I have been making quilts for almost 20 years, but I didn't know how to make garments. I never had…read morehome ec in school, so I decided to attend ASFD, and I am so glad I did. I signed up for private lessons with Sheila, who is fantastic. She has been so very kind and patient. Not only has she helped me learn to read a pattern, she also has helped me learn how to use my serger and my sewing machine. I am almost finished with my first project and am excited to start another. If you are interested in learning how to sew, it is never too late. Give them a call. The school is quite large with ample room. I would love to see Ilonka, the owner, have open sew days where people can come and work on projects when you need some extra room to spread out. I would gladly pay for that.

I took the Harajuku Fashion course. You learn about the different style tribes in Japan and then…read morecreate your very own Harajuku design!!!! (Insert squeals of excitement!!!) The instructor, Karen, helped me from conception to fully creating each item of my Visual Kei inspired design. At the end of the 8 week course you have a style walk. My class was absolutely amazed at the turnout we had! I plan on taking additional classes at the school to fulfill my middle school dream of being a fashion designer. I can't wait to be able to complete designs and alterations for myself and my friends. The staff at the school is also totally amazing! Super supportive and full of advice!

I saw Crafty Girl Austin at an event making cute bookmarks for children. I Co-Chair a festival and…read moreoversee all the children's activities. The festival draws in about 600 people and is a free event for an Austin neighborhood. This year several City Council Members and Mayoral Candidates attended as well. I thought Crafty Girl Austin would be a good fit and asked if they would like to be a part of it which they agreed. I told Crafty Girl that I would provide and set up her table, tent, and all supplies needed for her booth. I also said I would put her logo on our website and print her business name in the local newspaper. She would be able to hand out information at the event for free publicity of her business. All she would need to do is provide four volunteers for the event and the special paper faces that would be glued on the bookmarks. I used neighborhood funds to purchase supplies for her (roughly for about 200 children), set up the booth as promised, and marketed her business all with no cost or obligation to her. On the day of the event as I was setting up I received a text message about one hour before the festival was to begin saying she had morning sickness and was not going to be able to attend. I understand that things come up and people get sick. But not only did she not attend but no one from her business did either. If she was going to provide four volunteers then why did none of them show up? Through text message she said she was going to have someone bring the paper faces to the festival. As you can imagine they never arrived either. After the event I never received any follow up from her to see if we were able to cover the booth and no apologies were given. Crafty Girl Austin was a complete disappointment. I feel this business owner is very unprofessional. I will never ask her back and I would suggest anyone else who plans to use the business in the future to make sure you have a backup plan because you absolutely can not rely on them.

Crafty Girl is terrific. I've been to a few Crafty Girl events now and made some really fun…read moreitems--aromatherapy necklaces, recycled map trays, and I[heart]HOME string maps. I look forward to attending many more. I had just moved to Austin and hardly knew anyone in town. Crafty Girl was a great way to get out of the house, make something fun, and meet really friendly ladies. Anna is a such a warm, inviting, and fun person. It was such a pleasure to meet her and feel instantly included. She's also a great teacher--helpful and patient (which is excellent because I sometimes struggle with tying knots and stuff, heh.) The crafts are usually about $20 a piece, but that includes instruction and all the materials. The meet-ups I have been to have usually been about 2 hours long. I feel like it's a good value, but I'm also a little choosy about which I sign up for. ...great, talking about this has made me want to go sign up for another Crafty Girl meetup...

Best. Place. EVER. If you are looking for a covid friendly,…read morefun, and interactive activity I HIGHLY recommend spending an afternoon at this studio. I have never felt more safe, or more welcomed to an establishment before, in a time where it is so important for people to be kind to each other. Not to mention the INSANE work done by the head instructor, I was so impressed! Ginger is one of the most friendly, loving, and hard working women I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. So kind, so smart, and so SO talented. Could not recommend more!

Ginger is the most lovely human being you will ever meet in the whole wide world. She is…read morehardworking, genuine, and kind. She has worked tirelessly to provide for her students and to be at the spot she is now. I could not name somebody more patient and understanding with her students. She is simply lovely and her art lessons ARE worth the money

I took lessons with Rachel from 2017 through 2020 and stopped when I left Austin, Texas. I came in…read morewith no prior experience in oil painting, and she helped me build a solid foundation step by step. I started with watercolors and gradually transitioned to oils. She was very patient in guiding me through each new medium. She explains techniques clearly, is attentive to detail, and adjusts her teaching to what you're interested in learning. I usually attended lessons on Sunday afternoons. Her private studio accommodated a small group of students. The sessions ran about three hours, which allowed for plenty of individual attention while still keeping the atmosphere engaging. She also gives clear guidance on what materials to bring. Students bring their own paints and brushes and she's helpful about recommending what to start with. Her studio is about a five-minute drive from Jerry's Artarama, which made picking up supplies easy. I'd recommend her to anyone looking for a thoughtful, structured, and encouraging art instructor.

Rachel is an exceptional art teacher who was foundational in our daughter's journey with studying…read moreart. Over the almost 10 years she worked with our daughter, her patient approach helped build both technical skills and genuine confidence. She has a gift for making art instruction engaging and fun while also challenging students to master important fundamentals and push beyond their comfort zones. Rachel was incredibly supportive when our daughter applied to the McCallum Fine Arts program and her guidance and preparation were instrumental in helping gain admission to the school, where she's now thriving. Our daughter is likely on a track to pursue design or a creative career, and we credit Rachel's nurturing mentorship and the solid foundation she provided as major factors in setting her on this track. We cannot recommend Rachel highly enough for any family looking for an art teacher who genuinely cares about bringing out the best in every student!

Had a great weekend workshop with Steve and Heather. I was a total beginner and they really helped…read moreus all to really explore the materials we were working with and push ourselves to new places. It truly was a fantastic experience. Would love to go back again!

If you are interested in sculpture but don't have space at home for a fully-equipped studio,…read moreAtelier 3-D is the perfect place for you. This studio, run by Steve Dubov, has at least one of everything you might need for your sculpture explorations in clay, plaster, bronze, permastone, and beyond. And Steve is very knowledgeable and happy to answer any questions you've got. The people at the studio have a variety backgrounds, skill levels, goals, and aesthetics. But they are all laid back and love what they do. I've found this to be a very welcoming place. I especially recommend Steve's Sculpture 101 class series. His instruction isn't heavy handed and in each class you produce a small piece in just a few hours. An added bonus is that Armadillo Clay Supply is conveniently located few blocks away.

This review is for the Creative Action after school program including the pre K portion and the…read morefull afternoon with children from pre K to 5th grade. This was a huge disappointment. There are 2 teachers for 14 pre K children and maybe 3 teachers for all the total program. With too many kids, my child experienced bullying by both pre K students and older students. There will hitting, name calling and pushing that happened. The staff didn't do anything about it, write up a report or inform me this was going on. My kid told me everyday that boys were hitting him and calling him names :( The expectation is the children sit and color or sit and do a project for most of the afternoon. This is fine if a child is older but very hard for younger kids. Instead of thinking of creative ways to work with the younger children, they just kept telling my child to "sit" and that "my child should listen to them". The staff all have art backgrounds, no necessarily childcare backgrounds. They are teaching the pre K kids about "imagination". My child now tell me that "I don't like imagination". Between there being too many kids, the bullying, and the sitting, my child kept escaping. The teachers weren't paying attention and had trouble finding him and another kid. They had both either hid in the bathroom or left the building. This happened 3 times in 3 weeks (that I was told about) and probably more. Needless to say after a month we have pulled our child from the program. I would not recommend this program for younger kids. Wait until they are older, show interest in art and can defend themselves.

I took my 5 month old to his first baby music class at creative action today, and we both loved it…read more Miss Carrie is a great teacher: lots of energy and musical talent. She sang about eight songs using a range of instruments (ukelele, drums, jingle Bells, maraccas) and her CD player. This is a high quality, donation-based class for newborns to five year olds, offered most Saturday mornings during the year. I'm so glad it's in my neighbourhood. Highly recommended! There's also a movement class for toddlers (2 to 5 year olds).

I've wanted to rug tuft for a while and was excited to try it on my birthday!…read more The reservation requires you to sign waivers and send images beforehand. Didn't really know what to expect as it was my first time but was surprised that the host didn't know what images I sent before my group arrived. They also ran out of important yarn colors, such as black. I wish they were more prepared. Once we got into the actual instruction, the host was really helpful and allowed us to practice using the tufting guns. First, we trace the images by using projectors. Next, we picked yarn color. Then, after threading the yarn through the gun, we start tufting! Finally, the rug is shaved and glued. Took us three hours but it was well worth the time and effort! It was a lot of fun and can't wait to try making bigger rugs!

It was my first time rug tufting. Came here for my gf's birthday. Didn't really know what to…read moreexpect. We got there on time but we didn't start until 30 minutes later because the last group was running behind schedule. I think the host was not well prepared. The were so many yarn out of stock even the most common color, black. Some of the projectors to trace the images were not working so we had to connect our phones. Good parts: I do like the open working area with natural sunlight. The host did give instructions and try to help out as much as she could. She was engaging throughout the experience. The host glued the rug together at the end. We were there for three hours and took longer than expected. I rug tufted Iron Man. Ran out of material but it still turned out decent. I couldn't do my initial idea because they lacked yellow and black yarn. Overall, it was a fun event. I would go back but would first call to see if they have enough material.

I received two beautiful pieces of artwork for my birthday…read more Those are amazing: "full of Love and Creativity". I can't wait to wear that pretty jwelry with unique design and bright colors.