Paint by Numbers in Care Settings: A Resource for Activity Teams
Last updated: · Written by Marcus Richardson, founder of Paint A Moment
This page is for activity coordinators, care managers and family carers. It sets out what our paint-by-numbers kits are, which specification works in a care setting, and a session plan you can print and work from. It also says plainly who the activity does not suit. For bulk or donated kits, email hello@paintamoment.shop.
What we can offer care settings
We make paint-by-numbers kits and sell them online. That is the whole of it. We are not a training provider and we do not run sessions. What we can do is supply kits at the specification that works in a care setting, answer questions honestly about suitability, and provide free written resources like this one.
- Bulk orders, put together as a mixed selection at the right specification.
- Donated kits for settings that cannot fund them, in small numbers each month.
- Advice on choice. Describe the group and I will say whether the kits will work for them, including when I think they will not.
Email hello@paintamoment.shop. It comes to me directly and I answer it myself. There is no order minimum and no sales process.
What is in a kit
Every kit contains the same core items regardless of size or colour count. There is nothing else to buy other than water and something to protect the table. Kits ship with free worldwide delivery and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Standard kits start at £21.99.
- A pre-printed numbered canvas in a linen blend
- Pre-mixed acrylic paint pots, numbered to match the canvas
- Three brushes
- A printed reference sheet showing the finished image
- A getting-started guide
- A gift box
Sizes are 20x30cm, 30x40cm, 40x50cm, 50x60cm and 60x70cm. Formats are No Frame, DIY Frame and Pre-Framed. Colour tiers are 24, 36 and 48.
The specification we recommend for care settings
Order the 24-colour Standard tier, at 50x60cm or 60x70cm, in the No Frame format. This is deliberately not our most expensive option. Fewer colours on a larger canvas produces the largest possible painting sections and the largest printed numbers, which is the thing that determines whether the activity works at all.
The instinct is usually to order the premium 48-colour version and assume it is better. It is not. To fit 48 colours into the same image, the design is split into far more and much smaller regions, with correspondingly smaller numbers. Reduced contrast sensitivity is common in dementia, and small pale digits sitting next to each other are exactly what becomes unreadable.
| Choice | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Colour tier | 24 colours | Largest sections and largest printed numbers of the three tiers |
| Size | 50x60cm or 60x70cm | Bigger canvas at the same colour count means bigger shapes |
| Format | No Frame | Tapes flat to a board; easier to work on and to store |
| Subject | Familiar, high contrast | Animals, gardens, cottages, coastal scenes |
| Avoid | Abstract, portraits, heavy shading | Subtle tonal work means tiny sections and near-identical colours |
Good starting points are our easy kits collection, filtered for simpler designs, and the animals and landscapes ranges. Check any subject against the individuals in your group, and avoid religious imagery unless you know the person's beliefs.
A printable session plan
This is a 60-minute plan for four to six participants with one facilitator. The preparation the day before is what makes the session itself calm, so please do not skip it. Adjust the timings to suit your setting, and treat the painting time as a maximum rather than a target.
Preparation, the day before
- Unpack each kit and check the contents against the box.
- Tape each canvas to a stiff board along all four edges.
- Loosen every paint pot lid, then close them finger-tight.
- Write each pot's number on its lid in thick black marker.
- Sit where a resident will sit, under the lighting you will actually use, and check you can read the printed numbers. If you cannot, neither will they.
- Set the table near a window, light over the shoulder rather than into the eyes, and keep direct sun off the canvas. Glare on wet acrylic makes numbers unreadable.
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 0 to 10 min | Settle everyone. Aprons on. Water pots half filled. One board in front of each person. |
| 10 to 15 min | Explain it simply: "Every shape has a number and every pot has a number, and you just match them up. There is no wrong way to do this and nobody has to finish." |
| 15 to 50 min | Painting. Start everyone on the largest single colour area. Hand out one open pot at a time. Move round the table, top up water, wipe brushes, chat about the picture rather than the technique. |
| 50 to 60 min | Close the pots, collect brushes, hold each canvas up and name what each person did. Store boards flat. Say when the next session is. |
Per person: canvas taped to a board, that kit's numbered pots, one brush, one water pot, one cloth, one apron, the reference sheet.
Have ready: foam pipe lagging or grip tape to build up brush handles, a desk magnifier, and the option to work one colour at a time or to turn one large canvas so several people each paint the region in front of them.
"Finished" means you stopped for today. Very few group canvases get completed and it does not matter. Say so at the start, because people will assume otherwise and worry about it.
An honest note on suitability and limits
Paint by numbers is a hobby, not a treatment. It will not slow, treat or improve anyone's dementia, and we will never say otherwise. It suits some people very well and others not at all, and the difference has far more to do with the individual than with any diagnosis or stage.
It is unlikely to suit someone with significant visual-perceptual difficulty, since the task depends on reading small numbers inside pale outlines; someone in the advanced stages, for whom the numbering becomes an obstacle; someone whose tremor makes small sections frustrating; someone who would be distressed by a result that looks wrong; or anyone likely to put brushes or paint in their mouth.
On the evidence: NICE quality standard QS184 says people with dementia should be supported to choose from a range of activities to promote wellbeing tailored to their preferences, and lists the arts among them. That supports offering art as an option. It does not validate any product. The 2018 Cochrane review of art therapy for dementia found only two eligible trials with usable data on 60 participants and rated the evidence very low quality. We think you should know that before ordering anything from us.
Our longer guide, paint by numbers for care homes and dementia, covers lighting, group size, mixed ability, gentle reminiscence, infection control, storage and cost per resident in detail.
Who we are
Paint A Moment is a one-person business based in North Yorkshire, run by me, Marcus Richardson. There is no team, no sales department and no trade portal. When you email, I read it and I reply. That is a limitation as much as a selling point, and worth knowing before you plan around us.
Most of our customers are individuals painting at home; you can see the range on our paint by numbers for adults page. Care settings are new territory for us, and I would rather build these resources with input from people who do this work than guess. If something here is wrong or missing, please tell me.
Common questions
Do you supply care homes directly, and can you do bulk orders?
Yes. Email hello@paintamoment.shop rather than ordering through the website. There is no trade portal and no order minimum. I can assemble a mixed selection of subjects at the right specification and arrange delivery in one go, and I am happy to talk it through on a call if that is easier.
Can we get donated kits?
Possibly. I keep a small number of kits aside each month for care settings that cannot fund them from an activities budget. There is no application form. Email me and explain the situation. This is a one-person business, so the number available is genuinely small, but the offer is real.
Which specification should we order?
The 24-colour Standard tier at 50x60cm or 60x70cm, in the No Frame format. Fewer colours on a larger canvas gives the largest sections and the largest printed numbers. Choose familiar, high-contrast subjects such as animals, gardens or coastal scenes, and avoid abstract designs and portraits.
Do you provide product safety information?
Yes. The paints are water-based acrylic intended for use on canvas and not for ingestion. If your home needs documentation for its COSHH or art materials policy, email and I will send what I have. If a resident is likely to put brushes or paint in their mouth, this activity is not suitable for them.
Also useful: how to paint by numbers, are paint by numbers good for anxiety? and do creative hobbies reduce stress?
