You’ve heard about skin tone crayons, markers, and colored pencils and LOVE THEM to pieces.
Bring a little more diversity into your home — or fine the perfect skin tone to make each member of your family — in home and classroom children’s arts and crafts activities inclusive What else is out there?
We’re all different and worthwhile. We’ll do well by listening to each other.
Get ready to BE INSPIRED! It’ll be painting, cutting, pasting, measuring, mixing, and mushing in ALL the world’s most fabulous skin colors — vibrant, expressive, liberating (and safe for kids).
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Coloring Books
Multicultural and diversity-themed coloring books offer an eager at early years art activity for working with the most popular skin tone art supplies (like crayons, markers, and colored pencils).
(01) Crayola “Colors of The World” Coloring Book + Skin Tone Crayons, Markers, Pencils Pack
If you want a slam-dunk, one-and-done art activity pack for one child — here’s your diamond in the rough. (Or you could buy just the book.)
With Crayola’s self-published coloring book, and all three ultra popular crayola crayons, markers, and colored pencils — each kids coloring utensil in skin tones fit for self-expression with friends of all walks. That’s the right stuff, baby!
(02) Patty Jane Press “A Rainbow of Friends” Multicultural Children’s Coloring Book
→ See Patty Jane Press on Amazon
A 50-page coloring book encouraging diversity and kindness on every page.
(03) Clever Kid Press “Equally Wonderful: The Colors of Diversity” Anti-Racism Coloring Book
→ See Clever Kid Press on Amazon
A 24 coloring pages book that teaches self acceptance and cultural awareness to kids age 4+ years.
Body Parts Paper Cut Outs
If you stop at skin tones, you’ve just scratched the surface. People and body part shapes made of construction paper empower kids to talk about differences in a comfortable setting.
Take a face piece for example, and draw on eyes, a nose, lips, and those scratchy bristles (for humans with facial hair).
(01) Baker Ross Skin Tone Body Parts (People, Faces, Hands) Construction Paper Cut Outs
Ranging between 8 and 12 inches in length for art projects with markers, paint, or glitter and glue — add some skin tone to your stack of colorful construction paper.
(02) CREATIVE SHAPES ETC. Multicultural Skin Tone Body Parts Colored Craft Paper for Kids
→ See CREATIVE SHAPES ETC. on Amazon
More crafty hand-, head-, and friend-shapes in classroom-ready skin tones — this time a little smaller ranging from 3 to 5 inches in length.
A great size to paste people of different colors together onto a larger poster board.
(03) Hygloss “Large People Paper” Kid Shape Assorted Multicultural Skin Tone Cut Outs (16″ Inch, 25 Pack)
The biggest person-shape skin tone paper cutout — large and in charge at 16 inches in length.
Ample space for early artists to draw on details of their new paper friend.
(04) Hygloss “Pocket People Paper” Culturally Diverse Skin Tone Cardstock Mini Cut Outs (2″ Inch, 100 Count)
“My friends fit in my pocket. They’re tiny and all kinds of colors, and all my friends.”
To go minified with your culture fair craft session, put this lil’ two-inch buddy in the palm of your hand.
Construction Paper
For crafty kiddos who prefer to take scissors to paper and cut their own shapes — regular rectangular or square construction paper is your ticket to a custom skin tone shape.
The old favorite is to trace an outline of the child’s hand onto the paper then color, draw, and decorate then cut it out.
(01) Crayola “Colors of The World” Standard Letter Paper Construction Paper (24 Skin Tones)
We love Crayola’s skin tone kids’ coloring tools (markers, crayons, colored pencils) because they’re the world’s most popular, child-safe, and come in 10 to 24 unique skin shades.
Here’s the Crayola brand’s construction paper set to match!
(02) Baker Ross A4 Size Skin Tone Construction Crafts Materials for Kids (112 Sheets)
Our open-minded friends at Baker Ross brand offer regular rectangular A4 sheets of children’s craft paper, in case you missed it!
(03) PACON / Sun Works “Shades of Me” Small or Large Skin Tone Construction Paper
→ See PACON / Sun Works on Amazon
Available in large 9 by 12 inch …OR… small 12 by 18 inch sheets, this heavyweight construction paper comes with fifty sheets in five inclusive skin tones.
(04) Project Pixels Nude Tone Digital Printer Paper / Skin Tone Scrapbooking Paper
White paper digitally printed with a fine skin tone texture. As 12 by 12 inch squares, their ready for advanced projects like basic origami, or an inclusive flyer for your upcoming kids’ birthday party.
Fabric Sheets
Touchable in a simple fabric sheet form. Or perfectly fit for a clothes making project or an even simpler sewing craft activity for beginners like me.
(01) Weir Crafts 100% Cotton Knit Waldorf Doll Skin Color Fabric (1 or ½ Yard)
As plush to touch as it is welcoming to different walks of life.
Find a dreamy creamy color to cozy up with — of if you’re a seamster/stress (someone who can sew), then make your next project culturally inclusive.
(02) Over the River “Skintastic Made in USA Collection” Merino Wool Blend Skin Tone Felt Craft Sheets
→ See Over the River on Amazon
Pre-cut at 9 by 12 inches for couldn’t-be-easier sensory (fuzzy, comfy, lovable) play with ten true flesh tone colors (compared to other “pastel-ish” skin tone fabrics).
Kids will love wrapping these sheets around their limbs to “try on a new set of skin”.
(03) HellooColor Felt Fabric Sheets for Children’s Crafts (4 Shades of Brown)
Let’s take a little deeper look at the color brown! HellooColor brand’s 8 by 12 inch features 4 unique shades of brown from darker to lighter.
Total 20 sheets with 5 sheets for each brown skin tone.
Paints
Squeezed or poured from the bottle like creamy skin tone ready for canvas!
We’re putting together child-safe and non-toxic skin tone pain types for you today — for all kinds of surfaces, like regular printer paper, construction paper, poster paper, or even t-shirts and fabrics in some cases.
(01) Apple Barrel Dark Flesh Tone Acrylic Paint Set (Water-Based, Kid-Safe)
→ See Apple Barrel on Amazon or Etsy
Apple Barrel offers non-toxic paint (made from a water-based formula) in just about every color in the rainbow — in adorable squeeze bottles, at highly reasonable prices — so it’s a brand parents can easily fall in love with.
This dark skin tone paint set is made for painting people with dark complexions.
(02) Giotto Small-Bottle Skin Tones Ready Tempera Paints (Arts & Crafts 4 Pack)
Praises to Giotto children’s arts and crafts brand — for a straightforward four pack of child-safe skin tone paint.
It’s made with 30% eco-friendly bio-based vegetable formula and is completely hand-washable following an inevitable mishap.
(03) Sargent Art “Big One Pound Tub” Multicultural Washable Tempera Paint Set
Tempera paint (as opposed to acrylic paint) is used for kids projects on run-of-the-mill paper.
It’s “flexible” in that is uses a applies well to a wide variety variety of surfaces. It’s NOT “flexible” in that acrylic paint will bend and stretch forgivingly once dried, but tempura paint dries crispy and brittle (which may be the effect you need).
Use simple soap and water if your kiddo gets a new skin tone on their skin (gets the paint on their skin), and remember to shake, shake, shake your bottle before use.
(04) Colorations “Color Like Me” Washable Multicultural Skin Colors Paint (8 Big Jugs)
It’s safe for all ages (with proper supervision, never ever put it in the mouth). It dries in 90 minutes, and it can even be applied to make snazzy t-shirt designs.
Sounds like an awesome family party favor to show your pride.
Play Dough & Modeling Clay
“Artist’s Modeling Clay” is better for making figures than it is for random play smooshing. Vice verse, “Play Dough” is better for early years explorative mashing than it is for making figures.
In regards to “Kids’ Play Dough”, they use different words for “Play Dough” since it’s not 100% clear whether that’s a trademark belonging to the official Play-Doh brand… But we’re talking about that grabbable, mushable, moldable, reusable (and ultimately bakeable) play dough from the well-known Play-Doh and other lesser-known brands too.
In regards to “Artists’ Modeling Clay” When I was a kid, I just called the stuff “Fimo” (which is just one brand of modeling clay not represented here). It’s made for older children than the “Play Dough” we just looked at. If you get deep into the craft, there are glazes, glitters, and other effect you can use to form then bake some long-lasting keepsakes from a childhood.
(01) Colorations Multi Cultural Non-Toxic Sensory Play Dough (6 One-Pound Tubs, 6 Natural Skin Tones)
Six natural skin tones in six wide-mouth tubs (one pound each) easy for grabbing a big gunk of “Play Dough” in any skin tone your kiddo feels like.
When you’re done put it back in the container, to keep it fresh and reuse for later.
(02) Sargent Art “Hands-On Art-Time” Multicultural Dough (6 Assorted Skin Tone Colors, 1 lb Tubs)
It’s a dough-type clay just like the well-known Play-Doh brand (ideal for young kids Pre-K and ), in six “Colors of My Friends” skin colors for kids to mold and mash multicultural friends of all colors, creeds, and belief systems.
(03) Creativity Street “School Smart” Multi-Ethnic People Color Modeling Dough (6 Set)
→ See Creativity Street on Amazon
Don’t be fooled by the single tub in the product image, this is another six shades of skin tone set.
Creativity Street is a teacher-favorite classroom supplies brand offering all kinds of enriching classroom tools that you can introduce to your own home education station.
(04) Play-Doh “Ultimate Color Collection” 65 Color of Non-Toxic Kids Play Dough
This particular collection is NOT particularly prepared to match human skin tones, but it’s got the best variety of legitimate Play-Doh brand colors.
Indeed with more at least 12 shades of color that match skin tones well — plus a smorgasbord of full-spectrum colors to explore.
(05) Jovi Reusable Children’s Modeling Clay in Multicultural Skin Colors (6 Shades)
It’s made from 30% vegetable based material much lighter than most modeling clays.
So it makes a great transitional type of clay from the “Play Dough Clay” for playtime young kids, and the “Modeling Clay” for kids with artistic intent.
(06) Faber-Castell “World Colors” Complete Color Scheme Modeling Clay with Extra Skin Tone Colors
In a box like “Worldy Rainbow” comes a complete set of 15 mondeling clay bars — 9 kid’s favorites, 6 blendable skin tones.
Since we’re talking about modeling clay, this is a great pick to graduate from play dough to a small hands-on molding medium to develop their three-dimensional artistic talents.
(07) Creativity Street Classroom-Grade Kids Multi-Cultural Modeling Clay (4 Sticks)
→ See Creativity Street on Amazon
With the slogan “Creative Fun for Young Minds”, the Creativity Street brand offers a small pack of modeling clay with four basic skin tone colors.
An excellent starter pack if it’s your 4 to 8 year old’s first time to try modeling clay — and you’re expressly interested in skin tones.
Chalk
Summertime on the sidewalk, crunch time in the classroom, or creative expression on a fine paper canvas — ready to embrace and depict people as they are.
(01) Sargent Art Non-Toxic Multicultural Skin Tone Artist’s Chalk
Artist’s chalk (not to be confused with sidewalk chalk or classroom chalk) is a long rectangular stick of soft smooth chalk.
With Sargent Art brand’s non-toxic “Lil’ Artist Skin Tone Chalk” you get rich fleshy pigments and an artwork-quality chalk. You’ll be drawing onto paper for a permanent work of art with this type of chalk.
(02) Chalk City Sidewalk Chalk Full Color Set with Skin Tone Selection
Here’s that sidewalk chalk that’s most age-appropriate for kids 3+ years old. It’s made for outside on the sidewalk, but works on an indoor chalkboard too.
Once again, Chalk City brand didn’t put this set together for the purpose of sidewalk skin tones, but it just happens to (in addition to a rainbow color selection) be the best skin tone children’s chalk available.
