Create a crafting space, old-school style

Guest blog post by Emily Graham.

Emily Graham is the creator of MightyMoms.net. She believes being a mom is one of the hardest jobs around and wanted to create a support system for moms from all walks of life. On her site, she offers a wide range of info tailored for busy moms--from how to reduce stress to creative ways to spend time together as a family.

Arts and crafts are fun to do with your kids, but projects can get messy in a hurry. To avoid disrupting your main living areas, designate a room to contain your kids excitement for crafting and all of their glue and glitter, too. You don’t have to buy brand new—thrift and vintage resources can provide everything you need to furnish and stock your hobby room.

Look to thrift stores, flea markets, garage sales and online marketplaces such as eBay for craft room decor.

Rescued furniture can serve your purpose quite well and you won’t have to worry about a stray stroke of paint or blob of glue. An old kitchen table scavenged from the curb or thrift store is the perfect work surface for your hobby room.

If your kids are little, scour re-sale sources for child-sized chairs and tables.

Another idea—use a cast-off door to make a table for your main crafting space.

 
No matter what types of crafts you and your kids enjoy together, you’ll need storage options for crafting necessities. If closet space is not an option, rescue a chest of drawers, bookcase or filing cabinet to keep supplies out of sight when not in use.

 

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Think outside of the "rubber tub" when it comes to organizing your craft supplies. Once again, thrift stores offer a wealth of options when you need bins, boxes or other containers to store materials.

Handled baskets are both attractive and easily portable.

Collect old baskets to organize paper, fabric, ribbon and more. From small to large, there's a basket to hold your stuff.

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Vintage glass ball jars are perfect for storing markers, brushes and crayons (and can double as wells for painting projects).

Classic glass ball jars are versatile containers.

Vintage tea, coffee and cookie tins are especially fun to re-purpose for your crafting area. They come in all shapes, sizes and patterns. Stack tins when storage space is in short supply.

This group of old tins is for sale on eBay,

Even your supplies can be pre-owned or gently used. Paint, fabric remnants, construction paper, kid-friendly tools and other crafting essentials can be found in hobby stores but are also easily sourced from garage sales and second-hand shops.

Check out this Redfin article for more ideas to help you create a kid-friendly crafting space in your home.

Are you a writer with special expertise and a connection to the vintage, antique, collecting and re-purposing world? Interested in contributing to our Scouting Blog? Contact us for guidelines.