With some glue and a pile of fun materials, your kids can enjoy a classic art activity – making collages! Collages are a wonderful open-ended activity that encourage exploration and creativity. Plus, you can use whatever you have on hand to make them. Here’s a few of our favorite collage materials:

In the Kitchen: dried beans and pasta, empty food boxes, plastic & metal lids, twist ties, egg cartons

Office Supplies: various labels, paper clips, post-it notes, highlighter pens, tape

Paper: tissue paper, scrapbooking paper, foil, wax paper, paper bags, junk mail, magazines & catalogs, greeting cards, shredded paper, wrapping paper

Sewing supplies: ribbon, buttons, fabric scraps, yarn, embroidery floss

Craft store goodies: pom poms, sequins, stickers, foam shapes, feathers

Nature: leaves, flowers, sticks, bark, seeds, pinecones

Miscellaneous: puzzle pieces, wood scraps, extra photos, sandpaper

Try these tips for even more collage fun:

• Use different bases for building your collage: cardboard, clear contact paper, egg cartons, grocery bags, etc.
• If your child likes using glitter, but you don’t feel like handling the mess, just mix some glitter with glue in a cup and let them paint on the glittery glue. Add some a little paint for colored glitter glue!
• Try making “themed” collages, such as blue or round.
• Create a collage on a canvas or frame in a shadowbox for a cool kid’s room decoration

Happy Collaging!

Amy has a kitchen counter covered with her girls’ most recent collage fun. She loves to blog about creative activities for kids and families at Let’s Explore.