http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art The community for people interested in home and office organizing. en-US Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:53:13 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q http://unclutterer.com/discuss/search.php http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-43996 Sun, 15 Jan 2012 16:09:15 +0000 salmanandani 43996@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Ekids Activities are designed for preschool teachers, parents of young children, and early childhood students. Many of the activities focus on supplies found in the kitchen and at home. Ekids Activities are the introduction and tool needed to stimulate creativity. A lesson plan format is used to further aid those who are new to the teaching profession.</p> <p><a href="http://ekidsactivities.com" rel="nofollow">http://ekidsactivities.com</a> </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-2348 Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:45:43 +0000 akcorcoran 2348@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hi again - Meant to show you the baskets that I keep all of the art in as it comes in the house, one for each girl. </p> <p>Must be larger than 11 x 17 since art comes home that size. It ends up filling by 3 - 4 months or so, which is when I process it but I have NO paper clutter on first floor where all key rooms are (ktichen, dining, living, family room) - which is a major feat for a mom to 6-yr old and 7 1/2 yr-old daughters... I've seen more rainbow drawings in my life than I ever dreamed! And no matter WHAT it is, I know it's in there. Simple to find things.</p> <p>They hold anything that can't be recycled right away, including:<br /> * art (special, something to show Daddy or grandparents, or just something the girls will be upset about if I purge right away!)<br /> * school papers that we want to share (I scan some b/c they are milestones - e.g. my daughter's first self-structured sentence in Kindergarten, etc.<br /> * Sunday school papers that we need to keep</p> <p>Got them at Pier1 for super cheap - were a set:<br /> <a href="http://bit.ly/cu8bvH" rel="nofollow">http://bit.ly/cu8bvH</a> </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-2168 Mon, 25 Jan 2010 15:16:08 +0000 akcorcoran 2168@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Posted more ideas for creating keepsake art for your children and family - sorry they are in two different posts but I thought I'd pass it on! (And, now I'm starting to think that I should go into business making these for people - they can send or upload art to me, or send me to photograph and I'd make them! I love making them!)</p> <p><a href="http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/creating-art-keepsakes-without-keeping-the-clutter" rel="nofollow">http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/creating-art-keepsakes-without-keeping-the-clutter</a> </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-2152 Mon, 25 Jan 2010 04:40:22 +0000 akcorcoran 2152@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hi all -</p> <p>I use a combination of a number of the suggestions above - and it's detailed at the bottom of my post on Art Keepsakes:<br /> <a href="http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/creating-art-keepsakes-without-keeping-the-clutter#post-2151" rel="nofollow">http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/creating-art-keepsakes-without-keeping-the-clutter#post-2151</a></p> <p>The summary of that post is that we create "art keepsakes" rather than keeping the art - a collection that showcases the best pieces and in a form that we can keep forever. </p> <p>I absolutely adore our art calendars, books, and cards (see post) and have them from year to year now, while the art (and clutter) is long gone.</p> <p>As you may read there, the key for me is to: </p> <p>a) Collect in one contained basket that I process once every three months. No hassling daily with the girls about what's keepable, no papers lying around, a way to limit what gets posted, especially during key art times like the holidays. No clutter! The time will help detach from it (they'll forget!) or make you appreciate how creative it truly was. This then plays into my main strategy, which is...</p> <p>b) Have a project in mind for the art - don't just scan/photograph/save just to do it. That's like doubling the clutter! See my post for the projects we do each year.</p> <p>c) Digitally photograph the art. It gives more depth to the art anyway - and it's much faster than scanning. And, it's a must for any 3D art. I even photograph spin art, clay projects, needlepoint and stitching, even loop potholders! I only scan when it just won't photograph correctly.</p> <p>d) Get someone else to dispose of/recycle it. There's just no way I could take those little creations that generated so much excitement and dump them. And, I don't want them to see it either. Packed in a kitchen bag, it goes in the hands of hubby or a friend and they do the deed!</p> <p>More details in my other post about what I create each year and my process, but I thought I'd give the highlights!</p> <p>Alexa </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-1826 Mon, 18 Jan 2010 16:29:02 +0000 Anita 1826@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Lynn - could you and your husband come to a compromise such as keeping all the drawings in a box for one year (birthday to birthday, for instance) and then picking the best one as a representation of your child's art for that year? Then maybe when your kids are in their teens you'll want a scrapbook showing the evolution of their art, or maybe by then you'll have decided not to keep the drawings at all.</p> <p>My parents didn't keep any of my drawings, but I remember that on the last day of elementary school, my teacher took out the drawings that each of us had done on the very first day of elementary school and gave them to our parents. It was sweet, and yet mortifying for me at the time, since I didn't think much of my art of 4 years before... </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-457 Sat, 28 Nov 2009 09:11:40 +0000 EraserGirl 457@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>just an aside about storing images online ANYWHERE...keep a back up copy of your images..and keep it on a removable media. get in the habit of ripping cds of your family photos and tossing the cd in a fireproof box etc. </p> <p>I also advise people to scan ALL your old family photos and do the same. as well as upload your family photos to a storage site online.</p> <p>it is better to have the images stored BOTH online and in the real world, so that if you loose one set you have another.</p> <p>facebook, flickr, etc... all these sites could very well change their policies anytime they want and you can lose access to your photos. this is what happened to some folks used kodak's site. if they didn't buy a print once a month they lost access to their images. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-456 Sat, 28 Nov 2009 03:24:08 +0000 cyboey 456@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>we run an art school for children and are constantly asked by parents on the same topic as well. What we end up doing was to take photo's of the artwork, crafts and including the young artist themselves and upload it into our Facebook page. That has been quite well received... as it allow us to keep an archive of the artwork in a common place and allow it to be shared. Proud parents then just share and point the photo with their friends / families and they don't feel that bad when they have to throw some out too. if you like, you can take a look at our facebook page: <a href="http://facebook.com/MyArtPod" rel="nofollow">http://facebook.com/MyArtPod</a>.</p> <p>check out our website- <a href="http://www.my-art-pod.com" rel="nofollow">http://www.my-art-pod.com</a> </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art/page/2#post-349 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:30:08 +0000 EraserGirl 349@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>has anyone thought to load the art scans on to digital photoframes? then you can display many of them in rotation. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-348 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:13:46 +0000 financialchick 348@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I have a refrigerator that does not allow magnets on the front. (hehe…solved the messy refrigerator front) I hung twine in my kid’s playroom with clothes pins attached. That way when there is a “new” art piece it can be hung without ending up all over the house (not to mention a place to put it to dry). Once the clothes pins are all used, a couple favorite pieces are chosen and the rest are 3 hole punched, attached with brads and given to a grandma as a “special gift”. The kids don’t mind getting rid of the art work, grandma (either one) loves it, and I didn’t have to buy artwork for that room. It is a win-win-win! </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-333 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:59:14 +0000 root 333@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Here's a solution we've found that works pretty well. Two girls, ages 3 and 6. Several new pieces of "art" each day.</p> <p>On the fridge we have four 8.5x11 magnetic document holders. Each girls gets two. They can display whatever artwork they want in their frames for as long as they want to display it.</p> <p>They can also display their art in their rooms on their bulletin boards.</p> <p>In the "arts-and-crafts" area (dining room corner) we have big 9x12 envelopes with each grandparent's picture and name. They decide which of their projects they want to send to which grandparent. When an envelope gets full it goes in the mail. Then it's up to Granny to throw the stuff away!</p> <p>There is also a recycle bin in the arts-and-crafts area and they are encouraged to recycle what doesn't get sent out.</p> <p>It's been working well and it relieves my wife and I of the guilt of throwing away their projects.</p> <p>your mileage may vary.<br /> --Mark </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-265 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:25:57 +0000 Mrs.Mack 265@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I say scan everything, or at least the best ones. Then throw them away.</p> <p>If you keep up with this as they get older, it could be really neat for them to get a photobook that has art from 3-15 (or whatever age you give them the book)... especially if they become artists! Progression is so interesting to look at.</p> <p>You don't need to make a photobook each year. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-232 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:57:37 +0000 porkozone 232@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I think you should go through just as much of a editing process when choosing to scan/photograph artwork as you do when storing it physically. </p> <p>I know scanning SEEMS like it's decluttering, but I've found that you are even less likely to EVER go through all of the scanned and stored images than you do for physical boxes of old artwork. We've barely been an entire decade of the digital photo/paperless revolution...and I rarely hear anything about what we'll do with the terabytes of "old memories I might wanna glance at in the future" we are going to accumulate over multiple generations at the rate we are going. I don't mean in terms of pure storage, that's relatively cheap. I'm thinking in terms of who is ever going to go back and look at the thousands of photographed files of art with any sort of real nostalgia? I just don't think it will have the appeal of the current situation of "hey, here's a box in the attic I need to move, let's see what's in it." It just won't be the same.</p> <p>My contention is that properly storing, backing up, protecting (both in terms of privacy and making sure the file formats and media stay up to date an properly working), not to mention properly labeling and organizing all of this digital "clutter" may just be way more work and overhead long-term than a few extra boxes in the attic.</p> <p>And that's assuming everyone who digitizes their memories properly takes care of it. I think many are just throwing it on a random hard drive, and forgetting about it, thinking they've decluttered. We'll be seeing news stories in less than five years about how people are losing all sorts of memories because their drives crashed, they didn't back up properly, etc.</p> <p>If an old box gets wet...you can still look at it all one more time. Or salvage it. If a hard drive goes bad...it's pretty much a complete loss.</p> <p>Not trying to play chicken little here...just saying if you are going to digitize your memories, you need to make sure you properly plan to maintain your digital archive for years to come. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-198 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:54:58 +0000 JoanneB 198@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>My friend did this: she only kept select ones, but most importantly she also wrote on the back the age of the child and why she kept it. So it might not be an outstanding piece of art, but there might have been a story behind it. She stored it all in a large envelope. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-196 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:49:27 +0000 FengShuiMaven 196@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Although you may love all the drawings and papers that your children<br /> bring home from school, if you save them all the value of<br /> special ones is diminished since they get lost in the clutter. Instead,<br /> here's a Feng Shui suggestion for dealing with children's art: each week collect all of the papers in a folder and have your children<br /> select one or two to keep. Put them on the refrigerator or<br /> display them on a bulletin board. After a week, date each paper<br /> and put them in a scrapbook or keepsake box for each child. If your<br /> children are grown and out of the house but you still have all of<br /> their papers, create scrapbooks of the best of their work. Give the<br /> rest of the accumulated papers back to your children to sort, throw<br /> away, or make their own scrapbooks. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-189 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:27:57 +0000 jsights 189@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>My mom used to keep everything I made in school. She had several boxes of it. When I was in my 20s we went through it together. We both chose items to keep, which ended up being very few. I only kept 1 item for myself, which was a story we wrote in 4th grade then bound into a homemade book. I don't remember how much she kept, but it wasn't nearly as much as she'd originally have. I'm guessing it's still in a box in the basement that never gets looked at, though. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-165 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:29:17 +0000 savvyspaces 165@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I personally do not believe that keeping everything is an option. I think this is a wonderful opportunity to teach your child to "self-edit". Of course this is more difficult for the younger kids, but by age 5 or 6 they should certainly be able to select a few of their favorite works to keep. I use a portfolio from the Container Store and my kids pick three or four items to save each year. It is the perfect venue for them to see how their work has progressed. For immediate needs, we display a couple in our home and the rest is in a folder that must be edited by them periodically throughout the year. Do you teach your child to keep everything, or can you show them how to sort, edit and make decisions about what they should keep? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-147 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 00:27:35 +0000 Sabine Schoepke 147@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>We have almost 6 year old twins who love to draw and paint. Being an art lover myself and having worked in this field in my 'previous' life - the pre-kids life - I just started a new little venture addressing the whole issue of 'How to display your kid's art'. I started converting my kids' favorite pieces into canvas art. It looks amazing and the kids love seeing their artwork on canvas!! They are very proud of it and it is a great inspiration for them. Also, these pieces of art make great presents for grandma and the rest of the family!! We are currently building the website and should be up and running by Dec. 1st. The website is <a href="http://www.MyKidsArtOnCanvas.com" rel="nofollow">http://www.MyKidsArtOnCanvas.com</a> . Email me if you want to get notified once the site is up. My email is <a href="mailto:schoepkesabine@yahoo.com">schoepkesabine@yahoo.com</a> . </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-142 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:18:18 +0000 sixxiron 142@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>My wife and I save a choice few pieces and the rest is either scanned or photographed and then sent to Evernote. I've been using Evernote for about a year now and absolutely love it. Perfect for things like this.</p> <p>Brad </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-130 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:26:09 +0000 engwar 130@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Just a reminder. If you are storing these digitally make sure you are backing up regularly. </p> <p>There are options for backing your data up to online services. </p> <p>Or buy an external USB hard drive for less than $100 and get yourself some cheap/free backup software. </p> <p>There are two types of hard drives: 1) Those that have crashed. 2) Those that will crash. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/childrens-art#post-125 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:41:36 +0000 writergrl 125@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Furthering the "give to relatives" idea - why don't you use the art work to make hand made cards for grand parents, etc? There are plenty of Hallmark holidays that would be great to repurpose one of the hundreds of "smiley me and sun, with trees and enormous flowers" drawings that accumulate each week. This is what we do with our girls drawings. It gives them another craft project that they can do before dinnertime and the Nannys and Grampys all love them. </p>