Packing Paint Tubes to Travel

There aren’t many things that scare me as much as flying with my painting supplies. You just never know what’s going to get confiscated, but there are steps you can take to avoid getting your paint tossed from your bag by TSA. Here’s how I pack my paint so that airport security can clearly see and evaluate it if needed.

I grab my plastic wrap roll and tear off a piece larger than my paint tube.

Then I start to roll it up tightly, folding in the top and bottom edges halfway through.

Once I have three or four wrapped up, I put them all in a clear sandwich bag and close tightly, getting out as much air as possible. At this point you can pack all of your baggies together in your luggage. It’s also a good idea to go to the manufacturer’s website to print a copy of the Safety Data Sheet for each of your colors and include it in your luggage.

Also, be sure to add a sign like this one:

Any questions that security may ask should be answered with this information and prevent them from confiscating your supplies. It may not prevent me from getting heart palpitations every time I fly, hoping I get to where I’m going with all of my precious supplies still in hand.

Once I’ve made it to my destination, I carefully unwrap each color and stack the plastic together with a bag between each set since I’ll have to repeat the process for the trip home.

It may seem like overkill, but believe me, it’s much better than the feeling you’ll get when your valuable paints are tossed in the trash by airport security.

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3 Responses to “Packing Paint Tubes to Travel”

  1. Nancy Warren

    Great tips! it is terrible to lose valuable supplies because officials are not educated about what they are. .

  2. Rossana

    Thank you so much for sharing its a wounderful and helpful tip

  3. Cindy Simons

    I will be flying soon and planned to take some of my paint tubes. Very timely advice, for me at least. Thanks