Art Supplies

Usually if you are working in a mainstream classroom you’re given an art budget which is typically between 5 and 8 euro per child. So in a class of 28 children you will have approximately 150 – 200 euro or more to spend on art supplies for the year.

Inventory/Stock Take

Do an inventory/stock take of what you have already (if you are currently teaching in a mainstream class, you probably have a lot of supplies from this year or previous years).

What do I need?

Here is my list of essentials; things that you will definitely use during the year. (You can always pick up other bits and pieces for different projects along the way)

Paper (A3 and A4)
Card (A4 – white and colour)
Paint
Paintbrushes
Wool
Permanent markers
Oil pastels
Glue (PVA) and glue sticks
Clay
Scissors

Where is the best place to source materials?

There are so many shops to source art supplies from!

My top places include;

Mr. Price (great for paper, card)
Dealz (wool is usually 3 for the price of 2 so 3 euro for 3 balls of wool)
ABC School Supplies
Evans
Michael Doherty School Supplies
Allen and Bailey
Specialist Crafts

How much do I need? How much do things cost?

Paint

Buy large sizes of red, yellow, blue, green and smaller sizes of other colours.

Paint Brushes

These are available from art supply shops as well as Mr. Price. Usually they cost between €4-€6 for 12 brushes. (You will need both thick and thin brushes).

Paper

A ream of white A4 paper is always handy to have. You can get it anywhere from Tesco to Mr. Price or include it in your art order. (It usually costs between €4 and €6)

A pack of coloured A4 paper is also really good to have.

A3 cartridge paper is great for painting or when using oil pastels. Cartridge paper is thicker and is better for painting. It usually costs less than €20 for 500 sheets.

Card

Card is used for lots of things throughout the year.

I usually buy two reams from Mr. Price for €9.99 each. There are 250 sheets in each ream.

Wool

I usually buy wool in Dealz as there is often an offer of 3 balls for the price of 2. (So €3 for 3 balls – 1 euro each).

These plastic needles from Evans are €2.20 and are really useful when doing Fabric and Fibre lessons.

Permanent Markers

These are great to go over the outline of a piece of artwork. I use these very regularly. I bought packs of 4 last year in Lidl for about €1.50 each. (Last years markers are still perfect)