Little girl's dress gets dirty at a painting-themed birthday party, so the mother demands the venue pay for it after not providing smocks: 'The poor sweet owner ended up offering to pay her 50%'

Author image for María Cetra
María Cetra • Writer
Oct 26, 2026 8:00 AM EDT

Why would you send your little kid to a painting-themed party with a very expensive dress? And what's even worse, why do you think you are entitled to get paid for the damages when you were the one who sent the girl dressed like that?

People are weird, but parents are weirder. Being a new parent of a little kid must be really hard, and I don't doubt that at all. I may not have kids, but I'm sure it is hard to take care of them, especially when they are under 10 years old. It is a little kid who wants to know and discover everything but still knows nothing. That is definitely not an easy task to have to take care of. I will not be judging a parent for their parenting style. I'm no one to do so, and I don't think that is correct. Parents do what they can with what they have and what they know. Of course it's going to be hard, and it will involve a lot of mistakes along the way. This story is not really about parenting; it's about entitlement, and not a little kid being entitled, which is understandable and fixable. A full-grown adult entitlement that is cringy, pathetic, and concerning. 

You cannot make other people responsible for the mistakes you make, and that is something that some people need to learn with urgency. If you decided things were going to be done one particular way, and it didn't work out. Then who do you think is responsible? The person who planned for things to be like that? Or someone else who had nothing to do with the planning but happened to be there at the time of the downfall? I think it's obvious that the person with poor planning skills is the one to blame. But an entitled person does not see things that way. If a 'Karen' went into a shop, bought something she thought was meat but was actually vegan meat, it had a label; she just didn't read it. Whose fault would that be? Karen's, of course, but Karen won't realize this, or would simply not care. She will go back to the shop, make a mess, and demand not only the money back but also some extra for her suffering. That's just another example of how entitled people behave. 

So, going back to this mother, who do you think is at fault for sending the little girl with an expensive dress to a painting-themed party? The person who is in charge of her and dressed her? Or the venue owner who wasn't even at the birthday party? It's the mother's fault. That's why she needs to deal with it instead of trying to blame other people for her awful way of planning things and her complete lack of thinking skills when deciding to dress the girl for the party. If she wants to be mad at someone, she just needs to get mad at herself. After all, it's her fault. 

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  • 01
    A couple weeks ago, I threw my daughter a tea party for her 7th birthday at a small local play place with about 18 of her friends. The invitation stated to bring their dolls and stuffed animals as honored guests and that there would be a toy painting activity as well. The owner of the play place is a super lovely mom who was absolutely amazing and handled everything for me so I could be
    via jedikimica
  • 02
    A kid's birthday party with balloons, decorations, and cake. Model portrayal.
    via john renzzel

    A kid's birthday party with balloons, decorations, and cake. 

    Model portrayal.

  • 03
    stress free and enjoy the party. I was a little concerned about the paint getting everywhere but she told me it should come out easily if anything got stained. One guest's mom was away on a trip and asked if her 80 year old father could bring her kindergarten aged daughter. I said "Absolutely! No problem!" I didn't think anything of it. Six days later, the mom contacted
    via jedikimica
  • 04
    me upset that her daughter's expensive dress was stained and ruined by the paint from the party. When I pointed out that painting was on the invitation, she said the host or business owner should be responsible and the kids should have worn smocks. I understand wishing there had been smocks but also if she already knew that there would be painting why would she let her 5 year old wear
    via jedikimica
  • 05
    an expensive dress? So then, this mom ends up contacting the owner and demanded that she pay for the dress that was ruined!!! Like WHAT?! I'm just shocked by the audacity of this woman! The poor sweet owner ended up offering to pay her 50%. We live in a small town and the owner doesn't want any more drama. But the owner messaged me and warned me that this mom said she would ask
    via jedikimica
  • 06
    me to pay for the other half of this dress. For context, I barely know this mom. Our daughters are just playground friends and our kids also play on local sports teams together so I invited them out of polite courtesy. If I had known she was like this I would have ripped up her invitation. Now its's going to be so awkward seeing her at games.
    via jedikimica
  • 07
    I feel bad about the dress and that the helpful owner is paying. But does sending a child to an advertised painting activity in an expensive outfit make the host responsible for replacing it? Would I be unreasonable to decline if she asks?
    via jedikimica
  • 08
    Balloon decorations for a birthday party.
    via Adi Goldstein

    Balloon decorations for a birthday party. 

  • 09
    benjm88 Nta, I wouldn't pay but also wouldn't invite her to anything again
    via benjm88
  • 10
    CatCharacter848 Have you seen the ruined dress. Because she might be trying her luck if these were wash out paints. Maybe offer to clean the dress. But I suspect she wants the money (and let me guess, its an expensive dress).
    via CatCharacter848
  • 11
    Weeping Willow5555 NTA, but I would tell the business owner not to pay her and I would pay for the entire dress myself. I wouldn't want a small business owner to have that burden. I would also make it clear to that mother that you were only paying her to help the business owner and that she should be embarrassed by her behavior.
    via Weeping Willow5555
  • 12
    StunningSystem8171 So, the other mom is 100% in the wrong. You never send a kid to any kid's birthday party with good clothes on. Painting or not. However, you mention about things being awkward going forward and whether it could cause ongoing issues. How much would half the dress be? I'd be tempted to pay it, just to make the problem go away, depending on if it's $20 or $200.
    via StunningSystem8171
  • 13
    Auroraburst Should there probably be smocks at this type of event? Yes. But who sends a kid to a party like this in an expensive dress. NTA
    via Auroraburst
  • 14
    OrcEight NAH.Im actually surprised smocks were not provided.
    via OrcEight
  • 15
    HeverAfter NTA but ask her for the dress so you can see the damage and also see if you can get it cleaned. This way you'll know what the damage is and how much she is lying (because she is). Have you actually seen the "damage"? She's stating you're liable so you need evidence. I would be tough and state that you also need to see a receipt for the dress as there is a good chance it's not as expensive as she states and it was probably bought ages ago
    via HeverAfter
  • 16
    therefore the price she wants won't be reflected in the price of the dress. You have to account for wear and tear right? She wants to play this game so this is what I would do because it's likely she will back off. I would also go round to her house and ask to see it so she doesn't have time to add any additional "damage".
    via HeverAfter

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entitlement drama birthday party painting parenting parents kids
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