It’s winter in New York City which means I’m going absolutely no where out of my house. Truthfully I don’t even mind it because I miss the days when someone’s home was the destination. So instead of venturing out to a paint and sip class, I decided to invite a friend over and host one at home. Here’s a recap of how I hosted an at-home paint and sip and everything you need to know so you can host one too!
What You’ll Need for an At-Home Paint and Sip Party :
- A paint and sip kit (canvas, easel, paint brushes, paint, water cup)
- Protective gear (tablecloth & apron)
- Decor (optional but highly encouraged)
- Food & Snacks
- Drinks
At-Home Paint and Sip Kit
Of course for an at-home paint and sip party you’re going to need an at-home paint and sip kit. You can go about this one of two ways: buy an entire kit that’s already assembled or buy all of the kit components and put it together yourself.
For busybodies like me buying a pre-made kit might be more appealing. I went with kits from Mala Paint by numbers. These kits not only come with everything you need for an at home paint and sip night but the canvases also come with stencils for the images you’ll paint. This is a great option for folks who are not so artistically inclined but want to walk away with something that is presentable enough to hang up in their aesthetically pleasing home. The drawback on this is that you don’t have too much creative freedom but I honestly don’t mind—I just want to make something pretty! On top of that since all you’re doing is essentially coloring in the lines, it requires less focus and leaves room to do all the chit chat and kiking you probably want to do.
Alternatively you can assemble the at home paint and sip components yourself. This will mean going to a local art supply store or logging on to Amazon to grab things like a canvas, easel, paint, paintbrushes, and palettes.
Protective Gear
Because you’re dealing with paint and at home, you might want to think about protecting some of your furniture with a tablecloth as well as your own clothes with an apron. Truthfully, there is nothing that is too messy about the Mala paint by numbers kit since the paints are contained in mini posts and the brushes are super tiny so I didn’t use an apron. Ultimately the choice is yours based on your comfort level. Accidents do happen so you can’t be too safe.
Decor
Now for the fun part. Or at least my favorite part. For decor you can go in any direction you please or skip this step entirely. Most paint and sip classes that you pay for don’t really involve any decorative elements so it makes sense to skip this, but I am always about beautifying a space and putting my best foot forward. On top of that I just love being able to exercise my creative muscles.
You can approach decor by choosing a theme. Some examples that are art related could be “ROY G BIV” rainbow, Harlem Renaissance, or general Roman art. Alternatively you can pick a particular holiday or color scheme and work with that as well. You can even pick a theme based on the pictures you’ll be painting. For my at-home paint and sip I decided to draw inspiration from current trends and worked the decor around candles and bows. I decided to stick with a cream/ivory/white color palette because that’s what’s in my apartment anyway. To go with the general artistic vibe I picked out some props on Amazon like some ancient Roman theme sculpture candles and tabletop pillars to set them up on. Whichever direction you decide to go in for the decor of your at-home paint and sip, just be sure to have some fun!
Food & Snacks
This one might be easy to overlook but don’t forget that everyone has to eat. Because at least one of your hands will be occupied by painting, it might be best to include some easy to pick up appetizers in your set up. Wings might be something you want to avoid since you’ll need clean hands to paint. Some options to consider are fresh fruit, cookies and macarons, beef patties or empanadas, kebabs–you probably get the picture by now. I decided to serve sushi and had some brownies that I made earlier in the day for another piece of content.
Drinks
What’s an at-home paint and sip without a little something to sip on? As with food and decor, the choice is yours. I know most paint and sip parties focus on alcoholic drinks as a part of the sip but you absolutely don’t have to drink. A nice mocktail or Martinelli’s sparkling cider always does the trick for me.
And just like that you have everything you need to host an at-home paint and sip party. Happy painting and sipping!
“The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.” Psalm 19: 1
