I affectionately refer to this as the junk box. It is an ever-changing variety of materials, and is used very frequently for spur-of-the-moment art activities. My girls love digging through it and seeing what they can find.

Here are some of the things I throw in here from time to time:

• junk mail, envelopes, address labels, old stationary, stickers
• cardboard flats, cut-up cereal or cracker boxes
• bubble wrap
• small boxes
• office supplies, such as blank labels, register tape, paper clips, etc.
• scraps of ribbon, yarn, felt, fabric left over from other projects
• paper plates, paper cups, lunch bags, napkins
• wrapping paper, bows, ribbons, tissue paper
• magazines, grocery ads, catalogs
• packaging materials, such as styrofoam pieces/peanuts
• wood scraps, popsicle sticks
• strawberry baskets, lids from milk or soda bottles, twist ties
• cardboard tubes

I could just go on and on! As you can see, this is a great place to put excess mail and packaging to work. What household items do your kids like to create with?