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This 30 day art challenge is great for kids, adults or kids and adults to do together. Spend some time making over the next 30 and I promise you’ll feel better. It might even cause you to want to start a new hobby!
A creative challenge is a great way to feel more creative, and these 30 ideas are relatively quick, easy, and they are things you can do with your kids or in many cases that you can do alone or your kids can do alone. (For partner projects you can even send them to someone via email or text. Social art making with social distancing for the win!)
Supplies for a 30 Day Art Challenge
This art challenge assumes that you have some basic supplies at home, including:
- paper, pencils, and something for drawing like colored pencils, crayons or markers
- watercolor and acrylic paint and brushes
- yarn
- fabric (can be an old T-shirt)
- felt (optional for softies)
- basic sewing supplies
- glue
- construction paper
- junk mail
- tape (ideally washi tape or something removable)
It would also be nice if you had a stash of beads, buttons and other embellishments for sewing projects, but it’s not essential. Get creative and use what you have for this art challenge.
Easy 30 Day Art Challenge Ideas
- Draw or write with your non-dominant hand.
- With a partner, each of you draw the same thing. Or draw something you see.
- Put on your favorite song or album (or something soothing, whatever you need) and paint or draw to it.
- With a partner, each of you start a painting or drawing, then swap and see how the other person finishes it.
- Draw a map of your house, school or workplace. If doing with a partner, pick a place you both know well and compare. If doing alone, map your childhood home or somewhere you haven’t been in a long time.
- Write a secret message in white crayon on heavy paper. Swap with a partner and “decode” the message by painting over it in watercolor.
- If you have yarn in the house, try finger knitting.
- With a child, have them draw on fabric and you can embroider over their drawing. Or you can both draw on fabric and swap for embellishments.
- Sew a softie or two. Expand this project by drawing out what you want to make first, then developing a pattern and sewing the project.
- Collect items from outside (safely) and make a collage or construction.
- Use a Y-shaped stick for a weaving project.
- Make a single-line drawing of something you can see wherever you are sitting. Try it again with your eyes closed.
- Collect things from the house to make stamps with. Decorate a card and mail it to someone you wish you could see in person.
- Make pom-poms and use them for a project.
- Make playdough or air-dry clay and make a sculpture or a pinch pot.
- Find a picture of a painting you love and try to re-create it.
- Make a drawing, painting or other piece of art with your least-favorite color.
- Make a sun print.
- Draw something’s shadow.
- Make a finger painting or use cotton swabs or balls to apply paint.
- Use junk mail or magazines to make a collage or weaving project.
- Take a picture outside and then draw or paint it. Or draw what you see out your window.
- Illustrate a favorite quote by hand or ransom-note style.
- Lay some tape down on a piece of paper and paint or color, then remove the tape.
- Trace your handprint and write or draw something about yourself or your day in the space.
- Write a haiku about your day and illustrate it.
- Download a coloring page or make your own and color it (I love the ones from the Van Gogh museum!).
- Make a paper airplane. Decorate it if you like and challenge everyone in the house to a flying competition.
- Find a drawing tutorial online and see if you can draw it.
- Draw a mythical creature of your own invention.
Add Your Own Craft Challenge Ideas
I made up this 30 day art challenge based on things I thought most people would have at home, but you can of course make up your own challenge list based on the supplies you have at home.
If you are doing this for or with kids you can gear some of the challenges to things they are interested in or the season — go outside and find a flower to draw, make up your own superhero, draw yourself going back to the time of the dinosaurs.
Or if there’s a craft your kid loves, you can incorporate that as well. Try making friendship bracelets, stringing beads, making greeting cards to send to friends.
If you have a craft you love, now’s a great time to teach your kids that, too. Add in a learn to sew, knit or crochet challenge, make soap or a candle together, whatever you’ve got supplies for in the house.
Grab the Printable Art Challenge List
If you’d like to use this challenge yourself or with your kids, you can download a printable PDF when you sign up for my email list.
