I saw Crafty Girl Austin at an event making cute bookmarks for children. I Co-Chair a festival and…read moreoversee all the children's activities. The festival draws in about 600 people and is a free event for an Austin neighborhood. This year several City Council Members and Mayoral Candidates attended as well. I thought Crafty Girl Austin would be a good fit and asked if they would like to be a part of it which they agreed. I told Crafty Girl that I would provide and set up her table, tent, and all supplies needed for her booth. I also said I would put her logo on our website and print her business name in the local newspaper. She would be able to hand out information at the event for free publicity of her business. All she would need to do is provide four volunteers for the event and the special paper faces that would be glued on the bookmarks. I used neighborhood funds to purchase supplies for her (roughly for about 200 children), set up the booth as promised, and marketed her business all with no cost or obligation to her. On the day of the event as I was setting up I received a text message about one hour before the festival was to begin saying she had morning sickness and was not going to be able to attend. I understand that things come up and people get sick. But not only did she not attend but no one from her business did either. If she was going to provide four volunteers then why did none of them show up? Through text message she said she was going to have someone bring the paper faces to the festival. As you can imagine they never arrived either. After the event I never received any follow up from her to see if we were able to cover the booth and no apologies were given. Crafty Girl Austin was a complete disappointment. I feel this business owner is very unprofessional. I will never ask her back and I would suggest anyone else who plans to use the business in the future to make sure you have a backup plan because you absolutely can not rely on them.

Crafty Girl is terrific. I've been to a few Crafty Girl events now and made some really fun…read moreitems--aromatherapy necklaces, recycled map trays, and I[heart]HOME string maps. I look forward to attending many more. I had just moved to Austin and hardly knew anyone in town. Crafty Girl was a great way to get out of the house, make something fun, and meet really friendly ladies. Anna is a such a warm, inviting, and fun person. It was such a pleasure to meet her and feel instantly included. She's also a great teacher--helpful and patient (which is excellent because I sometimes struggle with tying knots and stuff, heh.) The crafts are usually about $20 a piece, but that includes instruction and all the materials. The meet-ups I have been to have usually been about 2 hours long. I feel like it's a good value, but I'm also a little choosy about which I sign up for. ...great, talking about this has made me want to go sign up for another Crafty Girl meetup...

The Dojo is full the brim with skill! You'll find yourself learning from teachers and students…read morealike. There's a certain level of dedication that exists within these falls that you can feel in your bones! I meet people all over the city sprouting compliments, which says a lot because I host drawing socials and bounce around art studios all over Austin. It's been said that Atelier Dojo is the place to be! Pictures feature : student work from Danny Grant's 6-week, 6-session Intro to Figure Drawing session from a few months back!

Artists and people who seriously want to "up" their drawing and painting skills should take a good…read morelook at Atelier Dojo Fine Arts Academy in Austin. The instructors Jennifer Balkan and Roz Seriz are accomplished artists AND excellent instructors. They teach a traditional academy approach in a relaxed studio environment with helpful fellow students. The experience is virtually guaranteed to sharpen your artistic eye and improve your techniques in the media instructed. Not inexpensive but the outcomes are well worth the financial investment in yourself.

My teen is in their second year at Griffin and we feel so grateful for this school. The staff is…read moreamazing and have been so supportive. I feel they genuinely care about my child and they are very responsive. It is also really wonderful to have a place where kids are encouraged to be themselves. The education is also top notch - challenging, but not overloading kids with homework and busywork. Class sizes are very small and teachers get to know each child.

You know how sometimes you think it would be fun to try a new hobby but then decide it's equally…read morefun and less trouble to have drinks with friends instead? Art+Wine night provides a solution to this dilemma. Show up with your favorite wine and whatever art skills you do (or don't) possess and Natalya will provide all the supplies and knowledge you need to paint something worthy of displaying in your home. The website shows the project that will be taught on each date so you can pick and choose which nights you want to sign up for. The classes are small which allows Natalya to give everyone individualized instruction. I've been to four Art+Wine nights and I see SO much improvement since my first painting! I had never used oil paint and after taking a 2 session oil class I left with a legit fruit bowl painting. Artists of all skill levels come to Art+Wine night and everyone learns something new or improves their technique. It's a great way to spend a Friday night and accomplish something while drinking!

Yesterday was my first time trying the Vino al Arte class and I loved it! It was surprisingly…read morerelaxing and therapeutic. Miguel, the instructor was very kind and did a great job and discussing the artist along with different types of paintings. I am in no way a a good painter but felt comfortable and confident throughout the class. It was a down to earth atmosphere which is my favorite, and the instructor everyone was met at their own pace respectfully. Who wouldn't love some painting with a little wine. I plan on going back and will recommend it to my friends and family as well. Fun times!

Love love this class.. I go to the byob adult evening class that happens on Fridays.. It's a…read morebilingual paint class, Spanish and English, totally awesome. The paintings are more complex and still easy to follow.. thank to the amazing instructors. It can fill up quick so make sure you're on the guest list and that you've rsvpd! Overall though 5 star place. Place where you can get comfortable and make new friends!

Highly recommend taking one of the Jeweler's Saw's courses for jewelry making. I had an incredible…read moreexperience learning the basics and really enjoyed the community and classmates taking the course with me. All of my interactions with the instructors have been great, they are all very kind and patient genuinely eager to help you make your designs.

Recently did a hoop earring class with friends led by Zeineb - who is amazing, kind, and patient!…read moreShoutout to her other instructor who I didn't have the chance to get the name of. We made gorgeous earrings and Zeineb gave us the freedom to make our own designs and helped us along the way when we made mistakes or needed extra instruction with kindness. It's an awesome experience to do with friends and loved ones! Would totally come again!

As much a working artist space as it is a gallery, Flatbed really does a wonderful job of…read moreencapsulating the marriage of East Austin and bleeding edge inspiration. It is, essentially, a large warehouse that's been divided into the aforementioned working spaces and gallery strolls, and the provocative and intriguing nature of the work here is always worth lingering over. I might describe what I've most often seen as 'modern art with a conscience' but ultimately one of the things I think that they offer that really moves the creative needle are the classes they offer. Lithography, monotype, relief work, there's plenty going on if you want to learn how to express yourself. Who knows, maybe one day it'll be your work adorning these walls...or others.

"Let me take you upstairs and show you my etchings..."…read more I am a BIG fan of Flatbed Press. I happened upon their printmaking shop not long after they opened in 1989 and I found their compassionate and intense outlook on printmaking and life to be a haven of creativity and brilliance. Katherine Brimberry and Mark L. Smith have the midas touch for choosing an excellent location for their business and committed people to work with... they also retain an artistic integrity in what they do and HOW they do it. Flatbed is a publishing workshop which means they do collaborative work with artists. They also work with other entities on printing limited editions of etchings, monotypes, lithographs... prints. ORIGINAL prints. which may seem like an oxymoron to some, but it makes sense if you have ever seen an edition of etchings. Each print is pulled by hand, each one an original print, from a piece of copper of a piece of zinc that an artist has labored over for years sometimes. Their location in East Austin has an exhibit space, printmaking studio, and office. Gerald Manson, Master Printer Emmeritus, is also the Master of Dry Humor and he loves NPR and great classical music... Flatbed World Headquarters shares space with 8 other creative professionals. Flatbed's workshops are stellar and I would always recommend anything Kathy Brimberry is teaching... Solar Plate would be a good start. Another great beginner class would be Intro to Copperplate Etching with Teresa. If you are a printmaking afficionado, maybe you would enjoy PhotoPolymer Film Intaglio. Mark Smith offers individual 90 minute critiques, which, for the active artist, can be informative, intense, and fun. Flatbed also offers business courses for artists including one about tax tips from a CPA and an internet promo class for artist on how to promote work by increasing web presence. My yelp disclaimer is that I taught printmaking to UT Architecture students at Flatbed for a summer ... If you are looking to buy original art for your home, stop by at one of their gallery exhibits or make an appointment... so you, too, may someday soon be able to say "Let me take you upstairs and show you my etchings..."

This is the coolest place! We visited while we were in town. My childhood friend participated in…read moretheir weekend studio tour and invited us to stop by. As soon as we approached the building, I knew I'd love it. The space is so colorful and vibrant, with amazing murals outside that are the perfect backdrop for pictures. There's a space in front of the building where some vendors set up. As soon as you walk in, your eyes are assaulted with so many options of where to look at. Every wall and corner is full of art waiting to be admired. If you decide to start on the left side, there's a space that's set up more like a gift shop, with visual art, prints, sculptures, handmade art, cards, and so many things other to buy. If you walk to the right side, you realize the building is a lot bigger than you expected. There's so many rooms that seem to be used by individual artists, all showcasing their art. We ran out of time before exploring it all but will definitely come back. There was one room that was all dark with black lights and had bright neon art, it was the coolest thing! I looked up their website and learned that they're the largest artist and creative complex in Texas, housing around 130 multidisciplinary artists, including painters, photographers, filmmakers, tech artists and more. They offer studio spaces available for rent, events, coworking, and lots of programming to invite the community to support the artists. Every city should have a place like this!

Love the concept of this little gallery/shop - I totally see the connection between art and…read morescience, and it's nice to see someplace celebrate that. It's not a huge space, but it's well worth a visit. We saw thought provoking works, pieces that made us smile, things that made us laugh, and we contributed to a guest-created collage of Charles Darwin for the gallery's Darwin Day celebration. :) Love the location at Canopy, which has loads of other work/display spaces for all kinds of artists and artisans - I can't wait to go to an Open Canopy (open house) event and see all the wonderful stuff that gets created there.

I'm giving this Art.Science.Gallery a three star not because I don't like it. It's because I wish…read moreit was bigger. I like the concept of seeing science as an art form. When I visit this gallery, they had art about birds. Not only they had paintings but there were screenprints and magnets too. I was disappointed there wasn't more birds because there's a lot of species. The location is where Sa-Ten is located along with galleries and shops. There's plenty of parking and it's worthy of checking out this place whenever you are in the Eastside.