To quote the famous Mariah Carey and the majority of the internet “IT’S TIIIIIIIME!”
We know finding good products for the artsy person in your life may be a bit challenging at times so we’ve compiled a list of items in an Amazon list to help you out! From pre-schoolers to adults, we’ve got you covered! A lot of these products we can also attest to personally!
*Blending the Rules may receive a small commission from purchase made through any of the provided links.*
Alright…we don’t have to tell anyone the adult list is for you, maybe just nudge someone who’s asking you about a gift idea in this direction and let our list do the work for them!
Gifts for Artsy Adults
For the messy one
I LOVE this apron. I used it at an art studio once and literally couldn’t figure out how to get it on at first. But now?? Obsessed. Tons of pockets, durable, I can adjust it pretty easily. And that top pocket? Fits my phone perfectly! It also comes in a ton of colors to give it your own style!
For the doodler
I don’t know about you but I’ve gotten into journaling more over the last year and a lot of them tend to be little doodles, not tons of words. Although I do like throwing some hand lettering and testing out my typography skills here and there. These markers make it so fun and challenge me to use something that is a little different than my norm. And if you’re like me and love hand lettering but struggle to come up with ideas on the fly or execute them, this “how to” book is great!
For the art-maker
You know sometimes you’re like “wow, I need to do something creative, make some art, etc.”, but the thought of getting stuff out and putting it away feels like too much work after we clean up all day, every day after kids? These paint by sticker books are a quick, easy way to create and takes a ton of thinking out of the process (if you’re an overthinker like myself).
For the fa-shunista
You know there are so many different teacher shirts out there, but art is pretty unique in that there are a lot of socks with famous paintings on them too! Grab some for a cold, winter day or crazy sock day to impress your students!
For the gamer
You know how you’re pretty sure you can see a wider range of colors more than the average person from all your art training? Don’t worry, Hues and Cues will make you start to question that! I call a pink “flamingo” and someone else thinks I’m crazy! Hues and Cues is a unique game where there are desciptions given of a certain color and the other players have to attempt to guess which hue you’re describing. In the times I’ve played, not many of us have gotten them spot on. But if you get close you get points!
Find more artsy gifts for adults at the link below (Blending the Rules may receive a small commission with purchases made through this link).
Gifts for Artsy Teens
For the ones who want any and all art materials
Alright…literally don’t think you can go wrong with Posca markers in any way, shape, or form. If you do, you’ll thank yourself for also purchasing them an apron 😉
IF you are purchasing Posca markers for elementary age children, I recommend supervision or it be an upper-elementary age child. The youngest I use paint markers with in my classroom is 3rd grade and we go over a lottttt of information before they are allowed to use them.
A compact, high quality watercolor palette. Great for traveling. I personally love taking things like this on vacation and spend some time outside and painting the landscape around me.
The amount of things you can do with polymer clay is absolutely astonishing! We’ve included a kit with a variety of colors as well as some tools to make things go “smoother”. Ha…get it?
For the perfectionist
Light tracers are a great learning tool and so helpful when you can’t get some JUST right, but of course you did on your practice sketch.
Think like a light board mixed with watercolor, this Buddha Board kit is essentially painting with water and fades over the course of a few minutes. Great way to practice ideas or just make stuff for fun without wasting materials! Win, win!
Find more artsy gifts for teens at the link below (Blending the Rules may receive a small commission with purchase made through this link).
Gifts for Artsy Kids
I mean of course we could have added and added to this list forever, but we narrowed it down to some of our favorites from our classrooms (and things we sometimes like to use when testing out projects…shhh..don’t tell our students).
For the ones who like to build
Bless my sweet students who are obsessed with magnetic tiles. They are LITERALLY obsessed. To the point things got a little wild and I had to take them away. Yes, that’s how obsessed they are. There are so many fun things you can do with magnetic tiles including building fun shapes on top of the suggested light tracer.
The ever classic…Legos. Literally don’t think I need to say anything else about that one so we will leave it at that.
For the crafty ones
Diamond painting stickers…think paint by number but with sticky jewels. In talking with some of my students, they can take a LONG time to complete. That’s why these smaller version, in sticker form are perfect! And how fun would that be to stick on something or gift to a friend after it’s made?
One of my favorite things from my childhood was scratch art! Except…my mom made me make mine (which is obviously fun as well), but now there are so many different ones it’s a pretty inexpensive option!
I, personally, think I would really enjoy a “Wreck this Journal”. It basically gives you something to do on each page…tear, cut, scribble, etc. It’s a great way for anyone to process through big emotions in creating.
For the ones obsessed with making art
If you follow Laura and I on any social media…you know we love us some paint sticks. Much less of a mess than paint, but gives the same final look and can mix!
The makers of Kwik Stix also recently started making Wonder Stix that can color on multiple surfaces. They’re smoother than crayons, but give more of a crayon/chalk look when coloring. The best part? They have a plastic case and can twist.
As a child, I would have absolutely LOVED a black paper sketchbook. I always thought it was so boring that I couldn’t use the white crayons very often. Be sure to make sure the gift receiver also has some kind of material that will show up on the black paper…the Wonder Stix or Poscas are a great way to go.
Find more artsy gifts for kids at the link below (Blending the Rules may receive a small commission with purchase made through this link).
Gifts for the Littlest Artsy Kids
There are so many art books for younger kids…some about artists, some about styles. We’ve included a few in this list. You can also check out our list of books on our storefront for more options!
I’ve always thought the paint sets with all the essentials for younger kids are absolutely adorable! Including an apron that covers just about everything that could get on the front of them. No guarantees on the back haha!
When my nieces and nephews were younger I bought them a Doodle Mat. I thought “wow this is cool!” And I think I ended up spending more time “doodling” on it than they did. Similar to the Buddha Board in the teen list, the drawing fades after a few minutes.
One thing that is super helpful for the tiniest hands with making art larger materials. With their hands not being fully developed and working on those fine motor skills, these larger crayons will make their skills more successful!
Find more artsy gifts for little artists at the link below (Blending the Rules may receive a small commission with purchase made through this link).