Under 2's are a challenge and I do like to start them crafting shortly after their first birthday.

A daycare provider I know posted a fantastic idea for mess-free painting. You put a teaspoon or two of salad oil in an extra large ziplock bag, then I squirted in about 3-4 colours of paint in blobs and then just let the children use their fingers to push the paint around inside the bag. It has to be water soluble paint so it doesn't mix with the oil and it will eventually all mix into one yucky colour but this provides lots of fun.

I mix flour and water and food colouring to make fingerpaints for the babies because it's not going to harm them at all.

I use a koolaid recipe to make my playdo and it smells fruity and nice. The kids love it. Then when it gets old we mold it into something depending on my theme of the week, but even a handprint that can be left to harden and painted is great for Mother's Day, etc.

I bought short little washable markers for them to colour.

When my older children are crafting I just let the little ones play or I put them in their boosters with craft materials but I don't have them make the big crafts until about 18 months of age, then I start showing them all about glueing and taping things too.