Families often ask us where to find favorite items we use in our projects. For example, a Girl Scout leader (and camper mom) organizing a science detective activity for her troop asked where to find the DNA necklaces. Many Story Arts girls ask for extra copies of the blank hard-back books we use, and in Fashion, we get lots of requests for the fabulous fabrics we find. We also have posted a few of our Wired 101 projects to make at home, but even a household’s best ‘junk drawer’ might not have everything needed to make an LED Circuit Card. And, as all of our instructors know, I’m super picky about our colored paper and steer clear of the mottled, gray-ish construction kind that is ubiquitous in craft stores. But where do you find the good stuff?
Colored Paper & Art Supplies
Ikea carries a multi-color pack of paper that is cheap and great quality – the colors are brilliant! Find it in their children’s section. (They also sell rolls of banner paper, for big projects, that are a quarter the cost of rolls from other arts or office supply stores.)
Dick Blick is a great site for all art supplies. Search for their “student grade” or their Dick Blick brand – and you’ll get high quality materials for a great price.
Electronics Components
It is hard to find simple electronics components in small quantities, and kits tend to be either very expensive or affordable and poor quality.
Radio Shack (online or in stores) carries far fewer hobby parts than it originally did, but they still have battery housings, LEDs and other little bits.
Electronic Goldmine also sells individual motors and value packs of LEDs.
Hardback Blank Books
Bare Books sells these individually, for a great price. They also sell blank, pre-cut puzzles and fold-up game boards with pre-marked spaces for any budding board game designers.
Fabrics and Ribbons
The best path to a great grab-bag of high-quality and fun fabrics and ribbons is by buying remnant packs. Suppliers package the last bits from fabric bolts and ribbon spools and sell the bundles at a very low cost. You don’t know what you’ll get but that’s part of the fun.
Sy Fabrics sells a wide variety of remnant packs and they never disappoint!
Science Kits
Steve Spangler Science is, hands-down, the best resource for science kits and experiments.
And no list would be complete without a nod to Michael’s and the local hardware store.
These are just a few of our top picks. If you have a favorite resource, please let us know. Happy tinkering!
(Please note: we did not receive requests or compensation for sharing these resources. After having ordered bazillions of supplies, these sites have simply emerged as some of our favorites, and I wanted to share them with you.)
