Here’s my 2016 list of favorite art supplies to use with little ones!
- Rubber Brayers
for all kinds of printmaking fun. These can be used with printmaking inks, acrylic paint, or tempera paint. I find that kids don’t even worry about the print they might be making… they could just roll that brayer in the paint all day!
for all kinds of 
- Catalyst Silicone Wedge Tools
for scraping textures into paint. There are lots of different kinds, and some come with handles
like paintbrushes as well (sometimes little ones set the wedges down in the paint and they don’t want to touch it again- it gets messy quickly). I LOVE THESE.
for scraping textures into paint. There are lots of different kinds, and some come with 
like paintbrushes as well (sometimes little ones set the wedges down in the paint and they don’t want to touch it again- it gets messy quickly). I LOVE THESE.
- Wooden beads for adding decorations to pretty much anything. This pack from Dick Blick has a really fun assortment of sizes, and so far all of the holes are drilled through (hate it when wooden beads are closed…).
- Liquid Watercolors
which are gorgeous and bright, but easily spilled since they are liquid! I love setting them out in condiment cups inside of paint trays (basically a muffin tin). That way you can close the cup to save extra paint for later.
which are gorgeous and bright, but easily spilled since they are liquid! I love setting them out in condiment cups inside of paint trays (basically a muffin tin). That way you can close the cup to save extra paint for later.
- Colored sand
and sticker board. I used this recently with sand in squeeze bottles, and it’s one of those rare projects where both the process and the product are magical.
and
- Glitter Poms– also for decorating anything (with glue- see the next item). You can also buy beading needles to add these to string.
- Yes! paste
– I use this in my own art as well as with kids. It’s amazing- archival once dried between surfaces, yet easy to clean up with soap and water (or just water honestly). The consistency is very thick so you can position collage or assemblage items and they will stay put (no counting to
tenthirty-five). You can also water it down for a thinner consistency.
– I use this in my own art as well as with kids. It’s amazing- archival once dried between surfaces, yet easy to clean up with soap and water (or just water honestly). The consistency is very thick so you can position collage or assemblage items and they will stay put (no counting to 
- Crayola Premier Tempera. This sounds crazy, but I really just started using tempera paint this year. I researched which brands/versions are the best and decided on these. Have not been disappointed! The colors are bright and opaque and I don’t even miss using acrylics with kids (especially during clean up!!!!!!). They aren’t actually marketed as washable (these are) but I notice a big difference between washing acrylic and these off of brushes and tables.
Thanks for reading! Here is last year’s list (still love all of those things too!).
Christy M. King 