We celebrated Aidan’s 9th birthday and Avalynn’s 6th birthday with an Art party at the park! It was so fun to put together a colorful paint setup for all of the kids! (While their birthdays were awhile ago, I work weekends so this was the best fit for my schedule.) It was my first time planning TWO parties in one, but it was also really great to do it all together. Aidan and Avalynn each had their own table for their guests to enjoy as two small groups under a beautiful wooden pavilion right next to the playground. It gave the kids the perfect amount of time to play and time to sit and create art on a perfect, sunny afternoon!
If you’re interested in creating an art party for your kids, I HIGHLY recommend it! It’s such a fun way to let their creative side shine bright and see their personalities while they create! Here are some tips for planning your own art party for kids including a list of supplies we used for our party!
Planning an Art Party:
The first step is to choose a location. Whether you do this at home, in your own backyard, or at another venue like a park, it’s really nice to be outdoors if possible for easier cleanup and fresh air!
Next, you’ll want to decide the medium. We decided washable paint would be perfect for both age groups.
Then, decide how you want the party to flow. Will every child be painting the same image together, with step-by-step instructions as a group, or will they take their own spin on anything their imagination desires? For our party, I decided that it would be fun for each child to choose their own concept. I provided several How to Draw instructional books that we already had at home on the tables (Pokémon, Fortnite, and Minecraft for Aidan’s table and Animals for Avalynn’s table) with pencils for the kids to sketch out their designs before painting. This way, they could paint something they truly enjoyed and take it home to hang somewhere special!
The final planning step is to design and distribute your party invitations and start shopping for supplies! I made our invitations at home and printed on cardstock so the kids could pass them out the last week of school. I also sent the digital file to family and friends they wanted to include in the party. For food, we had everything catered by Publix (no prep, only pickup!) and picked up some extra items from Sam’s Club as well.
The Table Setup & Decor:
I was so excited to bring my vision to life for the party! Of course, I got a lot of inspiration from Pinterest for this watercolor DIY craft and this colorful tablescape.
Each table was covered with a white plastic tablecloth. I then draped 3 colorful additional clothes across vertically in stripes, covered with a long piece of white craft paper that was taped down, and then placed each child’s blank canvas over an apron. The middle of the table was lined with small, colorful buckets filled with paint brushes and pencils. I got a set of 72 various sized paint brushes from Oriental Trading. I used an assortment of brightly colored paper plates to hold their plastic paint palettes in place. I gave the older kids the circle palettes for more colors in case they wanted to mix, and the younger kids got the smaller ones with 6 colors which was perfect. Luckily, the park pavilion had a water faucet right there for us to use! I brought clear plastic cups for the water. The tablecloths and buckets were from Dollar Tree.
At the end of each table, I used a colorful basket to hold all of the big and small bottles of paint. We ordered a large set of 16 ounce washable paint colors from Oriental Trading along with a few smaller sets of 10 bright colors that came in a 3 pack. The kids had plenty of paint to use in any colors and could mix them as needed! I also included extra paint pallets and disposable gloves (for the grown ups helping out), paper towels, and wipes for messy little hands. We had everything we needed to get ready for a creative afternoon of painting at the park!
Note: I originally wanted to use wooden easels for their canvases but I decided not to at the last minute because I thought the paint may drip down and get messy. I think having them flat on the table worked out just fine for all of the kids! I ordered a value set of 8×10″ canvasses so we had plenty for everyone! We have a few left over so I donated some to Andrew’s art teacher and we have a few left for summer art projects at home–which will be perfect for all the rainy days we will be having here!
Additional decor: I actually ordered several really fun colorful, art-themed banners and lanterns to decorate the pavilion, but as soon as we arrived and I realized how windy it was, I decided to save them for another fun event. Oriental Trading has the BEST selections of banners and party decor to fit any kids theme and more!
Time for a Party!
I want to thank everyone helping get the party set up quickly! It takes a village! It’s amazing how much time it takes to plan things out, gather and organize supplies, load and unload the car, and get everyone ready! Even so, this party was planned and put together VERY quickly, even many items arriving the day before, so I had scrambled to find backups just in case. Shoutout to Oriental Trading for their SUPER FAST shipping! My heart was so relieved with all the boxes that came in quickly! (Also note that some items here were gifted by Oriental Trading in exchange for sharing on Instagram in a video which will be linked below!) We are so grateful to all who helped make this day a special one for the kids!
And now for the fun part…..the paint party! The kids really had SO much fun! I loved seeing their beautiful artwork come to life as they all got to work. The set of kids aprons were perfect to help keep their outfits clean. There was a moment during the party that it just got SO quiet because they were all so focused on painting. It was really special to see them in the moment, doing a hands-on activity, and being so proud of their work! It was also really cool to see the “little” kids and “big” kids all having so much fun! The big kids were so into their painting they had to be called over for dessert!
We had so many special guests from near and far including Avalynn’s teacher and the kids’ favorite art teacher! It was a day we’ll always remember and we are so grateful to everyone who came out to enjoy an afternoon of art at the park with us!
The kids washable paints all dried pretty quickly so as far as I know, everyone’s masterpieces made it home ready to hang! At least ours did!
Next, We Had piñatas!
My kids haven’t ever had piñatas before, so this was exciting for them. Oriental Trading has a great selection of ready-to-go piñata sets that include the piñata, the candy, and a festive stick to hit them with. It was nice not having to run to the store and figure out the candy and they shipped right to my door! Aidan’s side them was video games so he chose the controller piñata and Avalynn chose the watermelon. We let the little kids go first, followed by the big kids in 2 groups and there was plenty of candy for all! (I did add an extra bag of lollipops per Avalynn’s request.) The park we had the party at already had an area set up just for piñatas which was nice! We only needed a rope.
The candy bags were art themed and purchased from Oriental Trading also! The kids really enjoyed the pinata and everyone got at least one turn. I was pleased and surprised at how respectful they were of each other when it came time to gather the candy. They were all so sweet and shared with each other! Back in my day, things weren’t as nice!
Goodie Bags:
I also made 2 sets of goodie bags for the party guests. One set for Aidan’s in video game theme and one set for Avalynn in art/Gabby’s Dollhouse theme. We got so many fun items from Oriental Trading including the cutest little rubber duckies! For Avalynn’s bag, I ordered cat ears, made a Play-Doh activity, and some other small items. We had plenty to give out and have enough items left over to repurpose for Valentine’s Day!
Watch our Art Party Video:
Save on Your Next Party!
You can get great savings on party supplies at Oriental Trading right now! Use code FUNOTC23 for FREE SHIPPING and $40 OFF your order for a limited time! Shop for “Little Artist Party” on their website to find the items we used for our party or search their website for your own theme!
What do you think?