You might have noticed the door with the mural of scissors on it, right next to Gallery Pastry in…read morethe little pocket of shops off of the Monon and 54th Street. The owner is super passionate about being crafty, creative and fun. Homeroom is essentially a big room with every fun crafting tool you've ever dreamed of. The owner does upholstery classes, both virtually and in person. She can also host private and custom workshops, parties or do studio rentals. The space has big tables to work at, sewing machines, fabric galore, wood burner tools, big spools that you can turn into footstools, and more. Check their website for the virtual and in-person class schedules or email the owner to set up a time to stop in. This is definitely a hidden gem!

If you've walked around the pockets of shops off the Monon at 54th Street in South Broad Ripple,…read moreyou may have noticed a door with an eye-catching yet simple mural of scissors. It's beyond that door where creative and convivial owner offers a creative DIY modern maker space. HomeRoom empowers guests to move beyond their fears by teaching them how to design, repair, and/or create useful and meaningful objects for themselves, friends, family, and the community. Don't expect the run-of-the-mill 'paper, gluesticks, and glitter' crafts. Think drivers/drills, hammers, sandpaper, handsaws, screwdrivers, pliers--and even sewing machines. Leer is an experienced leader and expert, as an educator and contributor for Real Simple, Bob Vila online, Country Living, Apartmenttherapy.com, and the Indianapolis Star. She's also taught sewing classes The Indianapolis Art Center as well as at a local shelter for abused women and kids. Leer offers private and custom workshops, summer camps, parties, and in-studio rentals. The recent classes include Beginning Sewing & Textile Arts, Maker Birthday Parties, and Upholstery for adults. Over the summer, Homeroom offers camps such as Crafty Entrepreneur Camp-where along the way, they learn financial literacy, design their goods, marketing, and sales skills. Kid classes have been fondly called meditative and calming "junk drawer" parties. Parents enjoy the classes, as each experience integrates both STEM and STEAM curricula. Kids are so busy having fun and feeling a high sense of accomplishment that they don't even know they were learning valuable and practical skills. Creativity flows, as kids use creatively use items such as grommet rings, earrings, fabric swatches, necklaces, charms, bells, broaches, keychains, buttons, keys, wood, vintage hardware, scrap metal conduit, laminates, wood, thread, beads, and metal tubing--even chop-sawed parquet floor tiles. Check their website for the virtual and in-person class schedules or set up a time to stop in.

This is an adorable spot that I had no idea existed until a friend asked me to attend a wine and…read morecardology class here. Such a sweet space with several designated parking spaces right in front. I arrived a few minutes early to our class and was able to look around at the great selection of gift and home products at the front of the space. For our class, snacks and drinks were included in the price and we had a lovely time laughing and learning more. I look at their schedule of upcoming events and they host so many fun events! Perfect for girls night out.

Create Art Studio is an amazing place for any art enthusiasts or people that just want to explore…read moretheir creativity! I've been to 2 workshops and both have been incredible. The founders Chrissy and Alissa are so nice and welcoming every time! The instructors are also so warm and the vibe of the place is just perfect, of course I have to mention the refreshments are on point too :) 100% recommend taking a class and they have parking!

I took a Make It Take It: Wheel Throwing class. I wasn't really sure what to expect but I had a lot…read moreof fun playing and "trying" to make something. It was a 2 hour class and I believe the tutorial took about 30-40 minutes of that 2 hours. You get to make 2 pieces, but I only made 1 because I kept messing up. LOL. I'm glad I brought an apron, and I suggest you do too if you choose to take this class. What I ended up with is a trinket looking dish. They keep it for about 2 weeks to fire and glaze it with the color you choose. I'll add a photo of the finished product when I get it. It was a lot of fun, but I really wish I would've had more time. I will do this again.

Dropped in for the Ash + Elm Autumn fest, what a cool place! Parking was fun but did find street…read morespots not too far away, there's clean bathrooms, a nice green sprawl for all the wondering around tents. Neat place.

Went to a gathering for a friend's birthday. It was fun and frustrating at the same time…read more Instructions were great and easy to follow. In a few weeks we will have our finished product. Their classes fill up as soon as they are posted. I was irritated that my husband did better than I did. He isn't crafty at all and he caught on really fast.

WOW, what a cool place that's tucked away in a small neighborhood to let your pottery talents come…read morealive. I had such an amazing time last night learning how to create pottery. This was my very first time doing this, and instructor Tracee Ellis was absolutely OUTSTANDING!!!! She taught 8 of us, some first-timers, others had some experience, but she made getting messy a dream come true for me. I'm so glad my daughter in law gifted me this experience as a Christmas gift last year. The classes fill up super quick, but man, was this truly worth the wait!!!! Thank you, Yellow Door Ceramic Studio and Tracee Ellis, for an incredible way to end the work week and begin the weekend. #potteryrocks

My friend and I had the best time designing our own custom sneakers. The vibe was relaxed,…read moreinspiring, and perfect for getting creative without feeling rushed. There were tons of paint colors and supplies to choose from, and the staff was super encouraging and helpful if you needed ideas or guidance. I went with a cartoon-style design on mine, with a sketch outline, bold details, and a hand-drawn look. I LOVE how they turned out. They look like wearable art! My friend went in a totally different direction, which made it even more fun seeing how unique each pair became. It's such a cool concept for a girls' night, date night, birthday, or just something different to do. You walk out with something you actually get to wear and show off. Highly recommend if you're looking for a creative experience that's both fun and memorable!

This was a top favorite birthday gift/experience! While I ran out of time and will have to finish…read morepainting my shoes at home, I learned a lot and was able to get the largest part of the process finished. We all really enjoyed the experience and were so pleased with the help and advice we received from their instructors. I was really appreciative of the way they really stepped in to help my 2 children as they needed, allowing me to keep on working away in my own art project. They have some examples to help give you ideas and believe them when they tell you that they can help you draw items onto your shoes for you to paint. It felt like they are dedicated to helping people carry out the vision they have for their project.

This place is spectacular! Super down-to-earth people and fantastic work! They have open mic nights…read moreevery Wednesday night that are super fun!

From the owner: We are a fine art gallery that offers a variety of wonderful two dimensional and three dimensional…read moreartwork.

Very professional and great work. Very happy with final result. Would definitely recommendread more

I highly recommend Petrov Frame & Restoration. I picked up a lithograph they repaired for me today…read more It looks fabulous! It looks even better than I hoped. Great work!!!!

I recently attended the beginner class "Intro to Modern Brush Calligraphy" with Kimberly at The…read moreNewton and I loved it!! The class comes with the Tombow dual pack pens (hard and soft brush), a personalized dot grid notebook and the beginner's guide to modern calligraphy that you can take home and practice after class. She also includes a drink ticket which can be redeemed for booze or non-alcoholic drinks. Kimberly was super detailed in explaining some of the jargon used in modern calligraphy. She made it simple and easy to understand. She went they the 10 basic strokes step by step and had us practice while we followed along. After we got some of the basics down, she taught us the lower-case alphabet. The class is great - lots of examples and hands-on practice. She also goes around and helps adjust the angles of your brush and hand and gives out pointers. The Location: The Newton (inside the Changing Hand's book store) One of the first things that Kimberly said in class was that she doesn't pick locations that don't serve booze. Some times you need a little liquid courage to numb that "perfectionist" mentality. Loved the location. It had a parking lot (free) and restrooms right around the corner. It's on the other side of the bar inside the Changjng Hand's bookstore - which serve coffees, teas and booze. I highly recommend this class to anyone's that's interested in learning. Kimberly is high energy and is super positive! She never makes you feel bad and is a great instructor.

Was able to attend a zoom class for calligraphy w/ crayola markers. So fun!…read more Love that we can do calligraphy with just regular Crayola affordable markers! Kimberly was an awesome instructor, friendly, informative and fun. Great event, loved it. Thanks for the useful new skill set :)

Great service and clean. Thank you Marisa for all your help. Easy to use card system and plenty of…read moremachines

While visiting the Castleton location, my 1-year-old child came out of the ball pit and handed me…read morean OPEN KNIFE. Photo attached. This happened in a play area specifically designed for young children. Thankfully, my child was not hurt, but that was pure luck. The potential outcome here is horrifying to think about. A sharp weapon in a toddler ball pit represents a serious failure in safety, supervision, and inspection protocols. I immediately notified management. While the manager was kind, the severity of the situation felt dismissed. No immediate safety checks were done. No effort was made to notify other families currently playing. I was told "I just don't want you to leave and go tell all your friends that Smiley's is terrible." I'm sharing this not for attention and not to complain--but to bring awareness to other parents. Smiley's stayed open and operating like it's any other day. I will continue to advocate for children's safety and truly hope this leads to real change so no other family has to experience this fear--or something far worse. I'll keep sharing because meaningful change only happens when people speak up.