The most incredible homeschool art class I could ever hope for!…read more It is with a heavy heart that my family is moving out of state, not because we dread the move but because we dread leaving Art In Mind. I kid you not, our family looks forward to coming to art class every week and drag our feet to leave when it's over. You won't find a more family-friendly, educationally well-rounded venue for kids to learn about art history, artists, techniques, vocabulary and more. Mrs. Hall does an incredible job putting together a curriculum for children of all ages and abilities and is like no other when it comes to delivering an education that leaves kids hungry for more. You will not be disappointed!

From the owner: Paint & Sip Sessions,Birthday and Private Parties,Team Building Events,Art Lessons for All Ages,Art…read moreCamps,Special Needs Opportunities,Home School Art Education,Family Paint Nights Metal Stamped Jewelry Classes,Culinary Arts for Kids

What a beautiful gallery! From the moment I walked in my eyes just travelled from paintings, to…read morejewelry, to sculptures, oh my! I just love everything about this place. So many pretty things. Apparently they have classes in the back area (pottery & painting) maybe more I'm not sure. I will have to take a class next time I am up in this area. Cynthia the owner is one of the sweetest people you will meet, and Natalia is a gem. Both ladies are friendly knowledgeable, helpful and boy oh boy they know their art. Definitely stop by you won't be sorry.

I did a date night at Painting with a Twist and it was so much fun! There was a good number of…read morepeople and our instructor Krista was so nice and informative! It was a great time with good music and drinks. The entire class was about 2-2.5 hours depending on how long you took to add some finishing details and everything was provided from paint, canvas, cups, paintbrushes. You're allowed to bring any sort of drinks and snacks which was a lot of fun. They rotate which paintings they do and post it on the website as well and it's fun to just come and pint even if you're not going to follow the template! I highly recommend coming with a group of friends or for a date!

Great service, awesome paintings for purchase and the class was very welcoming and easy to follow…read more Would definitely go again

Staff wasn't helpful after Rebecca left. Had to ask for everything, outrageous prices, super messy.read more

This was a fairly standard paint your own pottery place - nice big tables, lots of choices in…read morepottery & paints. What makes it even better is the glass art option - so much beautiful glass to work with! I can't wait to go back for that! The pottery was our goal - so did that. No rushing around, great music playing just loudly enough. Fun time!

Homeward Bound Dog Rescue held a painting fundraiser and we all had an amazing time! Mare came to…read moreus and she made everything so easy. She supplied absolutely everything, explained very well, and gave extra help to anyone who needed it, even after the event was over. We all chose to paint our own pets and all attendees were completely satisfied. Can't wait to do it again!

From the owner: Paint-Ur-Pet: The party that gives back!…read more Fundraisers, DIY Kits, Custom Portraits, Pallet Wood and Glassware. Satisfaction Guaranteed!

I've lived in Albany for nearly four years now, and I never knew about this place! I found out…read moreabout this through the Yelp Events page (Bombs Away!) and was able to attend the event. It showcases numerous types of artwork throughout the building and has different studios for different purposes. They also offered a variety of different classes that I look forward to learn more about! The Bombs Away Workshop was incredibly fun! The instructors were really knowledgeable and helpful. It was a small group, so the ratio of instructor:students was pretty well balanced. They provided ample supplies and appropriate protective wear for the event. The only comment would be to provide more scales or request us to bring some in the invitation. I think that slowed down the efficiency of the workshop since we were just waiting for everyone to get their ingredients measured. Otherwise, I had a lot of fun and hope there are more fun events advertised!

Through the end of April, The Albany Barn is featuring an excellent exhibition of the contemporary…read moreart of Sarah Holub Schrom. Her paintings are soulful & evocative of her personal evolution as an artist and as a human being. It is definitely worth the trip to see these paintings! She is sure to soon take off as an artist, so take this opportunity to see it now. Make sure you call before going because the hours are limited & vary daily.

My kids had received gift certificates here and today we went to check out the place. The short…read moreversion of this review is: my kids loved it here! The space is very open and bright. There are tables/chairs set up around the room waiting for painters to sit at. The walls are lined with shelves of blank pottery to choose from. There are items such as plates, mugs, teapots, and vases. There are dinosaurs, bears, cars, treasure boxes, princess crowns, and a variety of coin banks. There was even a holiday section with Santa bowls, Rudolf plates, trees, and ornaments. There is something for everyone from kids to adults. It would really surprise me if someone couldn't find a piece to paint. There are art books, stencils, and stamps to help get your creativity flowing. The paints are a variety of beautiful colors - and there even is a tile showing how each paint looks when it dries (which was extremely helpful). The only down side might be the parking but that really is a stretch. There were only a few spots in front of the store - BUT there is more parking down behind the shop. Do not be deterred by the parking! My kids loved it here and they ended up spending 2-3 hours happily working on their projects. The owner is very helpful and came by often to refresh our water bowls. In one week the pieces will be ready for pick up and my children can't wait to see their creations glazed and fired. I really am genuinely happy this business has come in. It was a nice way to spend a few hours and I can easily see groups gathering here.

Last weekend, we held our daughter's 13th birthday party at Piece d'Occasion. Nine girls, including…read morethe birthday girl. It was a huge success, due in no small part to Heather's efforts. When we arrived shortly before the party, we found the place done up lovingly with balloons, a table nicely decorated for the girls, and another table set up for presents, with a commemorative plate for the occasion that all the girls got to sign, with our daughter's name already beautifully painted on it. Her favorite music was playing, too, with a custom playlist that Heather created for her based on her preferences. Once the girls finished catching up with each other, Heather led the girls through the process. There was a huge selection of figures for painting, and, of course, all the painting and decorating supplies the girls needed. While they worked, they were given glitter tattoos, which they went nuts for (what is it about glitter?). When the girls finished their pieces, they got their pizza (included in the price) and then we brought out the cake, and the party wound to a close. It went a few minutes over, but Heather was very understanding about it. The girls had a terrific time. My wife and I were delighted with everything, and Heather was wonderful to work with. The price was more than reasonable for what we got. We'd celebrate another birthday here in a heartbeat; in fact, we very well may, when our girl's 14th birthday rolls around!

When I wanted to donate a sofa and matching loveseat that were in very good condition, I contacted…read moreHabitat and left an email message. I received an email back in a reasonable amount of time considering how busy they must be. The person in charge of donations asked me to send a photo (which is totally understandable) before pick up was approved. Shortly after, an appointment time was set for pick up. I had the furniture placed in the garage as requested. The truck came within the designated time, and furniture was taken to the truck efficiently. I would say it was "professional operation." When it was picked up, one of the two men said, "This furniture is in great condition. Thank you for your kind donation and for thinking of us." I was happy to donate to a good cause and will continue to do so. Three years ago we donated oak kitchen cabinets when our kitchen was remodeled. I saw that they were sold for $550. I was pleased to help an organization with such an outstanding mission.

This review is for ReStore, the store front for used furniture and recycled fixtures and appliances…read morethat Habitat for Humanity runs in downtown Schenectady. Habitat itself is an outstanding organization and does great work. The H for H offices are located on Pearl, so this should be recategorized in Yelp as Home Furnishings / Retail Furniture, not Contractor Services. First off, hours: Thursday 10-6, Friday and Saturday 10-3. Tip: if you come early on Thursday, you'll have your best chance of getting pick of the new stock for the week, since they're closed the other days but continue to collect donations. So this is basically a thrift store specializing in furniture. It's everything you'd expect from a place that runs on donations. The stock is not by any means new or in style, but they do a good job in filtering out items so you don't have any dirty or unusually smelly items. Some of the items I looked at were broken or had significant flaws, but they for the most part seem to have filtered out truly unusable stuff. They do have a little bit of everything, and the repurposed fixtures (including doors and windows) are probably the cheapest you'll find anywhere. I had a little difficulty at first getting appropriate help - there were many volunteers but they had to find the chief guy in charge to do pricing for me, and they kept asking me the same questions about the items I picked out (as to whether they belonged in a set or not, like that matters for very used furniture) - but it's hard to quibble with volunteers on the basis of the service. They tried, even if they weren't as organized about things as they could be. Be patient with this sort of thing if you go in. If Design on a Dime ever does a Schenectady show, they'll love it here. I have a lot of fun speculating about previous owners of many of these items. (I really got a hoot about the five-piece living room set I saw on my most recent visit, where there was a built-in Stereophonic Console in the corner table unit. 1966, here we come!!) I also urge you if you do go, round up on your purchases and throw the extra money into the donation kitty. This group builds houses for people, and does it in a way that brings the people who will live in the house and own it into the building process. It may be unfortunate that this is needed, but it is, and doing a little shopping here can help this effort while helping yourself. One caveat: from the blank expressions I got when I asked if they check for bed bugs on the furniture upholstery, I'm going to guess that they do not do their own screening here. So given the reality of bed bugs and older pieces of furniture, I urge you to check for yourself. This is true for any used furniture these days. Update: adding a fourth star after multiple visits - the stock really does zing in and out (well, some of it) and Thursday mornings are definitely your best bet. The second floor, which I neglected earlier, has miscellaneous small fixtures, lamps, plumbing stuff, and so forth.