Children's Art Center
We are fortunate enough to have a third floor play room, so when it was clear that my daughter could sit and color at any moment during the day... I decided to take over a wall of the playroom to use as a fun art center for her! I was able to do it on a pretty tight budget: everything is from either Craigslist, Goodwill or Ikea, and I tried to provide as much storage as possible! center
Here's the wall before. It's tucked under the eave so doesn't have a full ceiling, but... it's the perfect amount of space for an art area.
Looking around online for inspiration, it was clear that wrangling all of the art supplies would be the biggest challenge. My kids were all younger than 4 at the time, so I needed EASY solutions that they could actually accomplish. This is a bathroom storage rack from Ikea and those silver pails are my favorites from Ikea's garden section. ($1 a piece).
This is a curtain rod from Ikea and you can make it any length you want... I have it strung over the desk as a way for her to display her MANY masterpieces.
Already filling the gallery.
I found this little stool at the flea market for $8 or something and mod podged some fabric onto the seat to brighten it up a bit. (I used some scraps from the curtains I made for the same room so it coordinates!)
I found a desk on Craigslist that was perfect, and just unscrewed the legs for the guys at Home Depot to cut down. I have saws at home, but trusted their measuring and cutting a bit more...
These acrylic cups were grabbed at Goodwill for 50¢ each... a cheap and colorful way to store more supplies.
I found that E at the thrift store and let Eleanor paint it herself.
And then some scattered accessories to make it more personal for my daughter. The paper tray was on sale at Homegoods and looks so much prettier with colorful construction paper!
Here's the finished result! (The white file cabinet is Ikea and houses stickers, coloring books, etc.) As you can see, my daughter's been BUSY!
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Comments
Join the conversation
4 of 11 comments
-
Awesome :)
-
This is so adorable! Kudos to you recognizing her delight in being creative and nurturing it! Also, using cast offs and recycled things from Craig's List and thrifting is the bomb! I love what you've done for your sweet daughter! I have an art studio, and my kids were in there all the time and now are all creative adults! <3
-
@Corinne A Thanks, Corinne! I'm told I was the SAME way so clearly the apple doesn't fall far from the tree... I would have LOVED one of these as a girl. :)
-
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?