Ruth Anne has been a strong supporter of the Flagstaff art scene, she has been wonderful in helping me and the people I know find the best materials for their work. Ruth carries about everything I need or could reasonably expect her to have for a printmaker, and as far as I know her selection for other mediums is excellent as well. read more

Service. Not very helpful and strong disregard for decent customer service. Seems like they have a college clientele that they cater to with little regard to other paying customers. read more

i love local art stores and this was a great stop. the owner is super helpful and loves getting to know her customers. her knowledge of merchandise is exquisite and she gives great recommendations. the prices are magnificent and she has a great selection of all media. definitely one of the best art stores i've ever been to!! looking forward to coming back. read more

This art store is great! I needed some potter tools for my college ceramics class and they had a great selection with competitive prices. The lady working there was very helpful and understanding of a beginner like myself. Covid precautions were great and I felt safe during my visit. Will definitely be returning! read more

Great art supplies! Appreciated that the owner was there working and able to have a genuine conversation. Good prices for the product as well. Always in support of the local business over the corporate whore! ;) read more

I hadn't been here in a while and just started getting crafty again so I went in for a few supplies but also had a few questions about different weight watercolor paper. RuthAnn was incredible, she not only helped me while she helped several others and seemed to be a real community staple. I heard and participated in 3 very engaging conversations with other patrons and RuthAnn. I also walked in and saw a bunch of easels set up, new to this establishment are some really affordable classes. She's says these are all on the web but to call about the monthly oil painting. read more

Visible Difference - Art Supplies Near Me - Flagstaff, Arizona

It is strange the other reviewers had such bad experiences at this store. My wife and I were in looking for art supplies and some lady (owner?) was very helpful. She even suggested a cheaper alternative to what I was going to buy. As we checked out she told us about what was going on that weekend in town. She was very friendly and went out of her way to see we found what we were looking for. read more

Ruth Ann has been very helpful whenever I visit her store. Many times we will strike up a conversation about art that ends up with me buying something i didn't even know I wanted. Great store with a little bit of everything. Great for every kind of artist. read more

Ruth Ann was a wealth of information when it came to learning about cutting mats. She spent a half hour with my husband reviewing his options for matting photos, and looked up details in catalogues to ensure he was getting the best prices on his purchases. The store has a bit of everything including an extensive supply of drafting materials, ceramics supplies (clay, tools, banding wheels), paints, sketchbooks and papers. read more

Visited this store from out of town today. Lady was very rude at first and said we didn't belong there because we said something about having ordered art supplies online in the past. Argued with us about whether there was a new type of spray paint. read more

I only go to this store out of necessity, I wish I had another option. The woman that runs the store is rude and obviously does not enjoy her job. Every time I go in she is short with everyone and I try to have a minimal amount of interaction with her. You are not allowed to walk in without stating what you specifically are there for. No browsing, and I never have, I know how she operates. Get in make your selection and leave. Simple, yes, and good for her for keeping things simple. read more

Support local businesses! This store is the best! They have top quality art supplies that you can't find at Michaels or Jo-Ann's, and for a reasonable price. My first time in the store I too was thrown off by the owners aggressiveness, but after stopping back by a couple times, she became familiar with me and comfortable. Now every time I'm there we chat for a while, about art, life, you name it. She is an amazing person. I don't know this for sure, but I assume that she is that aggressive and in your face about what it is, that you are there for, because of the ridiculously high shoplifting rate in flagstaff. For a local art store that's slightly tucked away, just off the beaten path, that may go a day or two, possibly weeks with out one sale, theft would be crippling!! Again, this is only my assumption, so I could very well be making an ass of my self. But don't let the other reviews discourage you from trying this place out, I am not saying they are wrong, because they aren't. But maybe you'll get lucky and she'll be in a good mood that day...haha read more

A great local art store. The lady who works at the store was friendly. I went in not really knowing exactly what I needed and she helped me find it. She was really direct to me, which I could see some people interpreting as rude, but I think she was just trying to be helpful, and she was! read more

Woman who works here is an exceptional ass. Went in to ask her opinion about color pencils and was shot down mid-sentence with an answer that had nothing to do with my actual question. When I tried to repeat the question, she literally did no tallow me to get out 3 words. This is one local business that will not have my support and working at the university I will be sure and tell every person that comes my way to steer clear from this place. read more

Contrary to the negative reviewer, I found this art store to be amazing. This was our first time here. The owner, Ruth Ann was so helpful to my new artist husband and for such a small place had a wide selection of professional grade and beginner supplies, better than Michaels in fact. I will definitely return and encourage others to patronize this local business. read more

As a professional artist who just relocated to Flagstaff, I couldn't be more disappointed with my experience at Visible Difference. I am an avid supporter of the arts and local businesses, and in terms of product, Visible Difference is great and likely offers everything I need to perform my craft at a high level; HOWEVER, the way I was treated by the owner of this store made it so that I will never be able to return or support this store ever again. I felt that I was profiled and treated very condescendingly when I came into the store looking for supplies. I was told not to pick up brushes that I was intending to purchase because I might break them and that they were very expensive. The brushes were only 13 dollars, if I somehow broke one like a negligent child and not the 26 year old experienced artist that I am, I could have bought the item literally 5 times over with the cash I had in my pocket. The brush was snatched out of my hand by the owner, and her tone was very rude and assumed I knew nothing of what I was looking for, and furthermore that I was somehow doing something wrong. Thinking that perhaps I had a one-off bad experience and that maybe this person just had a bad day, I shared my experience with other artist friends in town, but much to my chagrin learned they all had stories of similarly miserable encounters of being treated rudely that ranged from being accused of shoplifting to otherwise being unfairly profiled(presumably based on appearance) when trying to support a local business and buy product from this person. My experience went beyond unpleasant into downright offensive, so much so that I felt compelled to write this YELP review, an action I've never done before in my entire life. I do not understand how this place stays in business. Rest assured I will purchase from Michaels or order online hence forth even if it takes weeks and more money to receive my art supplies. As much as that pains me from an ethical perspective, I just don't have the heart to support a business run by someone who treats her patrons so disrespectfully. A sad day to be an artist in Flagstaff : ( read more

I agree with the negative reviews. I have had several experiences with customer service. The lady that was in there was shockingly rude to not only me but others that were in the store. I have heard the same thing from several other people. read more

Sure appreciate such a great LOCAL art store. Ruth Ann carries a great inventory and listens to her customers. I was looking for several items a few months ago, and when I stopped by recently she had ordered the items and had them in stock. And art classes! The owner is supportive of art (and all things) Flagstaff too. So.... local, great products, vested in community - I recommend Visible Difference. read more

Such a great spot! Easy to find location in downtown flagstaff. Was instantly greeted by the kindest woman who must be the owner/manager of the shop. She was beyond helpful, charismatic, and had everything I needed! Great local business to support. Highly recommend all interior design students to visit here. read more

My husband and I are so glad that Flagstaff has Visible Difference! Great service, supplies and very kind ownoer! This is the only place where you can acquire construction drawings in town, quicky and professionally! read more

Went in today with a list of supplies for one of my classes, pretty clueless. The owner helped me find everything that I needed. I researched prices online before going in & some stuff was cheaper in this store. If you need your supplies urgently it's worth the few extra bucks. read more

If I could give it no stars I would, first let me say shopping local is very important to me, I am more than willing to spend a little more and support local business', that said customer service in Flag is sketchy at best and this little art store tops the list of business' I will never spend money in. The saleswoman was rude from the moment I walked in the door and her frustration with me was more than evident, I was trying to describe a product I was looking for, granted I didn't have a clear explanation but her exasperation after only a few seconds was enough to make me want to walk out the door. We finally decided what it was and yes they had it, I had to ask to see it, she assured me it would not work for me, when asked how difficult it would be to cut she very flippantly said it would depend on the tools I had, it went downhill from there. As I was walking out another customer came in and she was just as rude to her before she even opened her mouth. I called Michaels, the person on the phone was more than happy to help me, yes they have it, so I guess I will be taking my money and business to them. read more