An old friend is a prominent member and instructor, Dale Savit. This past fall we drove east for…read morefall colors, clam chowder,and a couple of Dale's pieces. This is a great place to visit if you can, and hey, it's across a parking lot from Sam Adams brewery too!

I always stop in here during the JP Open Studios and this past weekend (Sept 2012) I actually…read morebought a small installation. Extremely fair price. You can wonder around the whole studio and see pieces in various states of creation. You can't miss the giant sculptures outside. If I ever have unlimited cash, I'll be back to buy one or two of those things. Check it out if you have any interest in metalworks. They have classes too! The piece I bought was by Walter Clark at outsideartist@live.com and www.outsideartist-inside2.com. I also uploaded a pic of the framed metal woman's head to encourage you to check them out!

They sold a me a gift card then went out of business and never refunded the money. Don't trust…read morethem. Ever!

Something got me interested in glass blowing. I know myself, and I knew I probably wouldn't have…read moreheaps of fun... but it is something I wanted to experience for myself. After reading the reviews, I decided to go here. I took the glassblowing sampler, which serves as an introduction to the art. My two instructors were Matt and Pat. The first thing we did was go through the shop, and see what kinds of things they do. There were no visible sales tactics involved, more like a "this is what we do". Then we got to the room where the melted glass actually lives... now folks... they tell you to bring a bottle of water, bring one. Molten glass is incredibly hot, and therefore the room is too. They go over what we will be making, and how we will be making it, as well as things that could go wrong. In this glass we make paperweights. Then we go over safety and practice three times to make sure we got everything down. Yes, burns do happen, but they do everything they can to minimize the risk. When it is your turn, one of the instructors will be working with you one on one to guide you through the process, and ensure you don't get a burn from glass whose temperate well exceeds 1,000 degrees. However, this is where this place lost some stars. When it was my turn, Pat was the person working with me. While I appreciate his help, he did many things that were extra, and unrelated to safety, such as spinning the rod. While minor, and while I was the one manipulating the glass, I still felt it took away from the experience. It was more like me assisting him than him assisting me. You don't get the opportunity to "blow" into the glass in this class, but it was demonstrated to us at the end. Some more notes: Instructors were fairly chill, but no-nonsense dudes. When you have molten glass, joking around is very dangerous. The owner has a great sense of humor! And finally, molten glass is very viscous. It is not as easy to manipulate as it looks. In conclusion: if I had enjoyed glass blowing, I would return here. But, alas, I found it was not for me. Definitely worth it for the experience though!

Great option for kids learning violin. Instructor is amazing at engaging with children and modifies…read morethe class based on each child's needs. Our child has a short attention span and Maggie somehow gets her to pay attention and progress pretty quickly. The students also get to perform at different venues and give back to the community around them.

From the owner: Stonybrook Strings provides a holistic and motivating environment for young violinists to achieve…read moretheir potential. Every student is known and valued and therefore each course of study is tailored carefully for the individual.

I appreciate that they offer scholarships and have a supportive community for addressing questions…read moreand concerns. They seem to value the understanding and practice of herbalism.

There are not many herb schools in the country that cover the amazing depth and breadth of material…read morefound in the advanced course of study, modeled on Paul Bergner's teachings. If you're serious about studying herbs and you're located in the northeast or looking to move here, this school provides a rigorous practical background in the techniques and practices of traditional western herbalism. As a graduate of the apprenticeship and the two year advanced studies program, I highly recommend this school. When I moved to the northeast a quality herb school was high on my priority list, and I had completed an herbal apprenticeship elsewhere. I wanted to jump straight into the advanced program but was convinced by Katja to start with the apprenticeship and I'm so glad I did, because there was almost no overlap with my previous program. My knowledge of herbal energetics, actions and preparations, body systems, physiology and traditional food ways grew by leaps and bounds (before this I had a solid biology background). The vitalist principles foundational to holistic health; including sleep, movement, diet and stress management, are instilled throughout the coursework and laid the groundwork for my current practice. The apprenticeship is for all kinds of folks who want a foundation in herbal studies for personal education. The advanced program is great for anyone wanting to dive deeper, especially if they have questions about how to set up an herbal business. The advanced program includes training for the sorts of issues you are likely to encounter as an herbalist working in an urban setting. I find the staff knowledgeable and committed to excellence. Great if you want to really sink your teeth into the material. Substantial.

Very kind, patient, and helped me pass my test (this was 4 years ago but w/e) 10/10 would…read morerecommend. I had taken driving lessons before and knew how to do it mostly, but could never land parallel parking or the test, and 2 lessons in and I managed to pass/fix some stuff. I keep hearing my instructor telling me how to park properly 4 years later lol.

All I can say is don't give your money to this place !!! I paid for 3 lessons and a road test !!…read moreOver 400$all together ! And all three instructors gave me different instructions and information!! And my lessons always ended short definitely did not get my money worth and fell very cheated out on !! Also the rmv instructor was awful horrible and mean !

Eli Portman is a terrific teacher! And both the Eliot street and amory street locations are very…read morecomfortable, with easy parking.,,

It makes me sad to write this review, especially since I felt the possibilities of a community…read moreatmosphere at the Eliot school, but I was really disturbed by the use of the words, to me in the last email by the Assistant Director, Jean - "At this point, I think we just need to part ways." (when someone who's providing a service to you says that - HUGE RED FLAG!) So, I signed up for private lessons with Joe for $65/hour. This was expensive for me, but I really needed to get a project done for a deadline. I was clear about what I wanted a small model of a house, with all mitered joints, because I was going to use it to cast a model. I even brought paper patterns. Joe met with me and said it was do-able. We did the first session of three hours, one of which he gave me an hour free, it seemed to go well. (I got the hour free - because the the machines here aren't so good - so its not your fault, his words) We didn't finish so I suggest we meet again. An hour into the next session, Joe proclaimed that the project was not do-able and too complicated, because there isn't a left-handed table saw. He even took my piece and attempting to go forward, took it the sander and wanted to sand it down to 45 degrees (yikes). Anyhow, so I decided to cut my losses and say, okay let's stop. He decided not to charge me for this hour. So I left with a pile of wood, and also broken-hearted, because I had really wanted to complete this piece. So, I wrote Jean, asking if I could get my money back, because I was clear about what I wanted in my project and felt like I should have been told that my project was not do-able from the beginning or at minimum, warned. Not have my project unfinished, after I had spent $130, 4 hours of time, and $30 on materials. And on top of it, I now need to find and pay someone to build this model. It wasn't anything personal against Joe, he was a nice guy, but more about professionalism. For example, if you had a contractor who said they could do something, they wouldn't walk away midway through the project and say it was too hard, leaving you hanging. Same concept. But instead, I got an email that from Jean that said, we are NOT refunding you, but (as if I had won a prize) we aren't charging you for the extra two hours Joe gave you, and "at this point, I think we just need to part ways."

Normally I like to keep my reviews short because no one has that much time BUT I feel like every…read moresingle detail of this counts. 1. all payments MUST be made in cash! 2. the school, although on a main road, is VERY hard to find when driving or walking by. The business has a small green sign with white letters. good luck finding it the first time. 3. don't, I repeat, DO NOT, take classes during the afternoon hours when there's traffic because it would take you just 45mins to get from your picked up location to an area safe enough to practice. try at all costs to take classes around 9am-1pm. 4. My teacher spent 3 out of the 5 classes ($240) on his phone watching videos, talking to insurance companies, or calling people. Perhaps he felt safe because I knew how to drive but that wasn't ok. BUT once he got off his phone he was pretty good. 5. once I was done with my classes, I paid for the teacher to take me to the test ($130) and the lady told me she was going to call me by the following weekend, that never happened in fact,it took her almost three weeks to give me a test day. This was after I got tired of waiting for her and I called her. 6. test day came around. I was told my test would be @ 4pm and it ended up starting at 4:46pm, I left out of there @ 6:30pm, so please ensure to bring a snack for the process. ALSO, the teacher who drove us to the test spoke NO ENGLISH, none. he was talking the entire way there I'm assuming giving tips and tricks but no English came out of his mouth. 7. would I recommend them? No! & Yes. no because costumer service is none existent and they have a million ways to not be honest about the process. yes, because they were the most affordable company I found.

I don't recommend this, the only good intructor is Katherine, she's so nice, I made my second…read moreattempt to get the license but the instructor since the beginning started to talk a little rude, I'm feeling so uncomfortable in my class and in my test.

I am an adult driver (40+) who has always lived in the city and never driven prior to this school…read more I enrolled in the beginner private lesson package which I found from googling adult driving school reviews. I was initially nervous when I saw that multiple instructors would be working with me. After I emailed them with my worry, they called very quickly to explain the benefit of learning from different instructors, something that ultimately helped me feel prepared for the road test since you never know which examiner you'll get. Every instructor I drove with was patient, professional, and clearly invested in both my safety and my success. As an adult learning to drive in this city, I can't recommend this school highly enough.

Inconsistent, Unprofessional, and Ultimately a Waste of Time & Money…read more I am writing this review on behalf of my father, a retired military Veteran from India, who just completed 7 lessons with Brookline Driving School. Unfortunately, his experience was overwhelmingly disappointing and I would strongly advise you to look elsewhere. Our primary issue was the complete lack of consistency between instructors. He had at least three different teachers, primarily switching between Ervin and Vitaly. While Ervin was patient and seemed to genuinely enjoy teaching, the same cannot be said for his counterpart. Vitaly was, frankly, obnoxious. He lacked basic respect for his students, was often loud and visibly frustrated, creating an environment where my father felt intimidated and unable to ask questions. If you don't have the patience for this job, why are you in it? To make matters worse, he made uncalled-for and stereotypical "jokes" about Indians being bad drivers, which was completely unprofessional and offensive. The biggest practical problem arose from this inconsistency. Ervin and Vitaly taught completely different techniques for parallel parking. One would say to do it one way, and the next lesson, the other would contradict it. This constant change in instruction confused my father daily and shattered his confidence. The culmination of this failure was on his road test. He failed specifically because of the parallel parking maneuver. The conflicting advice from his own instructors left him unsure of the correct method, leading to a critical error. I hold Brookline Driving School 100% responsible for this. We are cutting our losses and heeding our neighbors' recommendation to try Waltham Driving School instead. Save your time, your money, and your sanity--go somewhere else. This school is unorganized and employs instructors who are not aligned, with at least one who lacks the basic demeanor required to teach.

My kids have done summer camp at Big Picture Art House for two years now and have really enjoyed…read moreit. They learned a lot more about photography than I expected them to in just one week, and they came home with lots of cool pictures to share with us. The outings that they do in and around Boston are great - they would be cool field trips even without the photography part. It's a great option for middle school aged kids who have grown out of some summer camp options. My kids have enjoyed it at ages 11 through 15. I highly recommend Big Picture and will definitely be sending my kids again next year.

This is a fantastic camp. I have had 2 different children attend Big Picture in different years,…read moreand it has been a truly unique experience for them. The kids travel around daily to many different locations in Boston and surrounding areas in small groups for photographic inspiration and fun. They also have daily downtime in the artist space. We loved the small group aspect and the individual attention. One of my children has some significant social issues, and I 100% felt that the owner Jennifer really listened and worked to accommodate my child. I was beyond pleased. This was my daughter's favorite camp of all the camps she has attended over the years, hands down. Highly recommend!

I was hunting for the perfect cooking class to treat my girlfriend for her bday. Frustration…read moreabounded as I went through one unhealthy cooking class after another. How come none of the major players in Boston want to teach us how to cook clean and healthy? Anyways.. Thank god I found Kate just as I was about to give up my search! Kate did not disappoint! She helped me decide the menu via email before the cooking class. I LOVED that we were able to figure it out together. Once we got to Kate's house, we were greeted by her and her adorable vegan doggie. We made our way to the kitchen and spent the next 2.5 hours discussing nutrition, learning how to make RIDICULOUSLY YUMMY tempeh bacon (with spinach and mushrooms) and dark chocolate chip & peanut butter cookies. We left with full tummies, lots of extra cookies, a large list of books to check out, and many new items to add to our weekly shopping list. I HIGHLY recommend Kate's cooking class to anyone - vegan or not. She will not disappoint and will likely open your eyes to a different way of thinking about your eating habits. Thanks, Kate!

My good friend and I had our first vegan cooking lesson with Kate last weekend. It was a blast!…read moreKate showed us how to make sushi, which I have always wanted to learn how to make, but always thought was too difficult. We made sweet potato rolls with tempeh bacon that were delicious. We also learned how to make gluten free banana oatmeal cookies that were unbelievably tasty with all healthy ingredients are no added sugar. Kate was friendly, personable, and a great teacher. She also knows A LOT about nutrition. I found out that I'm actually getting way beyond the necessary amount of daily protein (46 grams). I would highly recommend cooking lessons with Kate for anyone who recently made the transition to a vegan lifestyle, wants to eat healthier, or is just looking for something fun to do. Two thumbs up!