Both of my girls really enjoy painting, but my 2-year-old seems to just LOVE it. She paints with so much energy and passion, with her paint strokes reminding me of a concert pianist in the midst of the most challenging part of a piece. I’m not saying that what Layah produces is always a masterpiece, though of course, as her mom, I think her work is pretty darn cool. I love to set out invitations to create for her and watch her get lost in her colors.

But I DON’T love the clean up that happens afterwards. She paints so intensely that she regularly breaks through her paper and gets paint all over our dining room table. We actually have a very cheap table, and it’s also painted black, and those two characteristics are real blessings in disguise during this season of life, let me tell you. But I still get nervous that I’ll miss a spot and that someone will get paint on their clothes by touching it later. And I always limit Layah to the table for her art time, too, because I don’t want our floors or our other pieces of furniture to get ruined.

Satsuma Designs is a brand that reached out to me recently and I immediately noticed their art mats. This company specializes in eco-friendly and affordable gifts for little ones. They have a great variety of products, but for now, I want to draw your attention to their products for young artists. We received the Kids Art Mat in the ladybug pattern (one of 4 different adorable patterns) ($25). It can be monogrammed for an additional fee, but I left that feature off since I wanted my girls to share it.

And share it, they most definitely can! I was really pleasantly surprised by the large size of the mat. I wish it was a pinch wider, but it is quite long, and as you can see, two kids can actually work on art projects side-by-side, if needed.

The art mat has pockets for tucking away any supplies you might be using, like paint brushes, scissors or crayons. That’s a nice feature, though I do wish the mat had a way to hang up so that you could more easily keep those supplies in the pockets when not in use. I suppose if you roll up the mat from top to bottom you might be able to keep them in tact.

But if your mat gets dirty with paint, you simply toss it in the wash or wipe it down. Easy!

I think the art mat is a great choice for anyone out there with little artists who can’t always keep their creativity on the paper. And Satsuma Designs is a really fun online shop you should definitely check out. This month they are giving 20% of every purchase back to the Young Survivor Coalition, to help support mommies out there who are fighting breast cancer. Take a moment to check them out! As for me, I’m looking forward to Layah coming from from school in a few hours because today, she gets to paint on the floor! 🙂