Cassie Stephens: cheap art supplies

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Art Teacherin' 101: Episode 8

Holy moly, y'all! I have discovered Art Teacher Heaven and it looks like this:

I know most of you art teacherin' types are familiar with The Dollar Tree and all of it's amazingness but I hardly ever venture inside. Prolly because I don't trust those places that refer to themselves as "dollar"-y when they actually mean dollar$$ (yes, I'm talking about YOU, Target "Dollar" Spot. Smh.) Then the other day, on a whim, I spotted something shiny in the window and tiptoed inside. Two giant bags of dollar-y goodness later, I was CONVINCED that this place was perf and I just had to share my excitement with y'all. So, here's what I picked up for my art room, why and how I plan to put it to use in some crazy creative art making!

Now, like I said, I didn't buy EVERYTHING...but I got really close. Below are somethings that I left behind but I do believe would be useful in any art room.

This kind of chalk is pretty useless for making art inside...but it would be great for the outdoors (hence the name "sidewalk" chalk). I thought it was a pretty solid amount of chalk for the price.

If it's one thing that no art teacher can ever have enough of, it's bowls, trays, plates, bins, you get the idea. I loved the sweet patterns on these hard plastic bowls.

Okay, help me out here. I need these in my art room! I mean, the architectural history in these sand castle building thingies is just too much. I left them behind but I do love them so.

Need a cheap still life? How about a Frida Kahlo crown? The Dollah got you covered.

For those of you that color coordinate your art room, the possibilities were endless. Totally digging the table clothes.

I have a stash of thank you, birthday and blank cards at school for when I need them.

I hate putting together puzzles. I'd much rather use the pieces for collage projects or print making! What a fun assortment for on the cheap.

The assortment wasn't huge but what they did have was good: U.S. map, behavior charts, die cut letters and those things I scooped up.

In my art room, I have a little light that I turn on when it's the kid's turn to chat. Meaning, when I'm giving directions, I don't want to constantly see hands up and be fielding questions. It's disruptive and time consuming. When the light is off, the kids know it's my turn to chat. When it's on, they can ask questions. An alternative to this is an Open/Closed sign. A fellow art teacher told me about it years ago. It's the same concept: Open means they can chat and ask questions; Closed means it's a listening time.

Organization for days.

How fun would these mirrors be for self portraits? I don't know if the dudes would dig them but my girls would feel like Cinderella.

Safety googles for when things get a bit STEAM-y in your art room.

I was JUST trying to find these the other day to label somethings and none of my office supply stores had them. Now I know.

Totally digging those flowery trays. Think of all the art supplies those could hold per table!

I mean, really. There is no reason I shouldn't be able to get organized. The Dollah was reminding me of this on every isle.

If you have sinks, you need these. I've twice had sinks get backed up because sweet, innocent children (ahem) drop paint brushes down the drain.

These would be perfect screens for paper making!

We use these trays in my room for papier mache and plaster projects. They are also great if you want to do paper marbling.

I send my students clay projects home wrapped in newspaper and stuffed in a lunch bag. These are so much cheaper than the ones I pick up at the grocery! Also, foil is wonderful for the leaf relief project you can find on the right hand side of this blog.