Amazing! Love! Very informative. My friend and I booked a fancy vase beginning glass lesson for…read moreboth of us weeks in advance over email. For context, we have no glass blowing or ceramics experience. What to know beforehand: -You need to wear long pants, long sleeves, and closed-toed shoes and masks! -Picking colors and designs in person may take a while (if you're very decisive you may not have this problem). There are tons of options for what you can make and with what colors so it took at least an hour for us to pick and choose. The final price of your piece can also vary depending how big you want it to be and what color(s) are involved. -It'll take a day for the piece to cool when you're done, so you'll have to pick it up another day. -Small parking lot on-site in the back along with street parking. The beginning glass lesson experience: -David was very good at teaching and support. I felt more like the designer of the piece than the glassblower/creator, but David really gives you every safe opportunity he can to give you hands on experience in the process and talks through every step. You're not just paying for a glass piece here - you're paying for David's 40+ years of experience blowing glass! Felt more like I was shadowing a glassblowing process. I learned a lot and had a great time. -Cynthia was also helpful in confirming the design during the process. I didn't know how to explain that I wanted more of a flare at the top of my design at one point but she caught that for correction. Some fun learnings: -If you want to seriously get into glassblowing, paperweights are the best shape to learn and practice. -The punt of the glass is super sensitive. We also learned a bit about identifying manufactured vs. handmade glass through it. -The Netflix show Blown Away is a fun show to watch if you want to see more glassblowing -Some glass colors are easier to work with than others, and if you're mixing colors in one piece, depending on the colors you're mixing, can make it harder or easier to shape because they affect how stiff the glass can be (lighter colors tend to be more stiff, darker colors tend to be more soft). My friend picked dark blue and green and hers came out great! Mine came out a little warped because I picked a longer piece with two very contrasting colors (dark blue and light pink), but David helped reshape it a little. Current pricing on their website: -Ornament $50 -Paperweight $65 -Sea float $70 -Heart $75 -Starfish $75 -Pumpkin $90 -Bird $90 -Drinking glass $95 -Transparent vase $140 -Fancy vase $175 -Beginning Glass Lesson (1-2 people only) $260/$325 depending on number of people plus tax.

Picked up two beautiful glass ornaments at Blowing Sands Glass Studio. Gorgeous craftsmanship,…read morefriendly staff, and a great spot for unique gifts! Next up: schedule a glass blowing class! The stands are from Etsy reseller.

Superb fine art framer. If you know fine art, you know Richard. He has decades of experience.read more

I have a family portrait of French origin dating from the early 1800's. Unfortunately one of the…read morecorners of the antique frame was damaged in a move. Because the frame is so old and there was no one locally that could restore this frame I searched on the internet and found Mr. Boerth. I sent him pictures and discussed having him repair it. Since he trained in France I had faith that he would do a good job - and I wasn't disappointed in the least. Mr. Boerth was able to restore the piece so well that no one would ever suspect it had been damaged. He accomplished this task in the timeframe he estimated and his charges were reasonable considering the knowledge and expertise that he has. While I have never been to his shop I look forward to visiting next time I am in the Seattle area. I wholeheartly recommend him if you need a repair or restoration of an antique frame or if you want to buy an antique frame he is definitely the man to go to.

Wow. I am mystified how I could have had such a different experience than everyone else here! And…read moreseriously, I am generally a forgiving, understanding, and accommodating person; just look at my other reviews. However my 5 minutes in this jewelry shop was 5 of the most unpleasant minutes I've ever spent doing business with any retailer. Firstly, a large white dog was present who barked loudly and at length. I mean, loudly! The dog barked incessantly for some time after we arrived, then calmed down enough for me to converse with the jeweler, then ramped up again when another customer entered. My partner's Apple Watch told her that she was in a dangerously loud environment. The entire back half of the shop was gated off to provide a space for this dog. This no doubt colored my experience talking to the jeweler. I brought in a mid-century pearl necklace and bracelet set. It was clear that the necklace needed restringing but it appeared that the bracelet just needed a new clasp ring. The jeweler looked at the bracelet and said, "This needs restringing." I asked why it needed restringing and he repeated that it did need restringing. I asked why he couldn't just replace the ring, and he said, "because it needs to be soldered." I didn't see what that had to do with anything so I asked again and he said, "because it needs to be restrung." Holy moley. I asked again and he said, "because I need some string there to attach it to". I asked why he couldn't attach the ring to the other ring that was still attached to the pearls and he replied, "because it needs to be soldered." Now, I wasn't questioning his expertise. I just need to understand the work that is proposing. So I persisted and said, "Why can't you solder a ring on?" He said, "Because it would harm the pearl next to it." OK, that I can understand, but I felt exasperated that he hadn't been forthcoming. He then explained other reasons why it needed to be restrung. This was educational and interesting, and by then I was convinced that the piece needed to be restrung, but I was left with the feeling that he himself was exasperated with me. I think I would have rebounded from this had his dog not started barking loudly again at just that moment. It was impossible to speak over the barking, and no apology or explanation from the jeweler. The very presence of this dog felt like an insult to me as a customer. The jeweler then went and attended to the customer who'd just entered and spent about 3 minutes with her, without excusing himself from our interaction. I packed up my pearls and left because I knew I didn't want to ever enter that space again. Somehow the other customer was able to accomplish what she needed done despite the barking, and she departed with a smile on her face. She had her own [well behaved] dog so perhaps that gave her a pro-barking bias. I give two stars because this guy probably does excellent work like everyone else here says he does. Otherwise, negative stars for my experience.

Honest knowledge skilled dependable and personal. Rare in today's world. Actually makes me hopeful…read morethere are still people out there that take their craft seriously and can be "your go-to guy/gal" for a particular service every time

Beautiful work and very kind people - I brought in an oil painting done in 1975 by my…read moregreat-grandma. She had written "Hannah's Cinderella Castle 1994" on the back of the canvas -- when the dust jacket was added, they wrote that on the back, preserving the note (wasn't something I thought to ask for when I was there, so this just shows the thought that goes in behind the work). The framing is excellent and very well done. Note that it's a wait to get pieces back, but it's worth it.

Excellent work, lovely people to work with. They are my go to source for framing and if I'm looking…read morefor a unique gift.

Zapffe's is more than a business. It represents generations of family who treasure the history of…read moreprecious metals like silver. I want to pass on to my family the value and story of my inherited pieces. David took so much time to research rare pieces from 1790, explaining their rare markings. His appraisals are worth the money, very detailed and will give you confidence that your loved ones will know their personal, historical, and market value.

They do AMAZING work! They replated three old silly spoons I had from my childhood including the…read moreCampbell Soup twins, and my Woody Woodpecker spoon. The spoons are gorgeous! They also redid the top to an a porcelain muffineer I picked up at one of my favorite stores that is now stunning. THANK YOU!

Roberto is a gem. He is highly skilled and has impeccable ethics. Couldn't ask for more.read more

I bought all new cushions for my patio furniture thinking I got the right thing, as it turned out…read morethe cushions for my six chairs fit perfectly but the seat cushions for my two sofas were too wide. I contacted Roberto and he said he could cut them down and sew back together. I also had him make me some throw pillows to match the new table cloth I purchased. The long and the short of it, they are perfect! No one would ever know they were cut apart and sewn back together. They fit perfect, look perfect, and the throw pillows are so nice, with piping and hidden zippers. I'm so pleased and he did it all in two days. I highly recommend this business.

This place is AMAZING. I've always wanted to paint and Dabble made it so easy to get started. I…read morebrought my own gessobords, but other than that, I didn't need to buy any other tools or supplies. I'm now obsessed and have painted every day since I joined, with three finished paintings that I'm really happy with. Dave, the owner, is so warm, welcoming, knowledgable, and supportive--he'll leave you alone if you want to just do your own thing, or he'll chat with you about your art if you want feedback. The space is set up incredibly well, ready for any kind of visual art you might want to do. The classes are fantastic too. I'm so happy that Dabble exists!

This is a super well laid out, super well lit super cool art studio available to the public!!…read more I was shipping art prints at the renowned Greenwood post office and happened upon this on my way back - the owner was available and was gracious enough to give me a tour of the space! They have TONS of professional tools!! Including silk press, vinyl cut, a station to assemble prints/zines etc, a station with a hood to do spray paints!! Looked like they had all kinds of paint brushes one might try, LOTs of professional sinks in their clean up area, even a fridge, small lockers, cubbies and a microwave if you need to put in an extra long session. All set up in the most organized and functional fashion, it's SO COOL!! They also offer classes to learn new techniques! The studio rate looks to be $10 an hour for individuals and $20 for a family unit, ( it's gotta be Guardians and kids who live under the same roof, it's not necessarily a group rate) I was shocked to see so much cool stuff at once so this list isn't complete and I've yet to get everyone together for a visit, but upon first glance this looks like an incredible community asset!!

I needed a large scale art print framed - 30x48 - and had never gotten anything custom made before…read more After reading a lot of mixed reviews for other places I came across Rich's and am so glad I did. He had a fantastic selection of frames and mats and made the process fun and exciting. Rich was knowledgeable, inviting and patient. The pricing is very transparent and a fantastic value. I will definitely return for all my future custom framing needs.

Rich did a beautiful job framing a group of photographs for me. His selection of matte boards to…read morechoose from was amazing and he had one that was absolutely perfect. He is an artist in his own right - all of his cuts were exact and the spacing of my photos was impeccable. The value of his work is unparalleled. You will not find another framer who will do such a superb job at a very fair price. Lastly, I must mention his turn around - very quickly done. I can't say he would be able to do all projects as fast as he did mine but it was finished within two days, at most three. Simply incredible!