i loved the experience !!! all the people were so nice, and i really appreciated teaching the…read moretechniques bc they were really helpful

Great spot when it's a hot afternoon. Kept us busy for 2 hours and also got to catch up with a…read morefriend. They have lots of options which makes it tough to choose but it creates a fun time. They offered popcorn as an extra treat which was a nice snack. Average prices around $38 with a few much smaller options below this. All in all it was a great afternoon.

About a year ago my daughter, then 13, began showing some artistic talent. She had a good eye for…read morecomposition and was starting to teach herself to improve her art through YouTube videos. Eventually she decided that she wanted to apply to attend a competitive arts-oriented high school. The school required that a portfolio be submitted as part of the application process, with several required pictures - a landscape, a portrait, an animal, etc. My daughter's current school was supportive, but not focused on producing a structured portfolio. And we needed to have everything ready in under two months! I found Anatol through searching Yelp and the web, and he has been amazing. He supplied the instruction, the discipline, and the structure that my daughter needed. First, he helped my daughter focus her sketching ability. Then he helped her expand to colored pencils and water-color work. All of these she used to produce the required portfolio artworks. He also helped us confirm which of her preexisting works should be included in the rest of the portfolio. Basically, he helped her cover a year's worth of art instruction in a two-month period. (There were many lessons, but no tears!) I am glad to say that my daughter ended up being accepted into the high school program, something that seemed unlikely before we started with Mr. Woolf. However, what makes me happiest is that my daughter was able to develop her talent with Anatol, who was able to balance her own artistic interests with the needs of the portfolio and the expectations of formal artistic training. He helped her develop what she was already doing and teach her new techniques as well. (My daughter also read this review and says she agrees with it!)

I enrolled my daughter into lessons with Mr. Woolf and her art skills have grown tremendously,…read morealong with her confidence and interest in art. Would highly recommend Mr. Woolf to anyone interested.

Took my mom painting for her birthday!…read more We had came here before and were happy with the outcome of the first time being here. This experience was a little more tougher to paint but we had an amazing time as usual here! The atmosphere is artistic and clean! Love the small bar they have for snack and such! The lemonade was a bit too sweet for my taste but it was good! The chips and guacamole were pretty good as well. Overall being here is fun and is well worth it! The instructors are so helpful and take their time in teaching you and helping you with your painting if you need it. Will be back again soon!

Had a great painting afternoon with my girlfriends - the room was nice and spacious - the…read moreinstructors were helpful and the vantage point was great for seeing what they were painting and us to follow along- all the food was really too salty - I think next time I will pass on the food and just do the paint alone

This is a glass fusion studio. I went with a small group (about a dozen) to take the Fused Glass…read moreBasics class. The outcome was a 6 inch bowl designed by me. This was a pretty fun outing -- with a surprising number of budding artists in our group. Credit must be given to the 2 owners for making the education part fun, informative, and interesting. The first 30 minutes is a presentation of how to handle the glass, break it, shape it, stack it, etc. Each person starts with a clean slate. There are loads of different types of supplies -- very thin shards, speckles of glass, all colors and then tools to shape your design. From an uneasy feeling that we were going to fail, the intro gave us the confidence to produce our masterpieces. You will not take home your masterpiece that evening. It has to melt and be shaped, so expect some days to pass and a return trip to pick up your item. If you're with a group, you can bring snacks, but snacking pretty much ends when glass manipulation begins. The two artists circulate and provide design advice but you are the artist.

I took the "Introduction to Glass Mosaics" class this weekend with a friend and had a very positive…read moreexperience. The project was to make a trivet. We walked in and all the materials and tools were laid out for each of us at stations. They had 4 examples of completed projects for us to review and even templates to make it easy if we didn't want to create our own design (although seems like everyone did their own design in our class). The teacher, Missy, was very thorough in her initial explanation of steps to complete the project and walked around to make sure to answer questions or give guidance. The good part was that with this particular project (not the case with others), we walked away with our trivet and didn't have to come back to pick anything up, which was a relief since it's not close to my house (while it was totally worth it for the 3 hour class, might not have been fun to drive all the way back another day just to pick something up). This was a fun activity to do with a friend or on your own and would definitely recommend it.

I seem to find myself in the Kentlands area a lot lately but my 1st time visiting the Art Barn…read more My Cousin was debuting his new Independent Film and, of course, I am going to support. The building used to be a stable that has beautifully renovated. It definitely has farmhouse touches with the wood, faux pocket doors and rustic touches. There is a reception area on the main floor where there was coffee(I love it already!) and refreshments. There is accessible parking out front and an elevator for those who may need it to get to the theater upstairs. The theater is small and intimate with 99 seats. I wanted to take pictures of the theater, but they were doing panel discussions and I just didn't feel comfortable snapping pictures during such a thoughtful process. As I understand it, they also provide services to the community around art in the form Of classes, discussions and even camps for the kids. So yes. . . Gaithersburg has begun to grow on me even though I live in Southern Maryland. I live over an hour away but I didn't mind the drive. I would definitely come back again.

Rather ironic I'm getting around to reviewing Gaithersburg Arts Barn on September 24, 2026, the…read morefirst day of the Manhattan Shorts Film Festival. Representing the 4th quarter of 2021 in my scrapbook series is Gaithersburg Art Barn. The only times I was ever here was for the Manhattan Shorts Film Fest. I first attended on Friday, October 1, 2021. Then, Wednesday, September 28, 2022. And finally, Friday, October 4, 2024. I attended the Manhattan Shorts Film Fest on Friday, October 3, 2025, but Arts Barn was being remodeled so was in a temporary location. My friend invited a group to the Manhattan Shorts in October 2021, and wow I was impressed with all the short films. The venue itself is nice, historic looking building. The theater is relatively small that goes back fairly deep. Manhattan shorts is popular and does sell out. In September 2022, I went on a date here. I had met her months back, but coordinated a date for this. Date was alright, films were great again, and it was a 1st & only date situation. I'm not sure why I didn't go in 2023. Maybe it was off my radar or had other things going on. In October 2024, my girlfriend & I attended on the Friday night. We both really enjoyed the movies. In October 2025, it was in the temporary venue, which had worse vantage points for seeing the movie screen, which made me appreciate the Arts Barn. 2026 scenario has been much worse in general. I had considered going tomorrow Friday, 9/25/26, but the tickets were sold out. Thursday was not convenient as I am going to be in Rockville for something on Friday and have other plans on Saturday. My friend had texted me about trading for a different days tickets; I mentioned to her how I was concerned about my dad was in the hospital but had interest in general. By the time, I looked into it Friday was sold out. So, I figured this year wasn't meant to be. Hopefully, I'll go again in 2027, and my health (cancer) situation is much better (along with my dad's health) and better year next year in general.

I love hand made items and supporting local artists. Locally crafted has a variety of handcrafted…read morepieces for sale. They have everything from jewelry to scarves, kitchen accessories, and beautiful cutting boards. Service was stellar. I had a nice lady working today, who checked the price on a teacher sign, I fell in love with. There were cute dog potholders and some Maryland kitchen items with cute little crabs and the Maryland emblem. Prices were pretty reasonable considering these were specialty items that were handcrafted. I am still thinking about my teacher sign. But, I will definitely go back to select one of a kind gifts for those I love.

Shop local! This shop is so cute! Multiple local artist items for sale and they rotate every few…read moremonths! Definitely check it out if you want to support your local artists.

Went to Blackrock for the first time this past Sunday for a birthday party. Great venue space for…read moreanything really. The theme was Alice in wonderland so the decor was very colorful and worked out beautifully. The food vendors were wonderful too. We had fresh oysters and a variety of sandwiches and dessert pastries.

I came here for a memorial celebration of Prince's birthday, and it was a really good time. Parking…read morewas surprisingly easy, especially with so many other guests in attendance. I was able to park directly in front of the entrance and walk right in. The setup was really nice--plenty of tables and a huge area for dancing. The DJ was spinning not only the hits but also deep cuts and some previously unreleased versions of his songs. Behind her, a projector played clips from Prince's past performances, which added a great visual vibe to the night. There was a small cash bar offering Prince-themed cocktails, plus beer and wine. The staff were fantastic and even popped in a few times to dance and celebrate with us. The venue itself was absolutely gorgeous--cool and comfortable despite all the dancing. I never imagined this would be such a great place to host or attend a party, but I'd definitely come to another event here.

Visarts regularly has Groupon vouchers, and we purchased one to give ourselves a chance at the…read morepotter's wheel. This is located in a building on the third floor in the Rockville Town Center, and there are garages abundant in the area with up to 2 hours of parking free. The class is 2 hours so you'll end up paying $3 for the overage. Class started on time, the session was "full house," and one lady snuck in a child even though class was meant to be 14+ years only. The instructor went over the process and demonstrated how to begin and form the shape of the piece you intend to make (or end up with!). The instructor was helpful, friendly, and upbeat. I think playing some music would have enhanced the experience! You get three shots at creating something out of clay, and whatever you create can be kilned and picked up in 2 weeks. You may want to arrive early if you are in a group and want to sit together. I recommend wearing an apron as you'll get your clothes dirty. The stools aren't comfortable. You are advised to remove rings, watches, and bracelets for optimal experience.

I visited Visarts for a stained glass class this past Saturday (2/22) and it was awesome more or…read moreless from start to finish! The teacher provided us instruction at the start of the class to get us going. We each picked a pattern and glass as we saw fit. From there, we followed the instructions and asked questions of the teacher as we went along. Since I was alone, I was able to work wearing headphones, listening to an audiobook as I cut and grinded glass. Overall, I absolutely enjoyed this class and want to have stained glass as a hobby in the future! Definitely recommend the stained glass class at Visarts!