How to Host a Kid-Friendly Painting Party
Find practical tips for how to throw a creative painting party at home.
Hosting a painting party for your kids and their friends is just about as fun as you can imagine. It was a great opportunity to get a little messy, stir up the creative juices, and entertain during a time of the year when we’re sequestered indoors due to cold weather (not to say it wouldn't be a great outdoor party theme for a warm summer afternoon). While painting parties are a fun social activity that adults have enjoyed for the last few years (a la Paint ’n’ Sip wine nights), planning a similar party at home is a piece of cake, whether you’re in the company of adults experimenting with oil paints, or letting your kids play with washable acrylics.
Gather a few materials in advance of your party:
- fresh paints (choose washable options for kids)
- paper plates for paint
- new paintbrushes
- canvases (high quality paper that can be framed is good too, but I can attest that there’s a magical ‘big kid’ appeal when you give a child the opportunity to create on a real canvas)
- water (for cleaning brushes)
- paper towels for cleanup
- easels
Paint palettes can be found at many craft and supply stores (both the classic wooden oval variety and plastic palettes with divided wells), but if you want an even more cost-effective option, use paper plates. For added appeal, use an utility knife to cut a circle as a thumb hole in your palette.
Easels are another must-have that can be hard to find affordably when you need multiples. To allow seven kids to simultaneously paint on the 11" x 14" canvases, I built a long easel ledge that extended the full length of the table. I used bolts, dowels and scrap 1 x 2 boards to assemble the easel.
Find an assortment of paintbrushes for your guests, and don’t underestimate how many the kids will manage to use in a single painting party. Be on stand-by to help rinse the brushes too, to minimize post-party clean-up and keep the utensils from drying out with paint on the brushes.
Choose a theme for the night, and encourage the kids to paint to that theme. Another popular option is to select a single, professional work of art and allow the kids to replicate it in their own style.
Our theme night was “Flowers.” And paint a beautiful variety of flowers, they did.
Helpful tips:
- Sketch with pencil first! This will help kids plan and execute their vision.
- Keep a hair dryer in the room. Blast the artwork periodically to help expedite the paint dry time so that colors can be layered without smudging together.
- Be sure each child puts their name on their finished art – either on the wooden frame on which the canvas is attached, or in the lower corner on the front.
At the end of the party, make some beautiful memories and don’t forget to take a photo with all of the kids standing together, displaying their artwork.
10 Easy-to-Create Party Favor Ideas
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Sweet Orange Ginger Tea
Use bulk spices to create your own custom blend of tea to keep guests remembering your party long after the night is over.
Buckets of Bubblegum
Whether you're planning a kid's birthday party or a neighborhood block party, a small pail filled to the rim with colorful gumballs will do the trick. Take it a step further and make a game out of it — can you blow the biggest bubble? Even adults will leave the party feeling like kids again. Design by Kim Stoegbauer of The TomKat Studio
A New Take on an Old Recipe
For the music lovers out there, this is a must-try party favor to show off your personality. Just grab some cellophane CD envelopes and pop your favorite homemade cookies right in. Wrap it up in colorful twine and top it off with a special message. Friends and family will leave with a grin on their face when they receive these personal party favors. Design by Kim Stoegbauer of The TomKat Studio
Candy Kit Bottles
Give a perfect amount of candy for guests to break into when a sweet craving hits. Fill three small glass vials with three different kinds of candy. Here, we used Nerds, Sour Worms and Snowcaps to cover sweet, sour and chocolatey cravings.
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