• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Peanut Blossom
  • Start Here
  • Recipes
  • Book Club
  • Cookbooks
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
menu icon
go to homepage
  • ABOUT
  • RECIPES
  • HOLIDAYS
  • BOOK CLUB
  • COOKBOOKS
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • ABOUT
    • RECIPES
    • HOLIDAYS
    • BOOK CLUB
    • COOKBOOKS
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Blog » Desserts » Cakes

    Paint Palette Birthday Cake

    Published: Mar 31, 2016 · Modified: Apr 12, 2021 by Tiffany Dahle · This post may contain affiliate links.

    • Share
    • Email Friend!

    Got a kiddo who loves art? This paint palette birthday cake was easy peasy to make and is just perfect for an art-themed birthday party.

    How to make a paint palette birthday cake for an art party

    So that not so little Peanut is 9! For you loyal readers who have been following along with our adventures for a while, this might be a shocker to you too. Kids just grow so fast it is unbelievable.

    Every year up until now, it was obvious what theme my little lady wanted for her party. It turns out that at 9, she might finally be outgrowing the desire for a character on top of her cake. I think this realization hit her harder than it did me and she really struggled with what to ask for when it came to her cake.

    It was a great opportunity for me to explain that a "theme" doesn't always have to be your favorite cartoon character. We started talking about some of her favorite things: the beach, sea creatures, puppies, animals of all kinds, and finally we circled back to her absolute love of all things art and drawing.

    I pulled up Pinterest on my laptop and searched for "art party birthday cake" and we started to gather ideas. I'm no cake expert and I refuse to work with fondant. So, we had to tailor anything we found to what could be created with a simple box mix and homemade buttercream. I think we hit it out of the park:

    How to make a paint palette birthday cake for an art party

    We made this paint palette birthday cake out of a simple chocolate cake boxed mix and a batch and a half of my favorite whipped buttercream. Scroll down for the simple instructions at the bottom of the post.

    The Peanut wanted to have a real paint brush included in the scene and we didn't have a fresh new one to use. I washed up one from our art stash and just was careful that the bristles never really touched the frosting to keep things hygienic.

    How to make a paint palette birthday cake for an art party

    I didn't think to photograph the creation stages for you, it was not the prettiest thing since I had exactly zero idea what I was doing. But we were both thrilled with how it came out. I snapped a few pictures of it to share and then my lady got completely inspired to pose with her cake on her own.

    She ran upstairs and grabbed her hat from last year's party and asked to pose with her cake. We were both laughing so hard, it is my favorite memory from her special day. I love how she is keeping her playful sweet personality. I hope that never goes away. Life is full of challenges, laughter keeps us going.

    How to make a paint palette birthday cake for an art party

    How to make a paint palette birthday cake for an art party:

    1. Bake your favorite flavor cake in 2 9 inch round cake pans. (We chose chocolate from a box mix.)
    2. Make one batch whipped vanilla buttercream from this recipe here.
    3. Place one cake layer on your cake plate and top with a thin layer of buttercream.
    4. Place the second cake layer on top of the first.
    5. Using a sharp knife, carve out the palette divet in one side. (I gave the snack pieces to the girls as a special treat.)
    6. Very Carefully frost a thin layer of buttercream over the cut edge of the cake. With the exposed cake, it is very crumbly. Crumbs are probably going to mix into the frosting, but just try to seal them in as best you can. Continue with a thin layer around the remaining edge and top of the cake.
    7. Chill the cake in the fridge while you prep the paint colors. This will set the frosting and make it easier to add the final coat.
    8. Put 1-2 tablespoon of frosting into each of 5-6 small bowls or cups. Tint each one a different color with gel food coloring.
    9. Take the cake back out of the fridge and apply the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. This will cover any of the crumby bits that got mixed in earlier and leave your cake nice and white and clean.
    10. Dollop the paint blotches on the top. I swirled them with my knife to look like little paint blobs.
    11. Add a paint brush to the scene and done!
    How to make a paint palette birthday cake for an art party

    More Cake Recipes

    • A photo collage shows several easy birthday cakes for kids.
      6 Incredibly Easy Ways to Decorate a Cake
    • A cake pan is wrapped in a purple fabric cake strip and has a perfect level cake layer baked inside.
      How to Use Cake Strips for Perfect Layers
    • A slice of coconut cake with cream cheese frosting and shredded coconut has a layer of bright yellow pineapple filling.
      Pineapple Filling
    • A chocolate and cream Christmas yule log cake roll with sugared cranberries sits on a cake platter.
      Make-Ahead Yule Log Cake

    Reader Interactions

    Share Your Thoughts Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Tiffany!
    I believe a great family recipe is one that makes everyone at the table happy, not just the kids. I'm the author of two bestselling cookbooks for kids that are chock full of recipes everyone in your family will love. I'm also the hostess of the best online book club for moms.

    More about me →

    What's Trending Now

    • A photo collage shows the variety of recipes that can be made in a bread maker.
      50 Best Bread Machine Recipes
    • A blue baking dish filled with mac and cheese with bread crumb topping. A serving spoon has removed a portion to show the creamy elbow noodles.
      Make Ahead Mac and Cheese
    • An airfryer basket has 7 seasoned chicken tenderloins golden brown and cooked.
      Healthy Chicken Tenderloins in the Air Fryer
    • Two salmon filets are surrounded by fresh green beans in an air fryer basket.
      How to Cook Salmon in Air Fryer

    Popular

    • A freezer-friendly metal pan holds an 8x8-inch apple crisp with crumble topping.
      Freezer Friendly Apple Crisp
    • A stack of the best books for book club in 2023
      Best Book Club Picks 2023
    • A taco salad made with mini frozen tacos.
      10-minute Trader Joe's Meals
    • A young kid's hand is holding a homemade pizza lunchable.
      30 School Lunch Ideas for Kids
    • A collage of easy dinners for busy nights.
      30 Quick Dinners for Busy Nights
    • A photo collages shows several easy dinner ideas kids could make.
      Easy Dinner Ideas for Yo-Yo Nights {You're On Your Own!}
    • A meal train dinner kit featuring supplies for tacos sits in an aluminum tray for delivery.
      30 Clever Meal Train Ideas with Recipes
    • Harry Potter themed snacks are in a platter with a witch hat sitting next to an open copy of a Harry Potter book.
      21 Harry Potter Snacks for Movie Night

    Footer

    As Seen On

    The Taste of Home Logo
    The Pioneer Woman Logo
    The Country Living Logo
    The Buzzfeed logo
    The Good Housekeeping Logo

    About

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Contact
    Privacy Policy
    Disclaimer

    Favorites

    Bread Recipes
    Soup Recipes
    Quick Dinner Recipes
    Harry Potter Fan Club
    Reading with Kids

    Holidays

    Easter Recipes
    4th of July Recipes
    Catholic Celebrations
    Thanksgiving Recipes
    Christmas Recipes

    Recipes

    Appetizers
    Dinners
    Salads
    Side Dishes
    Desserts
    Brunch
    Homemade Pantry

    ↑ back to top

    Copyright © 2023