AIBU?
To Ask You What You'd Like In Your Children's Craft Boxes?
RenaissanceBunny · 24/10/2018 13:50
I'm putting together a craft box for my SIL and Nephews. SIL loves crafting with them and they are 3 and 2. What would you put in? The box will only be accessible under adult supervision.
DowntonCrabby · 24/10/2018 13:56
I was coming on to say google eyes!!
Lots of self adhesive bits so you don’t need to fanny about with glue too much.
GreenDinosaur · 24/10/2018 13:58
Pipe cleaners are always good.
Little pom-poms
Glitter glue
Stickers
Safety scissors
Tissue paper
Coloured card
Mummaluelae · 24/10/2018 13:58
Googly eyes
Pipe cleaners
Stickers
Different textures eg bubble wrap, tissue, felt, foam, ect.
Cellotape - its nice for kids to use other than glue
Shiny paper or shiny ribbon
Assorted buttons
Pom POM's
Tassles
Water colour paints
Playdough (can use eyes and pipecleaners with it to create monsters
zigzagbetty · 24/10/2018 13:59
Sparkly stickers, tissue paper, glue sticks, coloured card, cheap pads if drawing paper, crayons, paints. I find The Works is great for all this stuff and Home Bargains if you have one near you. Wouldnt buy glitter as it is the work of the devil!!
ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 24/10/2018 14:00
I'm a more negative note:
No glitter/ sequins etc which go everywhere and are a pain to pick up.
SunnySomer · 24/10/2018 14:01
PVA glue, watercolour paint blocks (children’s ones) and some pots for water, a range of brushes - you can get nice stumpy-handled ones for small children.
Bits of coloured cellophane that they can collage with. Coloured felt. Poster paints. Cheap Paper/card. Realistically what they are doing is learning mark-making and colour-mixing and self express so don’t go overboard with expensive stuff
NorthernRunner · 24/10/2018 14:01
Tiger and The works have great craft bits.
Pom poms
Stickers galore
Pipe cleaners
Pva glue and glue spreaders
Glitter
Foam shapes
Sequins
Bingo dabbers
Aprons?
GreenDinosaur · 24/10/2018 14:02
Lollipop sticks
Cotton balls
Foam shapes
Loads of stuff!
Have you got a decent box to put all this stuff in? That's what I'm after, it needs organising!
FloofyDoof · 24/10/2018 14:02
Wilko is great for bits and bobs for craft boxes! My DC always loved coloured pipe cleaners, feathers, sequins, old buttons, embroidery thread, yarn, string, that gummed paper stuff, tissue paper. eBay is also great for tins of random buttons and stuff!
elQuintoConyo · 24/10/2018 14:04
Flat lollipop sticks (popsickle sticks in USA). Great for drawing on with felt tip pen, gluing goigley eyes to and pits of felt.
Felt! Shapes, strips - can make scarves and other clothes for characters.
Foam shapes, super imaginative.
Any cut-offs of fabric, pleather, plastics. And the usual suspects of bog rolls etc.
LOL7 · 24/10/2018 14:05
Paint pens! Honesty the best thing I have bought my 3 year old.
RenaissanceBunny · 24/10/2018 14:06
WOW that was quick - thanks for all the great suggestions
I do have a good box to put this all in - that's actually the main present ! A brand new plastic under bed storage box. I thought it would be nice and wide for rummaging !
Mari50 · 24/10/2018 14:07
My dd stuffed a googly eye up her nose when she was 2 and I got a fairly stern telling off from the dr who removed it about why they aren’t recommended for under 3’s 
FloofyDoof · 24/10/2018 14:08
I would get a few little Tupperware type boxes for the messier bits to stay separate. Just some cheap ones.
macnab · 24/10/2018 14:34
When DS was little, Santa brought him an arts & crafts box. He used something like this one but it didn't have that many tiers.
It was filled with all sorts of things that have been mentioned already, the most-used were googlie-eyes, pipe cleaners, lollipop sticks, foam and foam shapes, pva glue, glitter glue, paints, markers & pencils, coloured card sheets, glue stick, small scissors, ruler and stencils.
He still maintains it was one of his best ever Christmas presents (and wasn't something he'd asked for, Santa just knew he'd get great fun with it 
)
macnab · 24/10/2018 14:36
Ooops just saw your message about the storage box - rummaging is not so good with craft bits and bobs, you'd really need to try keep the various things separate. If you want to use the box you've got, maybe as a previous poster suggested you could use some smaller tubs inside to keep things together. It's a lovely thoughtful present OP, I hope they get great joy from it.
macnab · 24/10/2018 14:39
Oh also, keep hold of the rolls of toilet rolls and kitchen rolls, and empty yoghurt pots etc. as they are often used in craft projects.
DS got an Art Attack book and used it for lots of craft projects because I am the least creative person going so something like that might be useful too.
ATowelAndAPotato · 24/10/2018 15:36
Wilko do paint brushes with the paint inside, just splodge and go. I think you can re fill them when the run out. Saves having pots of paint out which can get knocked over, etc.
elQuintoConyo · 24/10/2018 16:41
I'd also suggest a book of things to make and do. Cutting up pool noodles (long foam things with hollow centre) can help create a million things.
You could google some fun things to do and print them into a little book.
Paint rollers are also cool - are you near an Ikea? Anything like painting a leaf and printing it onto paper, then turning that into a picture.
I really want to go home and craft with my 7yo now 
TheGhoulWhoOoOoLived · 25/10/2018 10:23
B and m have about 6 takeaway type tubs for £2 which would be great for keeping separate and sorting out things like sequins etc. In fact I’m going to get some today for this very reason! We got the Wilkos box for keeping things sort of separate (we have paper, pens/crayons, and then crafty bits - google eyes/glitter etc)
Dd really enjoyed the little card men/women and you can get for £1 (at Poundland) to make little characters and elves Xmas
Pomfluff · 25/10/2018 16:27
PVA Glue (white craft glue)
or Peel-Off Face Masks
Baking Soda
Saline Based Contact Lens Solution
Small Airtight Plastic Pots
Glitter
Food Coloring
Children can make a safe & non-toxic slime using the first three ingredients and they love it! This can be mixed with food colouring/glitter and kept in plastic containers to play with later. Recipe is one tube of glue or 3-4 packets of face masks, several pinches of baking soda and enough contact lens solution (usually 3-4 tbsp) until the mixture stops being sticky and turns into slime.
Must be peel-off face masks since they contain the same sticky PVA as glue.
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