Is there anything like your child’s first artwork? It may be a stick figure, a simple doodle, or a colorful finger-painted mystery. Whatever it is, it’s a precious reminder of their childhood.
As time goes by, these masterpieces tend to pile up fast. Then, you find yourself running out of space to keep them all! The fridge can only hold so many drawings and photos, right?
So, what do you do with all your child’s artwork? These are some great ideas for saving children’s artwork, so you can cherish the memories for many more years!
If you’re me and most other parents, you likely have a growing stack of artwork in a drawer or storage container somewhere. While it is an option to keep your favorites and toss the others away, it’s really difficult to do this.
Personally, I like to keep each and every thing my kids make. But, I definitely understand what it’s like to have limited storage space. This is is especially true if you have more than one child at home.
I have a few pieces of artwork from my own childhood. I’m so happy my mom kept them for me, and someday, I want my kids to have some of their own artwork to look back on as well!
10 Idea’s For Saving Artwork Made By Your Kids
Here are some of my favorite ideas for saving children’s artwork (so it doesn’t clutter up your home).
1. Make it digital
This is probably one of the best ideas on this list, and the most common. Digital photos take up way less space in the home. (I mean, they take up virtually no actual space, right?).
Take a photo on your phone of your kids artwork and save it to a digital album. You can also create a special album on your computer for their artwork. Another option is scanning the artwork in and then saving it as a digital file, but this is a lot more work. You can also print the art again if you ever want to hang it back on the fridge!
I like this option because it makes it so easy to share with friends and family online. You can also save the photos on the cloud for safekeeping. Then, make an album for each age!
Looking back on how their artwork has progressed each year is really rewarding. Dropbox, Amazon Photos, and Google Photos are all good options for this.
2. Frame their artwork and hang it up
Is there any more classic way of displaying artwork than framing it? You can easily frame a drawing/painting and then hang it up in their room, or a family room.
Get creative and frame several pieces and put them together to create a collage. If you’re not into the idea of framing, you can mount artwork on poster board as well.
Framed art also makes a nice gift. Depending on what colors are used in the picture, you can easily find a frame to match the decor in your house.
Here is a nice example of some framed artwork that really brightens up the home:
3. Turn it into a card or gift for someone you love
If you’re crafty, you can turn your child’s artwork into a one-of-a-kind card or gift for a family memeber or friend. There are so many great options!
- Glue the artwork to the front of a notebook or card
- Turn it into a keychain
- Make a magnet for the fridge
- Make homemade jewelry with it
- Create a mini collage or photo album
Homemade gifts are so much more special than store-bought. And, they’re typically less expensive.
4. Turn it into a notebook or journal cover
If you (or your child) is a fan of journaling, you can easily use their artwork as a cover. Laminate or glue it to the front of a blank notebook. As mentioned above, this is also a really nice gift idea!
Don’t worry if you don’t have a laminator machine. Most people don’t have one in their home. But, you can check to see if your office has one that you can use. Also, see if your local library has one that members are allowed to use!
5. Make a collage out of it for the wall
Making a collage is a great option if you have a lot of artwork. It’s a nice way to display many pieces in a smaller space. You may want to frame the collage, or simply hang it. Try and get creative with the artwork!
Adding mementos like tickets, quotes, photos, or little notes is also nice. It’s amazing how displaying artwork made by kids can really brighten up your home. They do use all best colors, don’t they.
I also love this frame and collage idea from Pinterest:
6. Make a unique bookmark
I love this idea because I read a lot and I am always looking for a bookmark. Making bookmarks out of smaller pieces of artwork is simple. You can also take larger pieces and cut them into several different bookmarks.
Simply glue the art to a piece of cardstock and then laminate them. You can make a whole bunch of them, wrap them up, and give them away as gifts! They’re also very mail-friendly if you want to send them to family that lives farther away.
One of my favorite ideas for bookmarks is laminating them for teachers. I have a lot of teachers in my family, and they’re always in need of them. You can have your child write a special message to their teacher to add a little something extra, too. They’ll really appreciate the gesture!
7. Make a scrapbook
Scrapbooking is an excellent way to preserve memories and artwork. It creates a nice keepsake that you can easily look back on for many years.
Scrapbooks are really easy to find on Amazon or in craft stores. You don’t need any special glues or materials for a basic scrapbook. Many of them even come with page protectors, which is really helpful.
You can create one small scrapbook for each year and fill it with artwork. Scrapbooks are a lot easier to store than loose photos and papers as well. They can be stacked and stowed away in storage, and if they’re laminated, you don’t have to worry about the art degrading over time.
8. Find good storage boxes
You can’t display all of the artwork at one time! Find some good storage boxes to stow it away. You can get colorful plastic bins or pretty boxes that are made out of fabric.
Then, store the boxes away till your child is older and can decide what they may want to do with them. You can easily stack boxes in a garage, basement or attic. Be sure to label them so you can find them easily later! I like to use colored boxes and stack them neatly and out of the way.
9. Donate it to a local facility, hospital or nursing home
Did you know that nursing homes and hospitals sometimes take donated artwork? The patients/residents would love to have some bright art to cheer them up during the day.
See if you can find a place that takes donations. Your child’s school or the library may also be able to help you. You can also have your child create artwork specifically for the place you are donating. There is a local pizza shop in my town that displays all of the artwork that kids make for them. Your child will smile every time you visit and they get to see their masterpiece on display!
10. Mail it away to relatives that live far away
Artwork is nice because it’s lightweight and be mailed easily. Why not send your child’s artwork to some relatives that live in a different state? This is also a nice way to keep in touch with distant family.
You can also make it a tradition. Your child will be happy knowing their artwork is being enjoyed by people they love and care about. Have the relative take a photo of the artwork after its on display in their home. Then, you can share it with your little one!
Whatever you decide to do with your child’s artwork is up to you. It’s a precious keepsake and you can easily cherish it for years to come.
If you have any good ideas for displaying artwork, be sure to let me know! I’m always looking for new ways, as I really hate to throw anything away.