Free Little Art Gallery Barnhart

05/26/2026

I can’t thank everyone enough for their rapid response and wonderful generosity.

05/24/2026

Dear Parents and Community Friends,

I need to ask for your help.

When I opened our Free Little Art Gallery for the season, I truly believed I had purchased enough supplies based on last year’s turnout. But something wonderful happened — the number of children visiting has doubled, and some weeks even tripled.

The joy and excitement these children bring each week has been incredible to watch, but it has also exhausted our supplies much faster than expected.

After filling this week’s projects, I am now completely out of glue, acrylic paint, paint brushes, and nearly all of our markers and basic crafting materials.

Since the beginning of the season, I have personally spent over $2,000 keeping the gallery stocked. On a disabled person’s fixed income, that is a very large amount, but I kept going because I know many families cannot afford art supplies for their children right now, and I believe creativity matters.

I do not want to close the Free Little Art Gallery early.

The children look forward to these projects every week. They create with such excitement, imagination, and pride, and I want so badly to keep this little space going through the end of the season.

But I cannot do it alone anymore.

I am attaching our Amazon wish list for anyone who may be willing and financially able to help. Everything has been organized by priority of need.

Even small donations make a difference:
• Glue
• Paint brushes
• Acrylic paint
• Markers
• Craft kits
• Wood pieces
• Stickers
• Ribbon, buttons, yarn, or leftover craft supplies

If you work for or have connections with stores such as Dollar Tree, Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, or other businesses that sell art supplies, perhaps they would be willing to donate supplies or even a small gift card. Civic organizations, churches, local businesses, and community groups may also be willing to help support the gallery.

I have already written letters to every store and company I could think of requesting donations, but so far I have not received any responses.

So now I am turning to the people who truly see the impact this gallery has made — the parents, grandparents, neighbors, and community members who watch these children light up with creativity each week.

If you are able to help in any way, no matter how small, I would be deeply grateful.

Thank you for supporting creativity, kindness, and joy for the children in our community.

With gratitude,

Tanya
Free Little Art Gallery Barnhart

05/24/2026

Our Free Little Art Gallery is fully stocked for this week’s wood projects, and I’m so excited to see what the children create! ❤️

A few helpful notes to make this week’s crafting experience even more successful:

1. Wood project bases can be found both inside the art gallery and on the red table located on the porch.

2. I am currently out of glue pens, but I’ve set out cups of white glue with craft sticks for spreading. It may not be the fanciest setup, but it should still get the job done! 😊 There are also glue sticks available, though I’m not sure how well they’ll work on wood surfaces.

3. If your child plans to paint their project, please encourage them to start with at least one coat of white paint first. Raw wood tends to absorb paint quickly, and the white base coat really helps the colors show up brighter. There are also colorful markers available for the children to use.

4. Please encourage your child to take only the supplies they truly need for their project. We’ve had such an amazing turnout each week that many supplies are running low, and I’d love to keep enough available for everyone to enjoy.

I truly hope your child enjoys this week’s projects as much as I enjoyed putting them together.

~ Tanya

05/17/2026

05/10/2026

I realized there are so many more fun and interactive things we can do together in a group than on our old business page…so we’ve officially moved!

This new group will let us share:

🎨 Project photos
🌟 Weekly updates
🖌 Imagination Station activities
💖 Kindness and creativity from our young artists
📌 Special featured posts
…and so much more!

For the next couple of weeks, I’ll continue posting updates in both places while everyone makes the transition. After that, all future updates, announcements, and activities will be shared here.

https://www.facebook.com/share/g/18w7hdbWzU/?mibextid=wwXIfr

05/10/2026

This week it’s all about beaded bracelets and necklaces!

A few notes to parents (to help save their sanity!)

* Beads LOVE to run away, so it helps to have your child work over a plate, bowl or tray to help contain those little devils when they try to flee.

* A small piece of scotch tape twisted around the end of the twine can make the beads much easier to get on the string. (Like the end of a shoe lace.)

* Don’t forget to tie a knot at one end of the string so the beads don’t slide off as you put them on! (My biggest mistake every time!)

* I put a jump ring on every charm, but my tools I’ve always used to securely close them have disappeared so I had to make due with teeny tiny (seriously I’m talking child size) pliers. It might be wise to double check them before adding them to the bracelet/necklace.

*Beads are small which automatically make them a choking hazard for young children. Please use caution when working with little ones!

* All limits posted are PER DAY, so if your child enjoys this week’s project they’re welcome to come back for more supplies.

* On rainy days the Imagination Station will be located on my front porch so the materials aren’t damaged. Feel free to come take whatever you need.

And lastly, nothing makes me happier than receiving photos of your kid’s projects. I will NEVER post your child’s face in the photo unless given specific permission to do so.

05/10/2026

Thank you so much to the two parents who took the time to send me photos of their children’s creations this week. Seeing them brings me so much joy.

Feel free to post your children’s work so we can appreciate their hard work and creativity!

05/09/2026

Thank you to Emilie for the beautiful yarn and funny stickers she donated to our little art gallery!

05/09/2026

A HUGE THANK YOU to Steve for the donation of egg cartons and round wood blocks. We’re going to have a blast with them!