Art Supplies: Drawing

The cost of purchasing art supplies from retail outlets can be prohibitive for avid scrapbookers and crafters. Originality can still be expressed while economizing on tools and supplies, and I’ve made up a list on how this can be done.

A: If you have a huge magazine stack collecting under the bed, there are many ways to finally get some use out of it. A technique I love is to cut out different sized and colored letters and make sayings or quotes. Letters can be cut off the cover page, various advertisements and article titles. Mix them all together to establish a nice retro feel.

Cute pictures and designs to use in visual projects may be in old magazines. For my scrapbook background pages, I like to look for graphics in the fashion magazines. They have just a little bit of writing on them, or none at all, and you can count on them to be very thematic. If they do have some writing, you can always cover it up with a picture or other design.

B: A really good idea when scrap-booking is to use Search Engines to find graphics. For example, when I started my daughter’s scrapbook, I searched Google images for terms like "baby girl", "it’s a girl", and etc. I was able to locate so many great things, and I really saved as well.

Simply run a search through various search engines by using their image tools for any terms that have to do with the project that you are working on. You can get plenty of ideas and materials to use if you print them out. Copyright restrictions limit many items to personal use, so please use these graphics for non-business applications. If it is for your own personal use it should not be an issue.

If you attend for a couple cents a sheet, you can print them out at your local library or school if you don’t have a printer. It’s still much cheaper than buying stickers and designs from art supply stores.

3. Most people do not know that you can make your own glue instead of buying it from the store. Based on the amount of glue required, combine equal parts flour plus water. Until it turns into a pasty substance keep mixing it.

This type of glue should be used right after you make it, as it will go moldy if left out and unused. It’s good for paper projects and should be left out to dry completely after it’s used.

Also, even if you do have glue, you can always add glitter for a nice touch. Use it as paint to decorate stuff.

D: Home made Modeling Clay provides a lot of cool crafts out there which call for some type of modeling clay. Rather than spending a lot of money for store supplies, you probably already have the ingredients in your kitchen that you can make stuff with. Now, combine 1 cup of flour, 1/2 cup of salt, 2 tablespoons of cream of tarter, 1 tablespoon of oil, and 1 cup of water. Cook gently for around 3 minutes after mixing all the ingredients in a large pan. Until you plan to use it, let it cool in the airtight container in the refrigerator. Be sure the container is closed tightly or the clay will get hard!

5. Explore - You’ll find materials everywhere! You can showcase your creativity by making masks out of paper plates, embellishing them with markers and cutting eye holes with scissors. Perhaps you could transform an old pizza box, opened up, into a collage for your wall, decorating it with dyed dry pasta shapes which have been glued on.

Think openly about things around you. There are unlimited possibilities for crafts.

Take a look at some cool specials on slightly used and new Art Supplies: Drawing: