative way. This 12 x 18 inch printing press is made of fiberboard and basswood, and is the ideal size for large projects. The adjustable metal screws and wing nuts in each corner are easy to twist, and the plastic feet protect the table from scratches. You can also get instructions, blotting paper and nine sheets of corrugated cardboard to stack multiple presses. Purchase: BestNest Nature Press, $49.99 on Amazon
Learn to paint New York City's world-famous Museum of Modern Art has launched a brushstroke and color mixing kit designed for children 6 years and older. This product was developed by MoMA educators and features exercises and activities used in MoMA art projects. Encourage children to explore Vincent Van Gogh's painting style and techniques. He likes lots of colors, textures and movements. The fully stocked kit includes a palette, 2 brushes, 10 paint tubes, high-quality Bristol paper, a color wheel, two canvases, a paint knife and an instruction manual. Buy: MoMA Art Creation: Brushstroke and Color Making Kit, $44.99 on Amazon
Needlework crafts treats young people's first sewing kit, which can not only achieve practical restoration, but also inspire satisfying art projects. This exquisite selection set from Moulin Roty has a retro-style suitcase. When opened, it reveals scissors, tape measure, thread and thimble. It is tightly attached to the bottom of the lid with an elastic band, as well as five colorful wool balls, knitting needles, crochet hooks, and inspiration Description of different processes. Purchase: Moulin Roty Thread Craft Kit for beginners, $59.99 at Walmart
The fun of injections is suitable for older children. Injections are a great tool for expressing creativity, because artists are free to "draw" their own designs with yarn. There is no better person to learn this late 19th century craft than Amy Oxford. Not only did she invent her own needles, but she also ran an injection company and school. This beginner-friendly kit has a pre-drawn pear-shaped pattern, but inspired children can come up with their own pattern and use the included wool carpet yarn to make it. They will learn about stitch sizes, stamping techniques and how to complete and stitch their work. Purchase: Pear set, $99 from Amy Oxford
Toolkits that keep giving away With an art or science subscription box, young creatives in your life can expect to receive regular gifts to introduce them to different materials, media, technologies, and concepts. This particular choice comes from a company founded by an environmental scientist who is also a mother; all boxes are produced using environmentally friendly practices. You can choose the Discovery box (for children from 5 to 10 years old) to encourage creative experiments in science, or choose the Junior box (for children from 3 to 5 years old), which has a more technological focus. There are four to six open projects every month. Purchase: Green Kids monthly subscription box, starting at $29.95/box on Green Kid Crafts
For budding architects, if your kids love Lego bricks, they will love the challenge of building a smart house from scratch. The kit is designed for young engineers 8 years and older and provides a modular system that encourages creativity while maintaining a simple construction process. Once the walls and floor are in, children can add lights, sounds and even motion to their architectural wonders. They can also play the role of interior designer by adding their own furniture and decorations (not included). Purchase: SmartLab Archi-TECH electronic smart house, Amazon $49.99
Make a unique vacuum flask The classic vacuum flask loom is a simple but efficient square tool that teaches basic weaving techniques: simply stretch the fabric loop onto the hook to create an eye-catching design. This kit is suitable for children aged 6 and above. It is equipped with a high-quality metal loom with cleverly designed diagonal nails to prevent the ring from slipping off. In addition to a series of brightly colored 100% cotton loops (enough to make six thermos cups), you can also get a long metal hook for knitting and a plastic hook for finishing. Browse the illustrated illustrations for inspiration. The loom is available in 7 inches or 10 inches in two sizes. Purchase: 7-inch Potholder Loom Deluxe, Harrisville Designs $29.95
Folding and flying airplanes to make paper airplanes, whether simple or highly complex, is not just a fun activity; it encourages creativity and challenges children of all ages to unleash the potential of a piece of paper. The kit comes with enough paper for proper weighing and a dotted guide for folding to make 100 kinds of aircraft, from spacecraft to aerobatics. Everyone was flying far and fast, some even spinning or whirling. Children will also get piles of stickers to customize their work, and powerful rubber bands to make them fly. Purchase: Paper airplane kit, $16.18 on Amazon
Animated Drawing Use the flip book kit to introduce your child to the technical aspects of animation and encourage them to explore their drawing, narrative, and construction skills. This kit is recommended for children 6 years and older, and comes with the materials needed to draw and assemble flipbooks with the help of technology. Includes 480 sheets of translucent but durable paper with pre-punched holes, and four dozen pillars for assembly. You will also get six pencils of different grades and two sharpeners. But the highlight is the light pad, which children can use to track the design while gradually changing the details as they move from page to page. The lamp pad has three brightness settings. Purchase: IttyBitty Flip Book Kit, $28.97 on Amazon
Weaving a souvenir basket Your child can use this basket making kit suitable for ages 5 and older to increase flexibility and create something useful in the process. The relatively simple process involves wrapping brightly colored raffia around the template; just like a real basket, no glue is needed, which makes it a clutter-free project. The kit includes four baskets of materials, which is very suitable for children who play or like to make alone. Purchase: Baker Ross Basket Weaving Kit, Amazon $10.95
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