August 12, 2015
by Megan Schiller
Watch this video to get a peek into what it’s like to have an accessible and organized art area for kids. What are the benefits to creating a space like this?
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July 22, 2015
by Megan Schiller
Guess what I have been up to lately? In addition to designing kids art spaces, I have recently been working on a few kid’s bedrooms, playrooms, and even family living rooms! It has been so fun working with entire families to make their homes more playful and inviting.
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May 19, 2015
by Megan Schiller
Whenever I share a photo of our art space, I often get asked, “What do you keep in the large baskets at the bottom?” As an art teacher, I became accustomed to keeping large bins easily accessible for over-sized art materials like paper towel rolls, egg cartons, scraps of cardboard, fabric pieces, or bits and bobs of broken toys. Now in our home art studio (as well as my client’s art spaces) I always include these types of items without even thinking. But, of course, these materials don’t always come to mind for most people when thinking of art supply organization or setting up an art space for kids. So thank you for reminding me of this! I’m excited to give you a peek today into our large art bins and what we do with the materials.
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April 29, 2015
by Megan Schiller
I love a good art caddy. We have a simple little caddy in our studio that holds our markers and crayons, which makes it really easy to have an impromptu drawing session anywhere around the house. Sometimes my girls want to draw at the kitchen table during breakfast and sometimes they want to make treasure maps outside. They grab the caddy and a few sheets of paper and they are good to go.
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April 14, 2015
by Megan Schiller
Have you tried setting out “invitations to create” for your kids? Sometimes referred to as art prompts or provocations, invitations to create can help kids get excited about working with art materials in new ways. They are simply an invitation to engage with the materials laid out in front of them. You can learn more about invitations to create here.
I have found that an invitation, in and of itself, can be a quick and easy activity when a child needs a little prompting. But it can also spark inspiration and become a gateway to exploring other materials for a drawn-out creative session. Either way, invitations are all about the creative process, which is why they are one of my favorite ways to engage young children in the arts.
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February 24, 2015
by Megan Schiller
When the new year came around last month, I felt a strong urge to clear the clutter and re-organize our house. Can you guess where the worst of our clutter lived? …In the art studio! Art supplies seem to have a way of rapidly multiplying and taking over a space. In order to tackle the mess, I decided to clear the shelves and get some new containers that actually fit our space and materials. I also splurged on a few streamlined items (the chairs and large baskets) to take the visual stimulation down a notch.
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February 23, 2015
by Megan Schiller
I talk a lot about storing art supplies on open shelving so that your kids will have easy access and will constantly be reminded of their presence. Sometimes that just isn’t possible or appealing, so another great option is to store them in a closed cabinet. This was the case with a recent client who has older kids and doesn’t need to constantly remind them of their art supplies. They have a large armoire located in their homeschool room that they wanted to partially use as an art station. Here’s what it looked like before…
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December 29, 2014
by Megan Schiller
Do you ever wonder how to incorporate an art space into your child’s play space? Whether or not you have a dedicated space for either, art and play go hand in hand.
These pics are from a space I recently finished in a client’s sunroom. It used to be a dramatic play space for her two kids, but she knew they would use it more often if it was an art studio. My client wasn’t sure what to do when her 3 year old daughter wouldn’t let her move the play kitchen and “market” out of the room.
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September 24, 2014
by Megan Schiller
Here’s a sneak peek at the art space I am currently working on. The project is to design a full art studio for a 15 month old and 3.5 year old with a table for Mom and Dad as well. The space is the bottom floor of a back unit that used to be a kitchen, making it the perfect spot for an art studio. It has a country vibe, but my client’s design style is a mix of country, traditional, eclectic, and natural/organic (with a hint of modern). I threw in some industrial elements that work well in an art studio and this is what I came up with (within her budget).
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September 19, 2014
by Megan Schiller
Do you have art supplies tucked away in a cabinet or closet? If so, you might relate to my recent client who was having trouble organizing her art supplies in her hall closet.
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