Henna and face painting special event guidelines

Even though applications for henna and face painting at special events are not required, vendors should follow these guidelines.

• Face paint must be non-toxic, cosmetic-grade, and suitable for applying to the face.
• Face paint must be hypoallergenic and should be easy to remove.
• Do not use henna containing paraphenylenediamine (PPD), coal tar dye or hair dye. Access more information from Health Canada.

Equipment requirements

Provide a temporary hand washing station with potable water, liquid hand soap, and paper towels at the face painting station. If this is not possible, use disposable wet towelettes or alcohol-based hand sanitizer on hands before and after providing service to each client.

• Operator hands must be clean and free of sores and open cuts.
• Provide disposable wet towelettes for wiping tips of pencils between uses.
• Provide a garbage container in the work area.

Applying face painting make-up

• Vendors should obtain verbal permission from the parent or caregiver before applying face paint on children.
• Do not apply face paint too close to the eyes or lips.
• Do not apply face paint on persons with an eye infection (pink eye), open cuts, sores, rashes, or other skin conditions.
• Clean your hands before starting the make-up application.
• Clean the skin before applying the paint. Use single use alcohol wipes, baby wipes, or face cleanser on a cotton pad.
• Do not apply face paint on persons with an eye infection (pink eye), open cuts, sores, rashes, or other skin conditions.
• Dispense the amount of make-up needed for one application.
• Use new single-use disposable applicators to apply the face paint such as sponges, cotton tipped applicators, disposable make-up brushes, and applicator sticks.
• Discard left over paint immediately after each client.