After having kids you realize that your home now belongs to little tiny glitter monsters.
Kids will somehow find the one hidden bottle of glitter and make sure it gets into every crevice in your home. Between the couch, under the kitchen table and somehow in the front yard all at the same time.
It’s like their hidden super power you were never told about…
Don’t get me wrong, my kids are the best, but I’ve had to learn how to harness their cute little super powers by organizing their crafts the right way so the glitter only comes out when it can be controlled by the super evil glitter hating mom.
My daughter also has a hard time letting go of anything. Literally this child would keep an old shriveled up raisin as a pet if I let her.
So, I needed a solution that allowed her to keep her awesome craft creations for as long as she wants, keep the glitter nightmares to a minimum, while also keeping my home from looking like the only people who live there are my 1 and 5 year old.
This is where a super simple and cheap kids craft cart came into play!
We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post.
You May Also Like:
The Importance of Home Management: 5 Unique Benefits
15 Benefits of Decluttering Your Home
Why You Need a Craft Cart for Kids
A craft cart for your kids will make sure all the art supplies are in one place, they’re (somewhat) organized, and things don’t look cluttered.
Without a craft cart, art supplies tend to end up in several boxes that are stored in random places, or you may have a small table for your kids to do crafts that is covered in supplies.
I found that I had some items in boxes above my dryer, some items in a desk I bought my daughter, and other items just randomly in bins in the living room. There were papers full of stickers stuffed in the desk drawers that now wouldn’t shut.
There was no organization and the desk was beginning to get way too full to house all of these supplies, plus store her final creations.
Craft carts also make it easy for kiddos to know where all their art supplies are and where to put them back. It definitely also makes clean up time fast and easy even for the little ones.
Why Craft Carts are Perfect for Kids
A super simple kids craft cart is perfect for kids because they are easily accessible to the little ones and they are easy enough to keep organized once your kids know where things go.
My kids love that they can access anything in the craft cart when they feel like doing a project. My daughter is especially into any kind of craft she can get her hands on so when creativity strikes, she has full freedom to get into her craft cart for inspiration.
You May Also Like:
19 Best Books about Decluttering, Organization, and Cleaning
How to Organize a Craft Cart
First things, first, you must declutter what supplies you already have before trying to organize everything into the craft cart.
Pull all of the supplies you’d like to go into the craft cart and make a few piles. You’ll want a trash pile, a keep pile, and a keepsake pile.
Throw away everything in the trash pile and file away the keepsake pile first. Next, let’s organize your keep pile into categories for your craft cart.
Label Your Kids Craft Cart
If you own a Cricut, a great option is to design and create your own labels for your kids craft cart. If you don’t, no worries, any label maker will work or you can do some fun designs doing an art project with your kids!
Kids Craft Cart Categories
From your keep pile, start to organize what you have into categories that make sense. Here are some suggested categories and the ones I used when I organized my kid’s craft cart.
- Drawing Paper
- Coloring Books
- Crayons/Markers/Pens/Pencils
- Glue & Scissors
- Decorations
- Stickers
- Cards/Stamps
- Beads/String
- Paint & Brushes
- Miscellaneous
- Finished Creations!
Start to organize each bin with the items that belong in that category. I’d definitely recommend having your kids help with this part so they start to understand where things go.
Feel free to let them organize all the bins themselves and take some ownership! They’ll love helping and will feel good about how the bins are organized when they have some say in it.
Where to Find a Cute and Cheap Craft Cart for Kids
You can find some really cute and cheap craft carts for kids online. If you want to see them in person, Michaels or Joanns is a really great option as well. Here are some popular options:
I personally like the all white, non-clear, options because it goes well with any decor and you can’t see through the bins.
I found mine on Facebook marketplace so be sure to look there for some deals as well. They definitely are harder to find so if you’re in need now, I’d say go for the online option.
You May Also Like:
How do You Store Kids Projects?
Once my kids are done with their art projects, they go into the ‘Finished Creations!’ bin in the craft cart. Once that bin gets full, I will declutter it with my kids to see which ones they want to keep for the long haul and which are fine to toss.
A regular decluttering session is a must otherwise the crafts begin to spill out the sides of the bins.
The Negatives to a Craft Cart for Kids
There aren’t many negatives to a craft cart for kids, but just some things to note…
Make sure not to put any items you don’t want little ones getting into. If your kids aren’t old enough for real scissors, make sure to keep those out of the craft cart. For now, we only keep the practice scissors since our kiddos are only 5 and 1.
Glitter…paint….and glue, oh my!
Make sure to keep anything super messy or any art supply that shouldn’t be handled without an adult around separate from your craft cart. This really goes for anywhere you store your craft supplies, but just something to remind you of.
You May Also Like:
How do You Store Crafting Supplies in a Small Space?
If you have limited space for craft storage, you are in luck! There are some amazing options that allow for more vertical storage. I listed them above, but it’s exactly what we used to get our art supplies under control.
These are pretty narrow so they can fit in even the smallest of spaces. You can make these work in some pretty unique areas.
Always measure your area first and check the item’s dimensions, but if all else fails, you can even store your kid’s craft cart in the garage or in a closet.
You May Also Like:
Get Your Super Simple (and Cheap) Kids Craft Cart
If you’re looking around your living room and notice stickers spilling out of boxes, coloring books everywhere, markers in your couch cushions, it’s probably time to snag a kids craft cart and get organized!
Harness those superpowers your kids have and let them start creating some amazing crafts, while keeping you sane.
Involve them in this project from start to finish and teach them how to take care of their craft cart so it serves a purpose: inspiration for the kiddos and organization for mama!
Share pictures of your kids craft cart once you’ve got it all set up. We’d love to see them and see how it’s working out for you and your kids. Shoot us an email at hello@alredytiredtomorrow.com and you may be featured on our social media pages!
You May Also Like:
11 Steps to Decluttering When You Don’t Know Where to Start
How to Build an Effective Family Command Center
How to Clean Your Home with Zone Cleaning
13 Unique Must-Have Organizational Tools for Your Home
