Hellobee

We are big arts and craft lovers in this house. Drake has covered our walls through the years with his drawings and projects from school, and I love a good DIY. As Christmas draws closer I made a roundup of some fun and new art supplies and kits to gift your little artist this holiday season.

1) Alex Toys Art Kit – Similar to Kiwi Crate I think these little pre-made kits filled with projects would be right up Drake’s alley. It’s nice to have some ready made projects lying around the house for rainy days to do something easy and fun together, without having to hunt or go out to collect supplies.

3) Fingerprinting Set – I think this might go into Drake’s stocking as well because he will love the idea of creating things out of his own fingerprints. He already has these two books made by the same designers that my friends gave him, so I think between the books and the kit he will be well on his way to creating a world of fun with his little fingers.

4) Modeling Clay – I have a bit of an aversion to play dough (it smells and I can’t get over it) so we don’t have any in our home unless I make some. I know he enjoys playing with it at school as he tells me about it, so maybe modeling clay is a compromise for us both. I think a small set might be a good gauge to see how interested Drake is in this medium, and it’s a good stocking stuffer at that.

5) MagnaDoodle – I got Drake this for his 2nd Christmas and he has loved “Big Fish” (his name for it… don’t ask me why) ever since; he’s ruined two and is on his third currently. He sleeps with it and draws until he falls asleep after we put him to bed and then draws in the morning until we get him. He takes it with him on car rides, to grandma’s house, and all over the house. It’s his favorite medium to draw and practice spelling. Sometimes when he reads a book or watches a show he will get inspired by something and get Big Fish to draw. I have so many photos of all his daily MagnaDoodle drawings.

6) Kiwi Crate – Drake’s grandmother has been kind enough to gift Drake a subscription to Kiwi since last Christmas. Drake loves receiving the green box (Kiwi!) and knows that it’s filled with goodies for him and a new project to try. We have had a lot of fun making crafts together and I love that everything is supplied and provided for you  There have been quite a few projects we have done that Drake has played with on and off for months after we created them. Kiwi also has so many options ranging from subscriptions, single crates, favors, and this year they have expanded to make a few more boxes including Koala Crate (for younger kids, which I am interested in seeing for Drake), Tinker Crate (for a bit older), and Doodle Crate (which seems more geared toward older girls).

7) Spin Art – Drake’s school does an art fair every year. We went last year and they had this spin art center which Drake really liked. I remember playing with something similar to this as a child — it brings back fond memories to share these experiences again with my own little ones. I hope Drake likes this as much the second time as he did the first time.

8) Doodle Pet – I have been eyeing Doodle Pets for a while now. It seems like the perfect toy for Drake, combining his love of art with animals and allowing him to basically draw on a stuffed animal. I have been waiting to see if they would come out with more animals for the collection since Drake tends to like wild animals more than domesticated ones. I noticed that Aquadoodle has also come out with some animals of their own and this penguin might be perfect for Drake.

9) Bath Crayons – I haven’t introduced Drake to drawing in the tub yet, but now that Juliet also loves bath time the 2 of them can play in there for hours easily. I’m looking for new toys like this to entertain them.

10) Scissor Kit – I blogged already about Drake’s struggles with mastering the scissors and cutting. I thought a little art kit to practice might motivate and help him more, especially since it comes with a little pair of scissors that seems like it might be easier for him to use. For the price of the kit I’m willing to give it a try if it helps, and even if it doesn’t there are still fun activities for Drake and I to do together.

11) Easel – What little artist wouldn’t be thrilled with their own easel? Drake received one on his 3rd birthday from my friend and it’s been a great art station for him for chalk, crayons, and painting. I like that he has own area where all his supplies are stored so he can go over on his own to play and it keeps everything in one spot.

12) Sand Art – This might need to wait til Drake is older but I love sand art. When I was a kid, my favorite thing was making these at fairs and carnivals.  I hope when Drake is older we can try this one together whether at home or out at a fair.

13) Spiral Chalk Art – I saw this at Target over the summer and was really intrigued by it. I remember spiralgraphs on paper from when I was younger but to see the huge rings and imagine drawing it on the sidewalk just seemed so fun.  I want to read more about it since the reviews seem iffy, but I think this might be really fun to try when the weather is nicer.

14) Doodle Books – Mrs Chipmunk has blogged in the past about Taro Gomi’s coloring books, and I was so interested I picked up a few for our road trip to Disney. Drake really enjoyed coloring in them. Sometimes he would follow the prompts on the page, and other times the page would inspire him to do something else. I liked seeing his work next to the drawings already in the book to see where his imagination took him.

15) Art Case – I really want to get Drake a nice art set one day, but right now I feel like he is still a bit young to properly appreciate and treat such a nice kit like this one. Trusty Crayola however has made a pretty nice kid friendly one that seems more suitable for a 4 year old.

16) Scratch Art Pad – When I was in elementary school I remember making our own scratch art coloring on a piece of paper, coloring black on top of everything and then scratching a design through the black to reveal the colors underneath. It was a lot of fun back then and I might still try to DIY this project one day when Drake gets older, but for now I’m not sure his patience would last through all that coloring ao this might be a way to introduce the idea to him.

17) AquaDoodle –  Mrs. Wagon reviewed AquaDoodle here in a previous blog post, and what can I say — she sold me. It seemed like the perfect toy for my art minded little boy.

18) Snow Art – Last year NJ got hit with a ton of snow. It might have made the experience more fun for everyone if Drake could have colored some of it. I could find a DIY formula to make in case we don’t get any snow this year, but it’s still it’s a fun idea and not too pricey to add to your Christmas list.

19) Stamps –  We already have quite a few stamp sets in our home, but really you can never have too many. Drake loves playing with them and stamping on these large butcher block sheets we have.

20) Color Wonder – Drake’s first foray into art began with Crayolas Color Wonder since the markers only worked on the paper. Now that he is older its no longer an issue, but this might be a great start for Juliet to get into drawing and getting use to holding a marker.

 .  .  .  .  .

Do you have any favorite art-themed gifts for the little artist in your life?