Is it Safe to Oil Paint while Pregnant? Yes and some Advice for the new Artist Mom/Dad, from an old Artist Mom.

Mary Cassatt, "Sleepy Baby," 1910 

It is safe to oil paint while pregnant as long as you are following safe painting practices. Today we are going to discuss safe painting practices, tips on keeping little hands out of your paints, and thoughts about being a "parent artist" in general (like how this game would have helped my marriage during some hard years).

Note: This post should not be taken as medical advice. I am not a doctor, and while my own doctor gave me the go-ahead to paint while pregnant, this post should be taken only as my opinion.

Ten years ago when I got pregnant with my first little, I got all types of questions/comments about painting:

Are you still going to paint now that you are pregnant? Yes.

Well, I guess you are going to have to stop painting now that you will have kids, aren't you? Nope.

Are you aware of how hard it will be for you to paint when you have a baby? Yep, I know it will be hard. (Spoiler Alert to past me, it was so hard.)

At least with the new baby you don't have a job to worry about, right? Nope, I do. People pay me to paint.

Well you don't make money at it, so it isn't really a job, right? Nope, I do make money and yeah, it is a job.

The truth of the matter is that there are LOTS of moms who are successful artists. Kind of like how there are lots of moms in all professions. Painting is not some special space where moms are irresponsible if they continue to do what they love. That being said, there are some elements to painting that every pregnant artist should be aware of.

Safe Painting Practices: How to make your painting space pregnancy and baby friendly

1. Always maintain good ventilation, even in winter.

2. Eliminate all solvents. This is key, while it does take some adjustment, it is such an easy thing to start doing now.

                a.  Cleaning your brushes without solvents is healthier and cleaner.

                b. Use non-toxic Gamblin's Solvent-Free Gel or Solvent-Free Fluid or M. Graham's Non-Toxic Alkyd as a medium. Do not use Liquin!

              c. Be aware that although some solvents are odor free, such as Gamblin's Gamsol, they are still very toxic and should not be used while pregnant.

3. Do not use of Cadmium, Cobalt, and Lead paints while pregnant.

               a. If using Cadmium paints use gloves. Its always better to be safe than sorry.

               b. Even better, replace Cadmium with Azo or Hansa pigments. Azo and Hansa pigments have almost the same base color as the various Cadmiums, but without the toxicity.

               c. Cobalt is an easy pigment to replace and is so expensive it is usually not a part of the general palette. All the same, take a look at your paints just to double check.

               d. Never use lead-based paints while pregnant. Happily there are now more than enough options that this should not be an issue.

4. Once you have baby, never allow baby to sleep in your painting space. Be aware of the amount of time baby is spending around your paints and place baby in a different room when possible.

Keeping little hands out of your Paints

I lucked out here. My littles were never interested in drawing on the walls or getting into my paints. That being said, I also never gave them the chance to get into my paints, wet palette, or oils.

Paints

The year my oldest was born, one of my besties gifted me a large tea box with little square compartments to house all of my different tea bags. She had said in her note that she thought, "I would love to organize all of my teas (I am a big tea drinker, of all things tea) in a pretty box, or house my paints in it instead."

The second is what I did. I wish I had a picture of it (after almost a decade of use the box was looking... well not great. As my littles are older now the box was retired last year). After some adjustments my paints fit perfectly and more importantly it had a lid I could close. If I did it again, I would probably get something like this tub here. Being able to close the paints off with a latch that little hands can't open is a most.

Wet Palette

My cat has definitely walked across my palette before, but with my littles, I positioned my easel, chair, and paint stand into a corner, with my chair blocking access to my paint stand/palette. This way, if I was actively painting, I would be in the way and they could not get past me.

I also kept my glass palette in a large flat storage container that I found at Joanns (like this one). When I wasn't actively painting I would just click the lid into place. Was it annoying to clean my palette? Yeah. Was it worth it? 100%

The storage container is now long gone, but I do still have the lid. I place it on my palette whenever I am not painting in order to avoid kitty paw prints everywhere.

Oils

Keep them up and away or get a small storage container with a click lid that keeps them safe from little hands.

Thoughts on being a "Mom/Parent Artist"

Below are a couple of things that I wish I had done before my littles were born, that I think would have saved me a lot of frustration.

1. Extend your deadlines.

   1. I knew that I would have less time to paint, but what I didn't entirely understand is that when I did paint, I was going to be slower because I was so tired. Give yourself a lot of time to complete things. One day you will get more sleep... so I tell myself.

2. Before baby is born, talk to your partner about your painting time and set expectations for yourself and for them.

   1. A "game" that you and your partner can play to help balance the new responsibilities of a baby and work is called: The Fair Play Deck, by Eve Rodsky. If I had this before my babies were born, I think this would have helped so much. It is now a gift I give at every baby shower/wedding.

   2. Sit down before baby is born and set an hourly expectation that every day from this time to this time you will paint no matter what. Then practice that before baby is born.

   3. I think that if I had done both of these things life would have been better and I, potentially, would not have given up on art for a time.

      
      

3. You can do it. You can paint and be a mom and have a thriving career. It will take more work than ever, but you can do it.

   1. In Sept 2025 I took an art business course called "Leverage Your Art" by Stacie Bloomfield. It is not cheap, but it is worth it. If I had this course before I had babies, I would have known what to do next verses just floating around feeling like the few minutes I had were going no where. She as a variety of courses at various price points that are all worth looking into.

   2. If courses are not doable right now, her book would be a good place to start, The Artist Side Hustle. You can listen to it while doing dishes or laying in bed, and it just might give you the next step that you need.

Remember friends, we can do this! If you have any tips for pregnant peeps that I didn't think of, leave a comment.

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