Paint Party

Hi there!

My two best friends and I have our birthdays 3 days apart, so every year we throw a big bash with a theme. This year we're planning a paint/graffiti party (still trying to pick a name, so suggestions there are welcome too).

Most of our friends are artists (theatre, musicians, photographers, etc) and we thought this would end much better than the typical college garbage where people are writing obscene things on other's clothing/body.

This will be held at my house though, unlike previous years when we've rented a suite or hall. This means I'm prepared for a mess, but I'd like to keep things as clean as possible. I'll be covering the furniture in sheets, etc.

The idea is to set up a table with body paints and markers for clothing. But I have really specific requirements, and am looking for suggestions on a brand:

* Dry Quickly
* Won't flake/rub off when people sit
* Won't sweat off/smear with dancing
* Thick, as the "station" will likely be crowded, and we won't have time to put on 20 layers just for the color to appear
* I *feel* like liquid or powder/liquid mix would likely be better, but if you know of a great cake that has maximum coverage, I'd love to hear it!
* Hopefully cheap/reasonably priced

Since we'll be buying so much (50+ people), I'll need maximum use per lowest ounce, unless I can find massive bottles as cheap as tempura poster paint!

Thanks in advance for your help. And honestly, clean > all else. I'll be willing to shell out a little extra for something that will dry within a few minutes and will keep my house clean!

Stephanie

MY opinion- there is no body paint product that will meet those critera... Now, that said- I love your idea!

Years ago, I used to host (And for a while sold to corporate groups) "Inner Child parties" basically think art play days for adults. We had finger paints, crayons, markers, something we called "Gum Drop Glop" which was translucent play dough sort of.

We made most fo the paints and glop ourselves (many recipes online) and i will warn you that 99% of the time, everyone ended up painted head to toe and a big finger paint "Fight". So, DO cover your house! You can get adhesive plastic floor protection on a big roll, and it will stick to the carpets etc, but JUSt enough to keep in in place. Easy to remove leaves no residue.

Markers... ANYTHING made by crayola. They practically make their products edible. And most wash out of clothes with varying degrees of success.

But, makeup and body paint are not going to meet all those critera. EBA Endura inks will meet all EXCEPT the "Cheap" requirement... they aint cheap! Plus they are alcohol based so cant use without ventillation.

Star blends used with Mixing Liquid might come close... but still going to come off.

Hmm. Tricky!

Markers I suppose would be fine, though a little less artsy than I was hoping for. Since many of the people invited are such amazing artists, it would have been fun to see art on the "Canvas" of the body.

I'll be warning everyone to wear tank tops (white) and jeans; things that can get written on

I'll check out those two suggestions. What if I remove the "flake off" part, where things might flake (I can vacuum and sweep up flakes) and maybe the sweat part?

Mostly I just worry about the carpet. I have a massive house and just don't see putting down plastic on the carpets (already doing sheets on all couches and chairs).

LOVE the inner child parties! I should totally do smaller scale parties like that (relegating the bad behavior to the kitchen, heh).

The three of us are still quite dead set on this. Going to look over the prices of those suggestions since we'll all be pitching in. I hate to do it, but markers might be our end game. We'll see!

Most Professional Face Paints will,
dry within a few minutes (cakes would be better for this than liquids) and most should go on bright and vibrant with just a layer (or 2 for very light colours). They shouldn't flake off and should stay on and not rub off as long as they are dry.

The biggest problem is finding something that will stay on through sweat... if you want something that is going to wash off eventually then you would expect that when it gets wet and sweaty it will smear.

TAG is probably one of the longer lasting/ cheaper brands which has very vibrant colours.
The cheaper you go the more likely the paint is to sweat off/flake/need more layers.....

Maybe using a liquid spray to seal the paint? Not cheap because you will most likely use alot but should help keep the paint where you want it.