Face-Painting : Creative Expression for Mommy and Kidlets

If you have been over to my other blog, you would know that we have been doing plenty of face-painting lately. I kind of got into it because my friend was having a party for her daughter and I’d sort of promised that I would help out. I did tell her that I’ve never really done face-painting before, but she was kind enough to bring along a kit and we both practiced on her daughter and on Josh and Zoë first.

We started with small flowers and butterflies, balloons and spiders, small details around the eyes.

It was so much fun! For both of us and for the kids. They kept asking us to paint more and before we knew it, we had painted small drawings on their cheeks, all up and down their arms. and we even started working on their legs!

I decided to get my own set and I got braver and decided to try full-face jobs. They’re not as hard as I’d thought they might be. You just need to be VERY patient, though. Especially if your tikesters are any like mine, who can hardly sit still throughout the session. You’ll probably be gritting your teeth and threatening not to complete the job if they won’t sit still. (No? I wish I have your patience.) BUT, the look on their face after you’ve finished and they’ve checked out your work for themselves in the mirror? Is SO worth it. Seriously.

Face-painting has been such a lot of fun. I got to let my creative juices flow. There are tons of face-paint designs online to copy from and the face-paint kit that I got came with a guide. But even without these, it was fun to come up with my own designs. You’d be surprised at how easily inspired you could be! For the kiddies, it was great seeing them get into the character of whatever face paint design they got. There was plenty of pretend play happening after each session and I so enjoyed watching them walking around, proudly showing off their face art, and engaging each other in various pretend scenarios centered around their face-paint characters.

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The face paint kit I use is by Snazaroo. In Hong Kong, you can get it from Bumps to Babes for HK$150. It comes with a brush, a cosmetic sponge, a step-by-step guide with a selection of designs to copy, and 8x 2ml colors (red, blue, white, black, green, pink, yellow, and purple). The paints are hypoallergenic, non-toxic, and water-based. They wash off very easily.

I’ve tried to use face-painting crayons before, but I find the Snazaroo face paints a lot easier to use. For one, these face paints are easier to apply, especially if you have to paint over a big area (with the sponge). I had bought extra face paints in select colors for those colors that I know I will use often. Bumps to Babes carry the 18ml ones (HK$50 each).

And the glitters? I just got some from the local stationery store. Just make sure that you get the glitters that are labeled "good for body, nail, hair," as opposed to glitter that you normally use for arts and crafts.

I got a couple of these glitters from the stationery store at Stanley (where the old Pepperoni's used to be) for HK$15 each and then I found the exact same ones in another stationery store near where we live for only HK$6. (Yes, a whopping difference of HK$9! The Stanley stationery store was 2.5x more expensive! For HK$30 for just two from the Stanley shop, I could have gotten FIVE from the other store!) Glitters add a lot of oomph to the face-paints. Go get some.

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Image credits: Snazaroo product shots from Snazaroo website; glitters from Fan Hung Enterprise Co., Ltd.

Brush-On Painters

Josh loves to paint. I think I first noticed it when at HKPPA, he would always gravitate toward the easel and start painting away. He actually managed to sell (yes, you read right!) one of the "paintings" that he did there when he was around 22 months, but that's a different post altogether (I'll post it in Mini Masterpieces later this week).

Anyway, I started asking the director of the HKPPA where she got her supplies, etc. She was kind enough to lend me her Lakeshore Learning catalog and while browsing through, I came upon these really cool paints that were "mess-free"! What more could a mommy ask?

The Lakeshore Brush-On Painters came in a set of six colors: Purple, Orange, Red, Green, Yellow, and Blue. They're non-toxic, washable, and refillable. They come in soft plastic bottles with a paintbrush on top, so basically all you have to do is squeeze the bottle a bit while you're drawing and voila!

It takes a bit of practice to squeeze and paint at the same time, but what you can also do is you help your child squeeze enough paint on the brush and then hand it back for him to paint with.

What I like:

• Each bottle comes with its own brush. This way, you don't have to keep rinsing the brushes in between changing colors.
• You don't have to pour out different colors of paint and then have to throw/wash away the leftover portions once the activity is over.
• Very easy to clean. You just rinse the whole bottle and the brush and remember to put the cap back on (to prevent paint from drying).
  
• The Lakeshore name. It is known for the quality of its products.
  

The only drawback is that you have to order through the local distributor(Tel. # 2352-5330) and it can take anywhere around 45-60 days before your order arrives (from time of receiving your order deposit). They are very helpful, though.

To place an order --

• Go to the Lakeshore Learning website and look for the item that you want.
• Note down the Item Number (usually 2 letters followed by 3 numbers).
• Call or email (childplay@hutchcity.com) the local distributor and let them know which items you want; you will have to give them the item number.
• They will call you back with a quote and also let you know when you might expect your order.
• Payment is : 30% deposit, 70% by cash before delivery.

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Update: I just went on the Lakeshore Learning website to try to find the Brush-On Painters, but couldn't find them. They might have discontinued this item. :( You can still check eBay, maybe...?

Totally Tape

I am always on the lookout for things that will keep my kids occupied during flights.

I think I've hit pay dirt with Totally Tape, a book from Klutz. I got my copy from Book Buddy in Stanley, but I know that you can also find some Klutz books at the stationery shop on the first (or is it the second?) floor of City Hall, on the way up to Maxim's, if you take the stairs.

The book, as you can see, comes with four rolls of tape (red, green, blue, and yellow). What one has to do is use the rolls of tape to "decorate" or match items in the book. Josh had a blast with the different things that he could do with the paper tape. Even though the tape was kid-friendly (no scissors required), he did need help with tearing off pieces of tape, but that's small bother. He was pretty much occupied with trying to get the pieces of tape lined up properly for each activity. :)

Oh, and if you run out, you can order more from Klutz.com. You probably can ask the shop to order for you from the local distributor, too, I think.

What's good is that this book is, in classic Klutz style, heaps of fun not just for the child, but for the adult as well. It's great to see the tape "creations" come to life and Josh was quite proud to see that (in Zoe's words) "he did it" himself.