I'd like to assemble my own paint-by-number kits, so I need to buy
some -- actually, a lot, around 100 -- of those little flip-top paint
container sets that are connected together, preferably without paint
in them already, but I would consider pots with paint already in them,
if there were enough different colors. They don't need to be those
exact containers, but something that could store small amounts of
around 10 colors of paint.

Hi kmel!

Your request sent me right to one of my favorite catalogs! American
Science & Surplus. And sure enough, they sell the little paint-pots
you're talking about, but filled with paint. You'd have to empty them
(or at least half of them) to get more than the 4 colors they have.
But for the price, it may well be worth it. 16 pots for $1.

"... four strips of (4) 1/2 oz pots of red, green, yellow, and white
(made for a by-the-numbers set, perhaps).   $1.00 / PKG(4)"
http://www.sciplus.com/category.cfm?subsection=10&category=100

Here's a set that features 6 colors in 1/2 oz pots for  $1.59  
http://www.joann.com/catalog.jhtml?CATID=10038&PRODID=11404&AID=1160463&PID=978793


On the empty side, here's a person who has too many. Though this
posting is a year old, maybe he/she is still trying to get rid of
them. See the site for email address:

"I found these paint pots that children use to paint by number. They
are a set of 8 pots on one row. So I ordered them and the minimum
order was 1,000. .. To my surprise I did not get 1,000 individual
paint pots I got 1,000 rows of 8 paint pots. Now I have 8,000 paint
pots...  I would like to share these with anyone who would like them.
They are .50 cents each
http://pub54.ezboard.com/fpermanentmakeupfrm16.showMessage?topicID=26.topic

Individual bottles with flip-tops – wholesale –probably a large
minimum order.
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/product.asp?catalog%5Fname=USPlastic&category%5Fname=Jars&product%5Fid=Colored+Poly+Cons

And finally, do you know about this website? Seems there is quite a
contingency of paint-by-number fans!
http://www.paintbynumberz.com/directory.html

Hope this has helped you out. Happy painting!

-K~

Search terms:
"paint by number" combined with terms bottles, jars, containers
"Art supplies" wholesale
"Craft supplies" wholesale
"Plastic bottles" wholesale

I, too, did a search, which led me to http://www.paintbynumberz.com,
the address given by knowledge-seeker.

I found this article http://www.paintbynumberz.com/vacuum.html
which states, " Six million containers a week were produced recently
for individual paint colors comprising the Craft Master oil painting
sets made by Palemr(sic) Paint Company, Oak Park, Michigan."

doing a search on "Palmer Paint" led me to http://www.palmerpaint.com
(Palmer Paint Products, Inc."
and at 'Packaging Options' http://www.palmerpaint.com/packagin.htm it
says "Cups:  1/12 oz. or 1/6 oz. with snap lids; single cups or strips
up to 8 cups; bulk or layer packed in master cases; imprinting and
blister-carding available."

Contact Information
Telephone:
248-588-4500
800-521-1383 FAX
248-588-4018 (Administrative)
248-588-3878 (Sales)

Postal address
P.O. Box 1058, Troy, MI 48099-1058

Street Address
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