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!

This was the best experience for my kids when we just moved to the area, and they didn't have…read morefriends at school or in the neighborhood. At Shalom, they found friends and learned a lot. That helped them to feel welcome in their new environment.

Shalom EC is a unique place - the combination of Jewish Russian and US culture in a kind…read moreeducational environment. We love this center! Teachers are kind and patient. We love friendly atmosphere. My 3 kids are with Shalom EC for 2 years.

Went with a group for a little art making retreat. Had so much fun. They are very helpful and made…read moreit so easy to create really beautiful pieces. Will definitely be back!

A Fun and different outing on Super Bowl Sunday. Looking to…read morejoin again for another experience

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.

Everyone knows that I don't give out five starts very often. A business must go way over and beyond…read moremy expectations to get all five! I have been to several paint nights and have even left in tears from one of those... that was not the case with Creative Mankind. This company travels around to different venues and offers a variety of painting options. I met up with a group of friends and we painted a Mardi Gras themed picture. Right off the bat I knew it was going to be an awesome experience. We were greeted with upbeat music and beads to celebrate the occasion. Our instructor really put a lot of thought and passion into the class ahead of time. Laying on the canvas was a template of the mask we needed to transfer to our painting. She let us know that we could "go rogue" and change up the colors and skip the sketching parts but I am way not that talented! She had one completed painting on an easel and another blank canvas for demonstration up on an elevated easel. It was visible to everyone in the room without having to stand up. She was extremely accommodating as far as time given for each step, which I really appreciated! It was fun how she would tell us how many songs she would play for us to finish each step... "okay you have two songs to do this step!" There was an assistant who walked around and offered advice and guidance which was helpful. Creative Mankind had partnered with a restaurant that offered drink specials and happy hour pricing for apps! The restaurant provided a dedicated server to us which was a nice touch. And huzzah... my painting actually looked a lot like the sample! Which for me is a huge deal because I am really not artistic or creative with paint. We were all encouraged along the way and our confidence was bolstered by telling us that everyone is an artist but we express our artistry in different ways. I was with a party of six and all of our paintings turned out different and reflected our personalities. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Creative Mankind for any event they host. They also do private parties!

I'm a remote employee in CA and work with a virtual team. We meet up on a quarterly basis in…read moreArlington, VA, (DMV area) so when we do come together, we try to make the most of our time and make it a point to sneak in some fun! For our last trip in July, I was tasked with coordinating the fun team activity and stumbled upon Creative Mankind. I was considering a couple other options, but when I started communicating with Staci (the owner and host), there was really no question that this was the activity (painting class) I wanted to plan for my team. She was so nice, so patient, and super accommodating in every way possible. She even found the most perfect venue to hold our team event (Lyon Hall). She provided all supplies, ensured the ambiance was great and lively, and her instruction was so thorough! She guided us -ever so patiently- every step of the way. We had so much fun! I would, 100% recommend Creative Mankind for your next work team event!!

Debbie was fabulous start to finish. I was looking for someone to host a very small group of…read moreladies for a birthday paint class. She helped me with every aspect from contacting and arranging a location (Serendipity Market and More) to ensuring that we got to paint a very challenging piece of artwork within a limited amount of time. Everyone was extremely delighted with their lesson and with their final product. Thank you Hue Art Works!

From the owner: Sip and Paint - Customized art parties! We paint on canvas, glass, wood pallet boards, and more!…read morePlan your next party: anniversary, birthday, holiday event, client appreciation, team-building, etc. I come to you with all supplies and instruction at a location of your choice.

I really enjoyed the painting event at the Meridian yesterday with Nikki teaching. She was such a…read moregreat instructor and guided us gently through the steps to create a water / lilypad piece. Nikki was very kind and encouraging (and very helpful when I needed a little bit more support). I look forward to attending and even maybe hosting future events!

Paint the Town completely dropped the ball. I spent weeks confirming headcount, party details,…read morepayments, and logistics with them. Then, on the morning of my daughter's party (scheduled for 11:30 AM), the instructor sent a vague text at 6:45 AM saying they wouldn't be able to make it and then never responded to any of my follow-ups. To make matters worse, I couldn't reach anyone at the company. I called, texted, and emailed multiple times trying to see if they could send a backup instructor or at least switch to a virtual format. Nothing. No support, no communication...just silence. Finally, I heard back from someone on Monday, asking if I wanted to reschedule. Because apparently, that's how birthday parties work? This company clearly doesn't understand the basics of customer service or event planning. I regret ever trusting them with something so important. I would not recommend Paint the Town -- look for a more reliable company that actually puts their customers first.