Today’s topic is one I am always excited to talk about… art supplies! Or, more specifically how to create an art kit for customers who come to your online paint parties.

In fact, having art kits for purchase or even as an upsell as part of your online paint party event, you can boost your sign up rates and profits. Offering an art kit with your paint parties will remove a big barrier a lot of people have to signing up for an online painting class. Many people feel overwhelmed with the sheer number of choices out there, when it comes to art supplies, and many will appreciate having everything they need for your virtual paint party in one tidy little package!

white gift bag with art supplies - paint, brushes, and cups

What to Put in an Art Kit?

Here’s what I typically put in the art kits I sell to my customers:

1. Paper Towel

This one seems basic, but a paper towel is one of the most vital art supplies! Customers can use them to dry their brushes when changing colors. Just fold it up a few times and stick it in the kit.

2. Cup

This is for your your customers to rinse their brushes out with as they work. I usually find cute inexpensive ones at the Dollar Store or the Target Dollar Spot. This is helpful because you don’t want them to use their nice kitchen cups when painting!

3. Canvas

I usually pre-trace the outline for my customers onto their canvas before the paint party. So, I do the same for my art kits. I always bring a few blank one, just in case someone doesn’t want their design pre-traced. The larger canvases obviously won’t fit in the bag, so I’ll just hand both off separately.

4. Paint

For an online paint party art kit or art kits sale, you’ll rarely need to give out full bottles of paint. Instead, you can use little one ounce cups from Amazon and fill them up with paint before adding them to the bag. It’s a good idea to seal the top one a piece of scotch tape and put them all into a plastic bag!

5. Brushes

The kind of brushes you’ll need depends on what type of painting you’ll be teaching for your online paint party event. In general, I like to do one big brush and one smaller. You can buy large packs at craft store like Hobby Lobby using a 40% off coupon to save money. And, each art kid doesn’t have to have the same sets of brushes either so, buy an inexpensive variety pack from the craft store.

6. Thank You Card

You don’t have to make it too fancy, but make it a point to add a “thank you” note to your art kits. This is a great opportunity to let people know how to keep up with you on social media for future classes too!

7. Fun Surprise

It’s always nice to get a little something extra! I like to add glitter glue so they can give their piece a little extra sparkle.

Note: do not add actual glitter to your art kit. People hate it! It gets everywhere and leaves a big mess to clean up—just don’t do it!

How to Package Your Kit

white gift bag with Texas Art and Soul sticker - paint party online goodie bag

There are so many fun ways to package these! One popular method some of my Paint Party Headquarters members have used is to take brown paper bags and decorate them. This is such a fun way to personalize bags and get people excited to come to your paint party. If you want to keep it simple, you can just add a sticker to your paper bag and call it a day.

How to Arrange Pick Up

When it comes to getting your newly made art kit into the eager arms of your customers, there’s a little bit of logistics to work through. Here are some methods I have used in the past that have worked well for me.

Arrange an In-Person Pickup

One thing I’ve done several times is arranged for people to come pick up their art kits from me. I don’t want to give my home address out for safety reasons (and I suggest you don’t either!). So what I do is let people know that I’ll be in a certain spot (typically Starbucks) for a 2-3 hour period.

I like doing this because I get to sit and enjoy my coffee and a good book (by the way, my current favorite is Big Magic – SO fantastic!) while my students come to me. Plus it’s always nice to say hello and meet people face-to-face.

Ship Kits to Them

This is a good method to utilize if you have students out of the area. However, it can take a good amount of time and energy to get things mailed properly. Plus, there is an additional cost associated with the postage and packaging, so make sure to factor all of this into your pricing.

Drop Kits Off

Dropping art kits off to those who are taking your class will only work if they are local. Again, you have to consider the extra cost factor here – your time really is money when it comes to business! Plus, gas and car maintenance can quickly add up.

I don’t go door to door to drop my kits off typically. Instead, I utilize this method when I am teaching a large group. So, for example, if I teach a paint party at a church or a country club, I’ll put together my art kits and drop them off ahead of time. This works great for digital and in-person paint parties!

Video: Learn More About Art Kits and Having a Paint Party Business

In this video, I go into a few different things:

  • More in detail information about art kits and examples of what to include
  • A pep talk, if you will. I’m very passionate about artists being able to earn an income doing what they love.
  • Information on Paint Party Headquarters! I LOVE teaching creative souls exactly how to grow a thriving paint party business.

If you have any tips or tricks to putting together art kits, or any questions, please drop them in the comments below. I’d love to chat!