Lookit, We Painted Something

... On the one hand, the paint-and-take program I ran today was chaotic.

On the other hand, the kids (and parents!) were enthusiastic and clearly enjoyed themselves. I had several ask to do a second figure. Several parents asked for more information about Warhammer and I gave away a few of the magazines, which contain coloring sheets, background information and simple game rules. I also suggested they look for painting videos on Youtube, but cautioned them about the Grimdark theme of the games - as long as they stick to the painting videos and avoid showing their kids the lore, I probably won't get any complaints!

Pro-tips for doing a public painting program with small children:

• Have extra experienced painters at the table.

That's it, really, but the fact that there was only one of me and, at times, a dozen or more people crowded around the painting table meant that:

• I spent most of my time replacing dirty paint water.
• I couldn't spend enough time going over the basics, which in turn meant...
• ...That people were sitting down while I was away from the table sidetracked by something else, and making a mess.

I wasn't expecting quite that many people at once, nor was I expecting to keep getting sidetracked. Next time I'll train a coworker or two on the basics.

When I do this with the teens, I usually only have a handful, they're all starting at the same time, and they're all paying attention. Doing it as a "drop-in" event is, as I said, chaotic when all the painters are newbies. My normal procedure is to make sure everyone has a brush, an undercoated mini, and starts out with one (1) paint bottle. Open the bottle, draw a little paint from the cap (or, with Army Painter bottles which I am learning to prefer, squeeze just a little), mix it with a bit of water, and start painting. Even better is if I have a mini of my own to demonstrate each step. With just a few kids (and there were a few older ones and parents too) I could clearly explain the "two thin coats" thing.

This worked alright early on, before we were crowded and when most attendees were in our auditorium looking at live critters brought by a parks authority. Everyone could see and everyone paid attention.

Later, it was a real scramble. The younger kids were impatient. Painting directly from the pot isn't that big a deal, but opening the pot wide and pouring it directly onto the table is. Mixing it in the bottle... was, in hindsight at least, hilarious. At least I hadn't paid for the bottles! We had some "one thick coat" minis, and I scrambled for paper to wrap them in for the ride home because obviously they weren't going to dry.

At least no paint got on the floor, and coworkers convinced me to put two layers of paper on the table.

Ah, kids.

Pictures!

Setup: Magazines and an action figure for inspiration,
minis, paint, water and wet-wipes.

Some of the results:

So, yeah, reasonably successful. One coworker was optimistic about the possibility of painting skeletons or building zombies for Halloween. I'll burn that bridge when or if I get to it...!