Summer Crafternoons

All free clear invited me to join their #FreeToBe Crafty campaign and share some of our summertime craft activities. And now that school is out, you will definitely find us pulling our craft supplies more frequently.

I love giving my kids opportunities to discover and practice new skills - from dancing, sports, art, and someday soon I hope to introduce the piano to their weekly routines. I think that's the best part about being a parent - seeing your children doing what they love and experiencing new adventures.

Art, although a messy activity, is one of our favorite crafts. It empowers kids and helps build self-esteem. I love to hear my kids say, "Mommy look what I made!" Some studies even show that kids that make art, read better and do better in math and science so it's a great brain activity when school is out. But besides that, my kids love being creative and yes, getting messy too.

So here are some tips for painting and how to minimize those messy crafternoons.

Summer Crafternoon Tips: Art/Painting

- Use parchment paper or craft paper to line your surfaces.

- Keep a good stack of mini canvases to have them on hand for craft activities.

- Use kid-friendly washable watercolors.

- Put on an apron or smock on your kids, if you have one.

- Paint over an easy to clean surface or line your floors or carpets with paper. In my case, this is an outdoor rug that is pretty stain-resistant.

So this summer, get busy with #FreeToBe Crafty and witness for yourself how all free clear (especially those new products with OXI) makes clean-up after those crafternoons an easy task. Visit the all free clear coupon landing page to access a coupon for $1 off any all free clear product.

This post is in collaboration with all free clear, a brand I love and use. Thank you for supporting the brands that make A DOSE OF PRETTY happen.