Magazine Pages — If you have some old magazines hanging around, you can cut out letters, pictures and bits of pictures to include in your collage art. This is a particularly fun activity for kids to work on. Look for Pearl Ex, which is a popular brand name of mica powder marketed for crafters.

Pages From Damaged Books — Vintage and antique books are a fantastic source of imagery to use in collage. Paper — Just about any paper could become part of your next collage — cardstock paper, colored paper, plain paper, notebook paper, ledger paper, graph paper, old paper, new paper, patterned paper, tissue paper, index cards, handmade paper, ETC!

Pipe Cleaners — You can twist pipe cleaners into interesting shapes, and make all kinds of fun pictures or illustrations with them.

It would be interesting to make an entire collage using pipe cleaners, or to incorporate them into a collage that also includes other materials. Pom-Poms — You can buy ready-made pompoms, or you could make them yourself out of yarn. Either way, they could be an interesting addition to your collage.

Photographs — Photo collages are some of the most popular types of collage-making projects. Postcards — These are great addition to travel-themed collages and picture collages. Ribbon — There are so many interesting ways to incorporate ribbon into your collage art.

Ribbon could make a nice border for one edge of your collage, or several edges. You can tie ribbon into bows and attach it to the collage, or use it for weaving in and out of holes in a collage.

Rubber-Stamped Images — You can rubber stamp an image, color it in if desired, cut it out, and use it in a collage. Or you could also rubber stamp directly onto your collage, if you prefer.

Sand — There are artists who use colored sand as their primary media for creating collages. Seed Packages — Seed packages usually feature interesting color photographs on the front.

Vintage and antique seed packages are popular with collage artists, for two reasons. One, the imagery is lovely, and two, you can sometimes find seed packages where the copyright protection on the illustration has expired, and the illustration is now in the public domain.

This is important for collage artists who wish to sell or reproduce their work. Sequins — Add a little sparkle and pizzazz to your collage with sequins.

Stickers — Stickers are an easy way to incorporate an image or sentiment into your collage. There are stickers available for just about every conceivable theme or occasion.

I tend to use bunches of alphabet stickers and letter stickers in my collages. String — You could tie all kinds of interesting things onto your collages using string or twine. Trash — This might sound gross, but really, the trash can and the recycle bin are two of the best-ever places for locating collage materials.

People throw away all kinds of interesting things that could be collaged. Cereal boxes and candy wrappers could both be cut up and used for collage. Colored plastic bags could provide endless collage material. Victorian-Era Calling Cards — Way back when, small printed calling cards, similar to business cards, were popular items.

If you happen to have any of these beautiful bits of history in your possession, they make lovely additions to collage art. Beads and Wire for Bead Crochet and Jewelry Making. Wire — Wire is available in a wide variety of colors, materials and gauges.

You can twist wire into all kinds of interesting configurations and shapes to use in your collage work. Additionally, you can crochet or knit with it and incorporate the crocheted or knitted bits into your collage as well. Wrapping Paper — After any gift-giving occasion has passed, gather up any used-but-useable giftwrap that can be salvaged, and add it to your stash of collage materials.

Yarn — If there are people in your collage, you could use yarn for creating their hair. You could also tie it into bows, weave it in and out of holes in the collage, or do some stitching with the yarn on the collage.

This is a great way to use up scrap yarn left over from your crochet, knitting or weaving projects. Molded Resin Tiles or Pieces.

Resin Crafts: Silk Flowers Embedded in Resin Tile Cubes. Resin Crafts: Collage Art Featuring Handmade Paper, Spin Art, and Cubes of Resin With Tiny Silk Flowers Embedded Inside Them. Resin is a unique medium you can use for collage art or a broad variety of other art and craft techniques.

Resin is moldable and sculptable; if you pour it into molds, you can embed small objects like beads and buttons inside it. Then it hardens into solid plastic-y pieces like the ones you see pictured here.

Learn more about it in our guide to resin crafts. Mod Podge — Mod Podge is a fantastic adhesive to use for paper collages and other paper crafts. The type of finish depends on the specific bottle of Mod Podge that you buy, for example, if you buy the Glossy Mod Podge, your collage will have a glossy finish wherever you apply it.

Zip Dry also works well on other surfaces including plastic, acrylic, chipboard, and other surfaces. Popular and perhaps a few not-so-popular collage bases include:. Paper — usually a heavy paper, such as cardstock, Bristol board, illustration board or mat board.

Chipboard — You can usually purchase chipboard wherever scrapbooking supplies are sold, but you can also find free or recycled sources of it sometimes.

There can be quite a bit of overlap between various craft techniques, and this is one of those areas. You can also collage with them if you like.

The reason I gave it a try: At the 99 cent store, I found some small, colorful, cheap-o wall decorations that I thought were made of wood. They were an interesting shape, and on the back there were already sawtooth hangers that could be used for hanging.

I thought these would make amazing collage bases, so I bought bunches of them to work with. I painted over them and collaged on top of them, and they worked well for that purpose. Wood — In theory, you should be able to use a wood background for collage. I do recommend having sponge brushes, paintbrushes, squirt bottles, pens, markers, needle, thread, rags or paper towels, and sponges on hand.

You could, however, buy endless amounts of tools and devices that would enhance your collage-making. Popular tools include die-cutters, brayers, paper punches, and scoring tools such as bone folders.

The majority of the image elements I use in my digital collages and junk journals are from public domain websites and sources. This post contains affiliate links. If you click on one and buy something, I get a small percentage of that at no extra cost to you.

Read my full disclosure here. Public domain means that the works are no longer held under copyright by any person or corporation, and any individual person can use them for any purpose, including commercial use. Nowadays that basically means anything created before January 1, is now in the public domain— in the United States.

Other countries have different public domain rules, so you should always double-check before using something. Many of the websites on this list utilize a Creative Commons license to explain usage rights for their images and scans.

Many museums have digitized their copies of art and put them up online, making them free for users to access and download. This has created an interesting question of usage rights!

While a painting may be public domain because of its age, a photograph of that painting can still be under copyright. Museums then choose to release that photograph under a specific license which dictates how people can use that photograph.

Other Creative Commons licenses may have specific rules about attributing the source of the image, editing the image, re-sharing the image, etc. This is the digital collection of the Rijksmuseum, the national museum of the Netherlands. It encompasses , works available under a Creative Commons 1.

Works include paintings, sculptures, books and calligraphy, photographs and more. You do need to register for an account to download, and if you want very high quality TIFF files you have to make a special request using a form.

Their goal is to add 40, works per year until they digitize their entire million-plus collection, so be sure to check back for updates. This digital collection has a million objects cataloged and includes high quality images of statues, paintings, fabrics, photographs, and other works.

Images are only to be used for non-commercial works and are under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4. A wonderful collection of high resolution images of public domain artworks, including paintings, drawings, and other paper-based art.

Images are in DPI, making them suitable for digital collage work. You can also browse through collections organized by topic e. elegant, child, propaganda or culture. as well as 3D, including statues, coffins!

This is the online collection of all fourteen museums in the City of Paris, and includes over , works which are all in the public domain. Items include paintings, sculptures, textiles, etc. You can bulk-download multiple images of a single item, which is very handy.

Need more public domain or royalty-free images? This is a user-built collection of public domain comics created prior to only the public domain ones— so that should help a little. And of course the search bar helps cut down on extra stuff.

Each resource shared includes public use and copyright-free material that you can use for your own creative projects or commercial use! If you' Missing Use all archival materials. Here is what I've been using in my collages since Acid-Free and Lignin-

Free art supplies for collage artists - Here is a list of ideas for collage materials: Art and Craft Magazines have expressive imagery that adds depth, colour, and interest to collages. - National Each resource shared includes public use and copyright-free material that you can use for your own creative projects or commercial use! If you' Missing Use all archival materials. Here is what I've been using in my collages since Acid-Free and Lignin-

These are my essentials when it comes to collage. If so, let me know below what your absolute favorite material or tool for collage is right now! Idea, time and Inspiration Gather your tools and papers, then start.

And the Start needs to consist of a place to sit, a time when you can do it, and an idea or some inspiration, as mentioned above.

But I think that the most important thing is to sit down at your table and to just start, so maybe number five is not about finding inspiration but to start! In an intuitive way collage is born.

One of my favorite ways to start is simply by Sorting — it always gets my creative brain going and whirling, without having to look outwards for external inspo. Such a fun post, Hanna! As a fellow collage artist I really enjoyed this post and will check out some of your links. Your project sounds soo fun, thanks for sharing.

Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Home Collage Tutorials I write Lists 5 things every Collage Artist Needs I made myself a New Art Journal.

My Story of Becoming a Plant Lady. iHanna Creating collages is one of my favorite things to do when it comes to being an artist! COLLAGE ARTIST MUST-HAVES You can cut and paste in many different ways , but what ever form you enjoy you should always start with what sparks joy to you!

Glue stick To create a paper collage you need a easy to use glue, and to me there is nothing better than a trustworthy glue stick. Scissors Scissors is a more personal choice , and a lot depends on what feels comfortable in your hand. Substrate Substrate is the piece of paper that you glue your bits down on.

Collage fodder You need some papers or scraps to build a little stash of collage fodder to use. Related Posts Pink in my Rainbow Glue book Restart Creativity — How to get back after a Break Make a Pizza Postcard with Summer Greetings How to make Fabric Beads — Easy Craft How to decorate Your Easter Tree.

I made myself a New Art Journal. We think about how we combine colors, textures, and materials to add visual appeal to our piece. We can work flat or we go work three-dimensionally depending on what we want to create.

Pour yourself a cup of hot tea and spend time noticing the layers, admiring the layout, and savoring the colors that the artist used to create the collages in their books.

You might notice details that you never noticed before, despite the fact that you have read that book a gazillion times. My favorite collage artist is Eric Carle and revisiting his books is a favorite way for me to get inspired.

He would keep his different colors and textures in different bins and use those for creating is amazing works of art. To learn more about his process you can find videos of him on YouTube creating his works of art -or- treat yourself and visit his museum in Massachusetts.

I also adore Lois Ehlert, especially her nature collages and loose parts in her books Leaf Man and Snowballs! In each partition of the chip and dip container put a new material and keep filling up the container until you have a well rounded selection of materials.

Admire your collection and think about creations that you might make. For me, I enjoy the gathering process and often do that part the day before collaging. Then on the day I am going to collage, I appreciate being able to sit down with a variety of materials to dive into my creativity.

Think of someone you love that you know would appreciate a homemade card. as well as 3D, including statues, coffins! This is the online collection of all fourteen museums in the City of Paris, and includes over , works which are all in the public domain. Items include paintings, sculptures, textiles, etc.

You can bulk-download multiple images of a single item, which is very handy. Need more public domain or royalty-free images? This is a user-built collection of public domain comics created prior to only the public domain ones— so that should help a little.

And of course the search bar helps cut down on extra stuff. This is the digital version of the David Rumsey Map Center hosted at Stanford University Library. High resolutions images of all kinds of historical maps from all over the world! Currently the collection is at , works.

This digital collection currently has over 50, works in its public domain section, including both paintings and 3D works of art like statues and textiles. Many of their images are available on Wikimedia Commons as well.

rawpixel is a stock photo website which you usually have to pay for. However, this is the public domain collection which is totally free, including high resolution TIFF files!

color corrected a bit. Thank you so much for putting these resources together! I am new to making digital collages but already utterly in love with the process. Thank you, thank you!!

Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

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Free art supplies for collage artists - Here is a list of ideas for collage materials: Art and Craft Magazines have expressive imagery that adds depth, colour, and interest to collages. - National Each resource shared includes public use and copyright-free material that you can use for your own creative projects or commercial use! If you' Missing Use all archival materials. Here is what I've been using in my collages since Acid-Free and Lignin-

Look for antique and garage style style flea markets where people are unloading their basements. Not all cool books, mags, and comics are collage worthy. Again, you will always get a better deal when you buy collections. Most thrift shops have an area with books.

You may not find big collections or anything super niche, but the price is usually right. Occasionally libraries have sales where they get rid of old books. I have had some great scores at library sales.

Craigslist is a great place to find free and inexpensive materials. I think estate sales are often over priced. Usually books and magazines are cheap. Timing is super important for events like these. If a garage sale is from 10am-4pm, all the good stuff will likley be taken by Usually when I go to a used book store, I plan on spending more money than I would at the other places I mentioned, but there is a plus.

Often used book stores are well curated and you may be able to find some really cool stuff all in one trip. Like libraries, used books stores may have a big sale annually. Please let me know what you find out there in the comments below! I hope this information is helpful to you!

Thanks so much for reading! I plan on posting more content like this in the future. If you are interested you can sign up for my mailing list! This easy to print five-page full-color collage kit is absolutely free.

All that is needed to check out is an email address. This is a digital product that you download PDF and print at home. Once you have your kit, to make your own collages, all you will need is a pair of scissors and a glue stick. Which you can find on my Amazon affiliate store. January 8, How to Collage.

In this post, I am going to tell you how and where to find some awesome materials to collage with, but first I have a question for you: Do you have paper ephemera in your home that you have been saving for certain reasons?

Garbage Thats right. Flea Markets Different flea markets have different vibes. Thrift Shops Most thrift shops have an area with books.

Library Sales Occasionally libraries have sales where they get rid of old books. Craigslist Craigslist is a great place to find free and inexpensive materials.

Used Book Stores Usually when I go to a used book store, I plan on spending more money than I would at the other places I mentioned, but there is a plus. I keep files of different colored paper and patterns from magazines, scrapbooking papers, junk mail, etc… Unfortunately, most of these papers are not acid-free and lignin-free.

For your collages and mixed media work to be archival and keep their vibrant colors, you need materials to be both acid and lignin-free. Construction papers fade the fastest. The dark blue and purple changes to a silver color pretty quickly.

I do have a collage where this still looks okay and one where it completely ruined the whole image. Also, tissue papers fade fast. Scrapbooking papers are many times at least acid-free. The colors on the acid-free papers will last longer, but are not archival, meaning they will keep their color for hundreds of years if taken care of properly.

Be especially careful with whites and lighter tones. There are methods to reduce the amount of acid in newspapers, for example, however this will only delay the inevitable.

It really is a pain to have to go back into one of your collages and paint over any fading or brown areas. Here is a link to the brand I found. I love using metallic papers in my collages.

Remove any varnish or wax coating. Do your best to color match the paper and paint over with acrylics. Remember acrylics dry a little darker. If you used any tissue papers, paint over the area acrylics, then reapply archival tissue paper.

Have you found any other methods or materials that work for your collages? If you are a collage artist or mixed media artist, was this helpful? Please let me know. Pingback: Ruined! How to Protect Your Art - Laura Lynne Art and Illustration. However, I am lost in information.

For the Epson printer you mentioned, for instance, I saw a lot of reviews online saying it clogs. Have you had any issues like this? Or is there other printers you could indicate for me to check? Thank you so much! Hello Fernando! Yes, I would scan and print them.

I have an Epson R It works well.