Art and craft projects are always a fun and easy way to keep the kids amused, but what do you do with all the scraps and leftovers afterwards? This is where the joy of collage comes in — combining pieces, shapes and colours to create something completely new. Here’s how to make a collage, a lovely early project for toddlers that can be fine-tuned for older children to create genuinely impressive works of art.
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A collage is made up of lots of little pieces put together to create one bigger piece of art. There’s no “right answer” when it comes to any artwork, and certainly not with a collage, which can be as simple or as elaborate as you like.
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How to Make a Collage
What you will need:
- White or coloured card
- Pens, crayons, glitter, ribbons, feathers or other craft items
- As many unwanted magazines as you can find, or old Christmas or birthday cards
- Scissors
- Glue
What you do:
1. Cut out lots of pictures, shapes, letters and ideas from the magazines.
2. Have your child draw out a picture on the card of what they want to create — for example, a garden, a sea scene, a farm, a zoo, or a house.
3. Glue the magazine pictures onto the card to build up the collage. Encourage your child to use pens and other craft items to decorate it further.
4. For older kids, try a mosaic-style project: take a page from a magazine, cut it into small pieces, and glue the pieces onto paper or card leaving a small gap between each one for that classic mosaic effect. Or draw the outline of a shape and fill it in with different coloured magazine pieces to create a brand-new mosaic design.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What age is collage making suitable for?
Collage is a lovely craft for toddlers right through to older children. Younger kids can enjoy simply tearing, gluing and sticking, while older children can take on more detailed mosaic-style designs.
What materials work best for a collage?
Old magazines, greeting cards, coloured card, scissors and glue are all you really need. Adding pens, glitter, ribbons or feathers gives children more ways to personalise their design.
What’s the difference between a collage and a mosaic?
A collage uses cut-out pictures, shapes or words arranged freely to build a bigger picture. A mosaic is a bit more structured — small pieces are glued with gaps between them, or used to fill in an outlined shape, giving a tiled effect.
Do I need special skills to help my child make a collage?
Not at all. Collage is a very forgiving craft — there’s no right or wrong way to arrange the pieces, so it’s a great confidence-builder for children who feel unsure about drawing or painting.
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Save This Idea for Later
No printable needed for this one — just gather your scraps and get stuck in. If you’d like more craft inspiration for a rainy afternoon, browse our full collection of art and craft ideas and bookmark your favourites for next time.
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